They came to St. John’s from all over the country. They came from different backgrounds with different lifestyles. They came as four, but left as one. They are the four seniors on the Red Storm volleyball team who played their final game together on Sunday at Alumni Hall.
Amanda Berg, Stephanie Luehr, Aleeza Miller, and Olga Roudovski ended their St. John’s careers with a dominating performance over Robert Morris to finish as arguably the greatest volleyball class ever to grace the floor at Alumni Hall. They were the key contributors on a squad that finished the season with an overall record of 25-8, breaking the single-season record for most wins ever by a St. John’s volleyball team. However, despite all their accomplishments this group did not finish off their careers the way they had hoped. The Red Storm missed qualifying for the Big East tournament after losing to UCONN on Friday.
“This year ended in disappointment for us, but it was still fun playing together,” Miller reflected.
In their four years at St. John’s, the Red Storm compiled a stellar 71-54 record, but were never able to capture that elusive Big East tournament berth. Individually these girls have also secured their place in St. John’s history.
Roudovski finished the season with 554 kills, setting the single season mark for the Big East conference. In total she tallied 1,541 kills in her career, the most in St. John’s history. Berg finished her outstanding career fifth all-time in kills with 884 and third all-time in blocks with 366. While Miller finished second all-time in blocks with 378 and Luehr finished 10th all-time in digs with 638.
These girls will each leave the team and the university and more than likely head in four different directions. They will take with them different memories, but each will take with them a friendship with each other that formed over four years of sweat and tears. When asked what they would miss the most, they answered in unison “the girls.”
“The camaraderie that formed between us is something that I will always remember,” Luehr said.
Those things that seemed so dreadful during their four years are now memories that they will cherish the rest of their lives. “Even though we hated the road trips, we will never forget them because of the fun we had,” Berg said. However, the girls did agree that the one thing that they would not miss is training on the beach during the off-season.
“They have to just remember to have fun, savor every memory, and go hard on every point because the four years go way too fast,” Berg said.
The girls will graduate in May and begin their post college lives. Some may go home, while others may begin anew somewhere else. Some may continue schooling and some may enter the work world right away. One thing that is certain is that these four girls will always share St. John’s. They will always share volleyball. They will always share the friendship they formed over the four years.
