Sept. 22, 2011

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Loyola Marymount University celebrates its Centennial in 2011-12, and LMU Athletics will be honoring 100 years of history all season. Each of LMU's NCAA Division I programs will be hosting a Centennial Game to honor LMUat100, which included more than 900 fans at the Sept. 10 men's water polo game against Pepperdine in the Wells Fargo PCH Cup. Up next is the women's volleyball match against conference newcomer BYU on Thursday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. Leading up to the match, LMULions.com will take a look back at some of the memorable moments from women's volleyball's storied history. Today's look back features LMU's 1996 Sweet Sixteen season that saw the best record in program history.

The 1996 LMU women's volleyball team posted the most successful season in program history when it reached the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. The Lions managed a 26-3 overall record that year, won the third of four consecutive WCC titles, and notched their second straight undefeated conference season. The Lions defeated UC Santa Barbara in the second round of the 1996 NCAA Tournament before advancing to the NCAA Tournament's Pacific Regional Semifinals, where they dropped a tightly-fought match to Washington State. The Lions ultimately finished the campaign ranked ninth nationally in the AVCA coaches poll.

In a year that saw only three losses, LMU began the season at 0-1 after dropping a five-set match to Texas A&M. The Lions quickly righted the ship, rattling-off 10 straight victories, including victories over LSU, Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara. Carrying a perfect 5-0 home record into a match against then No. 6 Long Beach State on September 25, LMU lost an epic five-set battle to the 49ers in Gersten Pavilion in the final match before the start of West Coast Conference play.

The first home loss (and the second and final loss of the regular season) only seemed to motivate LMU even more, as the Lions opened WCC play by defeating Portland and Gonzaga to start what would become a perfect run through the conference. Teamed with a victory over non-conference foe William & Mary on October 13, LMU would post 15 straight wins from October 4 through November 23 headed into the NCAA Tournament. The Lions dominated conference play in 1996, recording eight sweeps over the 14 conference victories.

After earning a bye in the NCAA Tournament first round, LMU hosted UC Santa Barbara for the second time that season in Gersten Pavilion on December 8 in the NCAA Tournament second round. The Lions lost the first set, but rebounded to take the match in four sets to punch their ticket to the program's first Sweet Sixteen appearance in the modern 64-team NCAA Tournament. The Lions had previously reached the final 16 after upsetting then-No. 7 UCLA in the 1986 first round when only 32 teams earned a spot on the bracket.

The Lions lost a thrilling four-set match to Washington State in the semi-finals of the Pacific Regional at Stanford's Maples Pavilion on December 13. Washington State won the match by scores of 15-12, 11-15, 15-13, 15-8. The Lions were led by Sarah Noriega with 30 kills and four blocks. Kim Blankinship posted 21 kills and 11 digs.

Following the storied season, Blankinship was named WCC Player of the Year. The outside hitter, who along with Tracy Holman and Noriega earned AVCA All-District VIII honors, collected 445 kills at a rate of 4.32 per set while also serving up 43 aces and posting 312 digs at a rate of 3.03 per set. Blankinship, a first team All-WCC honoree, highlighted five All-conference selections for LMU in 1996, including first-teamers Holman and Noriega, second team selection Karissa Meith, and honorable mention selection Cindy Weglarz. Head coach Steve Stratos was also rewarded for the stellar season, earning WCC Coach of the Year for the third straight year to become the first WCC coach to ever win the award in three consecutive campaigns.

More on the 1996 Lions:
• 1996 Roster • 1996 Stats and Schedule • 1996 Tournament Bracket

More on LMUat100:
• Centennial Game Schedule • Athletics LMUat100 Homepage • LMUat100 Homepage