Nov. 17, 2001

DAYTON, Ohio - Sara Bachus, two-time Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, and teammate Katey Wygant each had 15 kills Saturday as Xavier routed Rhode Island 3-0 in the semifinals of the conference playoffs at the University of Dayton.

Second-place Xavier (24-3, 13-3) will play for the title Sunday against fourth-place Temple (21-9, 10-6), which upset regular-season champ Dayton 3-1 in the other semifinal.

Xavier, which finished a game behind Dayton during the regular season, cruised to a 30-21, 30-21, 30-19 victory over third-place Rhode Island (16-11, 12-4). The Rams ended their season with a 10-win improvement over last year's 6-20 mark and lose only one regular.

That regular, all-league middle blocker Yolanda Bogacz, wrapped up an outstanding career with eight kills and a team-high three blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Amy Kauppila led the Rams in kills with 10.

Rhode Island setter Juliana Valencia led both teams with 12 digs, the fourth time in the last five matches she topped the Rams in that category.

The Rams, who split with Xavier during the regular season, made the four-team playoffs for the 17th time in the 20-year history of Atlantic 10 volleyball. They entered the day tied for fourth in the NCAA Northeast Region rankings.