Jan. 13, 2010

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - Though the team had its share of struggles at times, the 2009 season remained an historic one for the Winston-Salem State Lady Rams. With an experienced group of upperclassmen leading the way, the team battled their way to make the 2009 a successful one that fans will remember for years to come.

One of the key obstacles for the team was replacing former Lady Ram Valentina Pushkina who was one of the top players in school history and graduated last May.

Senior outside hitter Annika Barnwell was on a mission for the entire season as she cemented her place as the best player in school history. Heading into the season, the senior needed 303 kills in order to claim the school record in career kills. She did better than that finishing the season with 376 total kills. It was on October 30th when she set the school record in total kills. It was only fitting that the senior completed her mission on Senior Night in front of her fans and family who surprised her by heading here from Miami, Florida to share the special night. With the effort, she passed former Lady Ram hitter Chasity Clarke who held the previous record of 946 career kills. Clarke was also in attendance as she was an assistant coach on the Lady Rams' staff this season. Making her efforts more impressive is the fact that Barnwell became the team's career leader while playing against NCAA Division I competition for her entire career. Heading into the season, Barnwell had already become the team's career leader in service aces and was second in career digs.

Fellow senior Georgette Allen also had an historic season as she became one of the top defensive players in school history when she finished her career as the WSSU career leader in block assists (146) and finished second in career total blocks (202). Allen had a great senior season as she was one of five players to play in all 124 sets of the season. She finished the season with 120 kills and led the team with 81 total blocks.

The Lady Rams got the season off to a strong start, pushing the Navy Midshipmen to the limits in a five-set loss in the season opener. Though the team continued to battle, they struggled in the early going, taking three-set losses in the next seven matches. It wasn't until September 12th, on the second day of the 2009 Lady Rams Invitational when the team would record its first win of the season. The team did s in dramatic fashion when they took a 3-0 win over the Savannah State Lady Tigers. The Lady Rams had to battle in all three sets of the match taking the win, 25-17, 30-28, and 25-21.

With the win secured, the Lady Rams ran into some more struggles, however, as the team dropped the next 11 matches, including a heartbreaking five-set loss against Hampton at the North Carolina Central Invitational in Durham, North Carolina. The Lady Rams would get back into the win column when they took a three-set road win at Coppin State behind the efforts of Barnwell and junior hitter Ashley Harris. Harris led the way for the team with a season-high 17 kills while Barnwell became one of just 25 players in the nation to record a triple-double as she recorded 10 kills, 12 service aces, and 10 digs in the match.

The win sparked their best stretch of the season when the Lady Rams posted wins in three of their next five matches, including a pair of home wins against Alabama State and local rival North Carolina A&T. However, the effort was the last gasp for the team as they finished the season with 11 straight losses. The team showed their fight in every match, however, including pushing the South Carolina State Lady Bulldogs to five sets on November 1st.

The season also saw trio of juniors rise to the occasion and become leaders on the squad. Junior hitter Ashley Harris also had a great 2009 season in her first as a team captain. She finished second on the team with 268 kills and was fourth on the team with 214 digs. Fellow junior libero LaKeisha Hawes led the team with a team-high 310 digs. Rounding out the trio was junior opposite side Erica Cole who finished second on the team with 285 digs and 88 total kills.

Sophomore setter Alexandria Brown returned from a season-ending knee injury that ended her freshman season. She coordinated the WSSU attack with 725 assists. Fellow sophomore Asia Carr provided some needed depth at the setter position with 85 assists.

For more information on Lady Rams softball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2909 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.