Dowling's Futch, Klekotka eye volleyball title

Many teams would sign up for being called elite. The volleyball team at Dowling seeks a higher plane. With five trips to the NCAA Elite Eight in Division II, the Golden Lions want to enhance their postseason resume. A national title would do it.

The quest starts Wednesday in Louisville on the campus of Bellarmine University as No. 22 Dowling (30-1) faces unranked Clarion (Pa.) (32-4) in the quarterfinal round. A victory would likely send Dowling against No. 1 Concordia (Minn.) in the Final Four on Friday.

"I think everybody is tired of us not advancing,'' said senior defensive specialist Megan Futch, who has made two trips to the Elite Eight. "We all have a common goal, get in and work it as hard as we can.''

Teammate Patrycja Klekotka, an outside hitter, agreed. This will be her third appearance at the Elite Eight. "This year we have high expectations,'' she said.

Coach Alex Koszalka, in his 11th season, believes stronger in-season competition would help prepare his team to go deeper in the postseason.

"It is what it is in the sense that we don't play in the strongest region in the country,'' Koszalka said. "We pretty much mowed down competition in the region. If you have to battle on a daily basis you are going to be a little bit stronger in the long run. In the East region, two or three other teams are physically capable of playing with us. That usually doesn't give us enough of a battle in season. In spring, we play as many D-I teams as we can. I try to give them as much competition as I can."

When Dowling lost to Bridgeport during the regular season in the East Coast Conference, it snapped a 15-match winning streak. "We were really upset,'' Klekotka said. "But I guess that was a wake-up call. We came back and realized we can't do that anymore.'' Dowling defeated Bridgeport in the ECC Tournament and NCAA regional.

Dowling is a huge success story because of international students such as Polish-born Klekotka and teammate Monika Kasperek-Szulc. Klekotka leads the team with 316 kills; Kasperek-Szulc has 224.

"I didn't have the idea of establishing a Polish connection,'' said Koszalka, who is fluent in the language. "But it became apparent we needed some stronger players not just to compete, but to win the conference. I didn't come here just to compete, I came here to win.''