The UD women's volleyball team came into the 2006 Atlantic-10 Championships looking for many things. The women had the goal of a fourth A-10 Tournament title, as well as earning an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

After a regular conference season where the Flyers received a share of the west division A-10 title and the No. 1 seed for the tournament, UD was looking to continue to impress in conference play.

Unfortunately, UD just missed earning that fourth A-10 title, falling to Saint Louis in the title match, 3-1.

UD started the tournament in impressive fashion. Thanks to their No. 1 seed, the Flyers received a bye in the first round of the A-10 Tournament. After Xavier defeated Charlotte in a three game sweep Friday night, the Flyers learned they would earn a rematch against one of just two A-10 schools that UD lost to during the regular season.

Saturday night, the two schools met for the semifinal match of the tournament. In the first game, UD started with a five-point run before the Musketeers could get on the board. The Flyers led from start to finish, closing out the first game, 30-23.

The second game of the match was a lot closer for the two schools. After 20 tie scores and six lead changes, the Flyers earned the second win, 30-25. UD led the game with 16 kills as Xavier totaled a close 14, with both teams compiling eight errors in the game. With the score tied at 26, junior Robynne Green took a pass from redshirt sophomore Erin Schroeder and brought the Flyers up by one. Thanks to two attack errors from Xavier, UD clinched the second game win.

Although Xavier scored the first point of the third game, it would be the only time that XU would lead. The Flyers led by as much as 10 in the game, as UD earned a .329 hitting percentage to Xavier's .102. UD swept the match in three games as the Flyers won the last game, 30-21.

Green led both teams with 13 kills and a .545 hitting percentage for the night as fellow junior and A-10 First Team honoree, Jaime-Lee Richards, and A-10 Offensive Player of the Year, senior Faye Barhorst, each had 12.

Schroeder, the A-10 Setter of the Year, led both teams with 37 assists. Junior Adrienne Green totaled 17 digs, as the Flyers lead Xavier with 51-48 digs for the match.

The win secured UD a place in the tournament championships against Saint Louis, who defeated Fordham and Charlotte to earn its spot in the finals.

The meeting between UD and SLU was a rematch of the top two teams in the west division of the A-10 this season. The two teams originally met earlier in November and, through a tough five-game match, the Bilikens earned the victory.

Now, both teams were looking to secure not only the title of A-10 Tournament Champion, but also a bid to the NCAA tournament.

In the four-game match, UD opened with the first point off a kill from Green. SLU responded off a kill from senior Angela Powers. Play went back and forth, with neither team having no more than a four-point lead. The Flyers looked like they might take the first game, with the score at 29-28, but SLU tied it up with a kill by Lauren Christman. The Bilikens went on to score two more unanswered points and win the opening game, 31-29.

Not ready to back down, UD responded in the second game and pulled out the win, 30-25. Thanks to a ball handling error by the Bilikens, the Flyers opened with a 1-0 lead. UD amassed a 5-1 lead in the first plays of the second game and continued to lead until SLU tied the score at 19. UD responded and held the lead until a kill from Richards sealed the win for the Flyers, 30-25, and tied the match at 1-1.

The third game saw five tie scores and neither team earning again more than a four-point lead. With the scored tied at 21, SLU grabbed the lead off a kill from Whitney Roth and held that lead throughout the game. UD tried to regain its position, off kills from sophomore Bethany Akerheilm, Richards, and Barhorst, but SLU kept playing and scoring to win the third game in a close 30-27.

The fourth game saw SLU up, 2-1, and the Flyers needing to win in order to keep their hopes of a fourth A-10 crown alive. After five lead changes, UD held the lead on its own until the Bilikens tied up the game at 13. The score was again tied at both 15 and 16 points for both teams. SLU grabbed a bit of a lead, but the Flyers were able to catch up with the score at 26 and then 27 points. After the tie at 27, the Bilikens earned the 28th point from another kill by Powers. After a UD attack error and a kill from Biliken Sammi McCloud, SLU won the fourth game 30-27.

The Bilikens ended the Flyers hopes for an unprecedented fourth A-10 title in four close games at the Frericks Center.

With the conference season done, UD has at two more games on their schedule this fall. The Flyers will travel to Malibu, Calif., to play No. 22 Pepperdine tomorrow and then move on to Los Angeles to play Loyola Marymount Saturday.