LAKEWOOD, NJ -- Georgian Court University won its third consecutive Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Volleyball Championship with a 3-0 victory over Philadelphia University Saturday afternoon at the GCU Wellness Center in Lakewood, NJ. Senior middle hitter Crystal Murdock took home Tournament MVP honors. With the win, Georgian Court has earned an automatic berth into the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament. The field will be announced late Sunday night. The Lions are now 31-4 overall this season.

Senior Ann Casado, the three-time CACC Player of the Year, led the Lions with 17 kills and a .379 hitting percentage, along with seven digs. Crystal Murdock added nine kills and tied her own CACC Tournament record with a .818 hitting percentage (nine kills, zero errors, 11 attempts). Junior Lisamary Figueroa dished out 35 assists and added 10 digs.

Senior Katie Miller led the Lady Rams with seven kills, while junior Natalie Amodei led the squad with nine digs.

Philadelphia (21-13) jumped to a 10-5 lead in the first set, but GCU fought back to tie the match at 19 on a Casado kill. She would have two more kills in the set, which the Lions would eventually win 25-22, after junior Stephanie Rivera provided the last point with a kill.

Georgian Court controlled the second set from the start, jumping to a 7-2 lead and eventually a 20-8 edge after an attack error by Philadelphia. The Lions took the set 25-9 after Stephanie Rivera closed it out with two straight service aces.

Georgian Court took the lead to start the third set and kept a slim margin throughout the action. A kill by senior Molly Malone pulled Philadelphia to within three at 17-14. GCU would score the next three points, capped by an ace by junior Ana Cruz, to take a 20-14 advantage. Philadelphia chipped away and pulled to within two points, 23-21, with help from a kill and block by junior Celena Rendon. A kill by Casado gave GCU match point at 24-21, but Philadelphia answered with a kill by senior Nicole Berkstresser to make it 24-22. After a GCU attack error made it 24-23, the Lions sealed the victory on a kill by senior Claudimary Rivera, giving her squad a 25-23 win.

Casado and Figueroa joined Murdock on the All-Conference team for the Lions, while Philadelphia's representatives were seniors Lindsey Butler and Katie Miller.

2008 CACC Volleyball Tournament

Quarter-finals, Tuesday, Nov. 11

N#1 Caldwell 3, N#4 Nyack 1

N#2 Bloomfield 3, N#3 Post 1

S#1 Georgian Court 3, S#4 Wilmington 0

S#3 Philadelphia 3, S#2 Holy Family 0

Semi-Finals, Friday, Nov. 14 at Georgian Court University

Georgian Court 3, Bloomfield 0

Philadelphia 3, Caldwell 1

Championship, Saturday, Nov. 15 at Georgian Court University

Georgian Court 3, Philadelphia 0

All-Tournament Team

Crystal Murdock, Georgian Court--MVP

Ann Casado, Georgian Court

Lisamary Figueroa, Georgian Court

Katie Miller, Philadelphia

Lindsey Butler, Philadelphia

Keesha Francois, Caldwell

Jussara Oliveira, Bloomfield

Laurie Stuart, Nyack

Brittany O'Neill, Wilmington

Kerry Smith, Post

Kelly Cummins, Holy Family