The Shorthorn - The New Faces of Volleyball

The New Faces of Volleyball

Written by Stephen Peters

Thursday, 28 August 2008 10:03 PM

History repeats itself in the world of sports and there is no better chance of that happening than the upcoming volleyball season.

Losing five starters, including three All-Conference performers and having an influx of nine freshmen makes the Mavericks a very young but athletic and talented team for fifth-year head coach Diane Seymour.

“It’s kind of a reloading or retooling situation,” Seymour said. “We have some extremely athletic freshmen coming in here and we’re excited about that.”

In 2004, as an interim head coach, Seymour took the reins of a team that had three returning starters and six incoming freshmen.

That team went 24-7 overall and 15-5 in conference play to finish third in the Southland Conference.

Even with nine new faces on the team, expectations remain high for a team that always remains a conference power and is within reach of a conference championship.

Seymour recalls in 2004 that she was too structured with the freshmen and didn’t allow them to play the game.

“I’m giving them a little more freedom to be the athlete we recruited — just take some of the pressure off so they can relax and play the game,” she said.

Sophomore outside hitter Bianca Sauls, who led the team last year with 3.04 kills per game, echoed Seymour’s belief that despite the lack of collegiate experience, the team will surprise many people.

“We’re going to surprise them with the way we can hit,” Sauls said. “We have some freshmen that are good on the front court and we’ll able to put up good block and hits.”

Sauls, junior two-year starter Teena Sobczak, senior Ally Wade and four freshmen headline a deep and athletic outside hitter position for the team. All are vying for two starting positions on the floor.

For the second straight year, the Mavs must replace an all-conference libero after the loss of Dani Johnson.

Johnson replaced Ashley Smith last season.

Sophomore Katie Utech, who saw limited action as a true freshmen last year with seven digs and one ace, and freshman Alicia Shaffer look to anchor the libero position.

Middle blocker is another position for Seymour’s team that will be loaded with young talent, which should provide many options for the Mavericks.

Senior Michelle Schwartz, who played in 32 career matches, is the only player on the roster with collegiate experience.

Redshirt freshman Christy Driscoll may be another player the Mavs will rely on as a middle blocker.

Sophomore Raegan Daniel takes the role of setter, replacing Emily Nedderman who was a three-year starter for the Mavs.

Daniel played in 19 games last year with 17 assists and 10 digs. Despite the raw talent the team possesses, Southland coaches and sports information directors picked the Mavs to finish 3rd in the West Division and 5th overall in conference.

“They [freshmen] were shocked,” she said. “The upperclassmen took it as, ‘Okay, we’re out to prove we’re better than this.’ ”

The Mavericks open the season tonight in Denton — in the Mean Green Classic — against Jackson State, an opponent they have never played.

UTA is 3-0 against Southwestern Athletic Conference opponents however, with victories over Grambling (1-0) and Texas Southern (2-0).

Seymour stressed to her players, mainly freshmen, Tuesday in practice about mental toughness if the team is to come away with a winning record before conference play begins.

“You’ve got to shake off the mistake that just happened and prepare for what’s next,” Seymour said before practice ended.

That toughness will be tested early and often during the season, as the Mavericks have 13 of their scheduled 30 games against teams that finished the 2007 season in the top 150 in RPI rankings (Texas Tech 143, SMU 138, Utah St. 141, San Francisco 99, UC-Santa Barbara 126, TCU 67, Duke 28, Middle Tennessee St. 12, New Mexico 68, Lamar 109, Texas State 101, Central Arkansas 134, Stephen F. Austin 65).

New assistant coach Christina Melvin, who played for Texas State in 2005-2006, said she understands what it’s like for a team to go through this transition.

“My freshmen year we had 10 new players and three returners,” Melvin said. “So I know exactly how the freshmen feel and how the seniors feel as well.”

Players and coaches say they have high anticipation to get the season underway and avenge a first-round upset loss to Northwestern State in last year’s conference tournament.

“I don’t know if we can win the regular season [title] because it’s a long lengthy process that some freshmen have to adapt to,” Seymour said. “But if we can keep maturing and stay confident throughout the year, as athletic as we are, we can shock some people in the conference tournament and that’s what I would like to see.”
Views: 796 | E-mail

Be first to comment this article

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 20 January 2009 03:38 PM )

< Prev		Next >

[ Back ]