Volleyball Update

The Volleyball team went on the road to play against Fordham and Rhode Island just over a week ago. Flyer fans are spoiled and I predicted a victory in both matches. The Flyers did beat Forham in three sets but lost to Rhode Island in five sets.

The Rhode Island match was very very close in all parts of the game but it was obvious that each team had runs of points instead of it just being a side out battle. So I asked Matt what happened to cause this and what part of the game let them down.

"I thought we totally controlled sets 1 and 4, and we let major leads slip away in sets 2 and 3. Rhode Island did some good things, especially with their offense behind the setter, but when you have a sizable lead after point 20 you have got to be able to play steady/controlled volleyball and sprint to the finish line. Our serve receive passing struggled late in sets 2 and 3, and we were not able to either put the ball away or stop the transition attack".

One thing Matt mentioned at the Sunday chalk talk is that they had 24 points in one set and ran out of substitutions which resulted in Ally setting and Jenna hitting. This isn't something you plan for.

Matt discussed the strategy for the home return match against Rhode Island at the chalk talk. I won't go into details but it was obvious that UD played muched better.

It has been obvious from looking at the stats that Shayne and Jill have been doing a nice job recently so I asked Matt for his thoughts.

"With Shayne, it is simply her attitude about switching positions and her continued comfort in hitting the outside tempo and location. She has really worked hard to get a feel for the outside, and she is hitting .283 out there since the switch. That is a big-time hitting percentage. She needs to continue her improvement, while also understanding the blocking/defensive responsibilities that are new to her. Jill has also been producing at a much higher rate, and I think that is also due to her getting more comfortable in her position. I think she is also getting stronger, getting a faster arm, and understanding shot selection better. She has hit over .210 the last four matches, and maybe more importantly, has drastically decreased her error percentage. Jill is also getting better every day at setting a good/strong block."

Matt did have some good news on Alaina Turner's injury.

"Alaina is still very weak with her right shoulder, but we don't think it is a rotator cuff tear. She is working back into non-hitting practice drills (passing and a little back row defense), and we hope she can get back to 100% as we near November".

In case you haven't been paying attention to the posts of BECKYSTXA UD has been a top 10 blocking team all season so I asked Matt why they are so improved from last season.

"Our basic premise is that we start in a balanced base position (2 arms length from each other) in an effort to get positive deflections/blocks in the interior of the court. We then wait to see where the set is headed and accelerate to it and go get the hitter. I'm not sure how much we have changed from the past, but we do spend time on our last two steps of the block, as well as our block timing and where are hands/arms are at the point of contact from the hitter. We are continuing to work hard at getting up a "perfect" block when the hitter hits the ball, even if we are not in the best position. Being up and strong will create a wall".

During the chalk talk we discussed adjustments during a match and how many changes that they make between sets. He said that they normally don't make major adjustments from set to set unless the other team is making major changes. But, he added that they evaluate each rotation during a match and that can affect where they postion the players initially to increase or decrease the number of times a rotation occurs.

Sorry I am a week behind, I will plan on having matt's comments on the big Rhode Island victory before next week's match





It is pretty obvious that Shayne is beginning to get comfortable

	Rhode Island RHODE ISLAND The University of Rhode Island was chartered as the state's agricultural school in 1888. The school became the Rhode Island College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in 1892. Located in southern Rhode Island, URI is a quintessential New England campus - rural in feeling yet close to the city of Providence, the state's capital. Linked to the city, the beaches, and nearly every corner of the state by both rail and public transit, the campus is easily accessible from Boston and New York URI currently offers 100 majors in seven degree-granting colleges. There are more than 12,000 students on the Kingston campus, about 3,000 in Providence, and a complement of about 700 faculty. Fellow members of the A10 Conference. Nickname is the Rams.

	Fordham FORDHAM Fordham University is an independent Jesuit university established in 1841 as St. John's College on old Rose Hill Manor in the village of Fordham, then part of Westchester County in the Bronx, NY. The name Fordham is derived from the Anglo-Saxon words "ford" and "ham," meaning a wading place or ford by a settlement. Rose Hill is the name given to the site in 1787 by Robert Watts, a wealthy New York merchant, in honor of his family's ancestral home of the same name in Scotland. The College was originally staffed by diocesan clergy. The name was officially changed to Fordham University in 1907. Fordham's 10 schools enroll 14,448 students. There are 7,652 undergraduates, of whom 3,842 live in University-managed housing either on-campus or in the local community. Fellow members of the A10 Conference. Nickname is the Rams. Athletic claim to fame is consistent mediocrity in nearly all sports and few A10 title winning programs.