3 UP, 3 DOWN

After nine games the 'Jacks stand at a respectable 5-4. This weekend they invade Tulsa, OK to repay a favor by playing in the Raddison Tulsa Airport Invitational Tournament. See, two years ago, Tulsa came to Nacogdoches to play in our tourney, so this is the return trip. Along with the Hurricane - oh excuse me - Golden Hurricane (I still don't get that), SFA will face Debbie Humphreys' alum Texas Tech and West Coast Conference member Gonzaga.

Next week at this time we hope you all will have cleared some weekend space to join us in Johnson Coliseum for the Ladyjack Invitational Tournament. The 'Jacks will get in two games next Friday (2:30 and 7:00) and two more next Saturday (12:30 and 7:00). Keep the 18th and 19th reserved for supporting the girls.

Its only been eight days, but it already seems like forever that the club played at home. I really, really dislike these long spells on the road. This one is a 17-day span away from our home court and unfortunately, we've got another 17 day span in October on the road too. I know schedules are made under all sorts of considerations, but that doesn't stop me from thinking that a weekday match stuck in the middle of those road swings would aid in overall support from fans. Ugh, I digress.

What we're gonna do here today is look at the first nine matches and play "3 Up, 3 Down". I've read through box scores a few times and looked over game stories and had a conversation here and there with folks, and here are my takes for three of the more positive signs early in the season - followed by three things that we'll want to change going forward.

I'll take the approach of saving the best for last.... so not to accent the negative, but in the spirit of ending on a high note.. we begin with:

3 DOWN:

1. Team Attack Percentage: .189
You might remember from a previous post that the conference as a whole hit .192 last year. Simply put, I don't think this club is going to play deep in the postseason if they are an average attacking club. Now, Owens getting hurt didn't help things, but the team has got to get balls to the floor at a better rate. The team hit .237 last year. We are a quarter of the way through the season (that feels weird to even type) and the club will have to hit approximately .253 the rest of the way to match last years' percentage. Balls have to be knocked down at a bit more consistent clip to wind up with a high seed in the SLC Conference Tournament in November. Our leading attacker in terms of total kills and attacks is hitting .120. If whoever leads the team in attacks at the END of the year hits .120 then we will be an average team in terms of the standings. To put things a different way, the leading attacker on this team WON'T hit .120. You just won't give that many swings to a person hitting that low. Need proof?...The lowest hitting percentage over the last decade for a Ladyjack leading her team in attacks for the year is .183.

2. Too Many Service Errors
Yes, its true that we have 13 more aces than our opponents (40-27). However, that advantage is nullified when we look at the free points we are giving opponents. SFA has committed 64 service errors as opposed to 45 by our opponents. There's some simple math here. That's 'Plus 13' on aces and 'Minus 19' on service errors. Bottom line here is that the serving isn't helping us win matches at this point. By way of comparison, last year the team had substantially more aces than opponents while simultaneously having LESS service errors than the competition.

3. Matches like UC-Davis Can't Happen
Look, I know UC-Davis is a good club. But the truth is, we played better against Missouri State and Missouri State beat UC-Davis earlier in the tourney completed last week. Granted... Missouri State was on their own floor, but still, you get my point. Say what you will, but getting beat 25-14, 25-14, 25-13 is getting spanked. We were down 8-15 in each set - never really in any of them obviously. UC-Davis only committed six errors on 88 total attacks for the entire match. If you take the starting middle blockers out of the equation, SFA hit a ridiculous -.121 in the match. Without Bottles and Bailey we had only 10 kills coupled with 17 errors. To be an elite team in our conference, poor outings like that have to be kept to a minimum. That match took 66 minutes which is all you really need to know about it.

3 UP:

1. Back Row Defense Appears Solid
Ok, listen. Go back and read my previous posts on the Kuepker switch and the trust in Hanlan at libero. If I'm gonna shoot straight on the things above, then I have to be truthful down here too. I have been pleasantly surprised at Maddie Hanlan's adaptation to the college-level libero spot. I know, I know.. all the coaches are thinking "Nanny nanny boo-boo - we told you". It's not that I didn't trust what I was being told, but hey - Libero is the chief of the back row. Trust it to a freshman when you had one of the best liberos in the conference already? Just count me skeptical. Until now. Hanlan's averaging an even 4.00 digs per set and throw in Melissa Miksch at 3.54 dps and things look mighty secure on away-from-net defense. Hanlan's the #1 reason I am itching to see the team get back home. I want to see all this for myself - and I want the fans to see it too. The one game we've had at home both Hanlan and Miksch had 18 digs in just three sets. Getting that one exposure to that kind of production has left me antsy to see the back row play again. Hanlan and Miksch right now have me at the top of their fan clubs. And yes, I can hear the "What took ya so long?" comments from the coaches about now as well.

2. Daron hitting .268 - leading the team
When I did Ari's preview capsule back on August 14, I wrote "how scary are the middles on this team if Daron contributes significantly?" Well, Daron deserves every bit of playing time she is getting now and the middles on this team are really, really scary good. Daron's career hitting percentage coming into this year was .067, so I don't have to elaborate on just how much of an improvement we are witnessing here. She's already racked up more kills and attacks in the first nine games than she did in either of her previous seasons. We are watching a breakout and the benefits are going to be felt deep into the conference schedule. The thing is: This club does have the cast of characters to knock down balls. We've just got to find out who to set the ball to and in what frequency. Daron has stuck her hand up as if to say 'I can handle a heavier role'. I say we continue to give it to her. Daron's (along with Miksch's) improvement is a big reason we should be optimistic going into conference play in a couple weeks - along with getting KO back.

3. The two-headed setting attack is working
Many matches so far have seen the assist totals be evenly split between Kuepker and Buckner. I think this is evidence for the twin approach. Kuepker setting while the spot is in a back row rotation and Buckner setting when the spot jumps forward appears to be a good call from Debbie Humphreys so far. I've got a lot of questions about the setting position that I want to ask in weeks to come. I'll do an entry just on the setters at some point with the answers I get, but for now... this dual approach appears stable. One other tidbit from being in practice: More than a couple of times, I have watched assistant coach Erin McClanahan work with the setters. She often turns to one of Buckner and/or Lo and complements them on their decision making and distribution of balls. I am learning that the "smarts" of distributing balls to attackers in the proper way is underrated. Both of our setters seem to understand how to do this really well. They don't appear to just do things in a cold, formulaic way. They appear to do a good job of "taking what the defense gives" and optimizing the distribution of the attacks per teammate. The more I think about that job, the more difficult I realize it is. Buckner and Kuepker appear savvy in that regard.

Next week, I will begin previewing teams for conference play and soon I will try and have another set of interviews with both coaches and players. As always, if you have an idea - let me know. Recently, I have rekindled old conversations with former Ladyjack players. I am planning on taking a look at some of SFA's history and re-introducing you to some of the players that used to grace the court while wearing purple. At some point next week I will try and pass along an update on Kelsey. I am planning on talking with her directly when the team returns from Tulsa.

Finally, and I meant to do this weeks ago, thank you to those of you that spoke to me after the ULL match with kind words about this blog. Several fans and parents were complementary of the effort being made here. I truly appreciate that support. I also want to say this to any prep player that might just happen to be scanning sites like this: we are unique in how much coverage we give our team. Go check how much effort is being put out at other Southland schools to cover their squad. Read the game wraps and you'll see that Ben does a way better job than his competition when it comes to writing up stories at sfajacks.com. Then, go ask yourself if other schools we compete against have a forum such as this for their team. The answers you find should tell you something about SFA Volleyball.

2009 Veteran Previews: Seniors

This is the first of three posts which showcase the veterans returning for 2009. Today we focus on the seniors that will take the court for Debbie Humphreys squad. Over the weekend, we'll turn our attention to the juniors and the sophomore class gets all the attention during the middle of next week. Oh, you can be sure we won't forget the freshman. With five of them, we are going to try and do something special to introduce all of you to the newcomers.


13 Ashley Bailey 6-0 Middle Blocker

100+ blocks. Mark it down - it's as good as in the books. Don't believe me? Then consider that Bailey has been amazingly consistent at the net since returning from her redshirt season in 2006. Realize that any comparison between stats put up in 2007 and 2008 has to adjust for the sets being played to 25 for the first time last year. In 2008, Bailey led the conference with an even 1.00 block per game while tallying 91 total rejections. Translated to 30 point sets, that's equivalent to 1.20 blocks per (30 point) game. In 2007, Bailey posted an essentially equivalent figure of 1.22 blocks/game. So, at the net, you know what you are going to get. She leads a core of middle blockers that will be as solid as any crew in the Southland Conference. Mix Bailey in with '08 SLC First Team selection MC Bottles and throw in the depth provided by Arielle Daron and opposing hitters are gonna have to get used to their attacks landing on their own side of the floor. That's without even factoring in any bonus contribution the 'Jacks get from 6-2 freshman Amber Doolittle.


The real leap forward by Bailey in 2008 wasn't in terms of defensive presence at the net. Instead, a complete player emerged as evidenced by more efficiency on offense. Her .298 hitting percentage was second only to Bottles on the club and really represents the step forward made from 2007 when she hit just .165. Kills per game stayed fairly constant going from a translated 2.24 per game in '07 to 2.35 per game in '08. Its the efficiency that made the difference - a feature Humphreys surely hopes to see again in '09.


There was always the potential for this. Bailey was often labeled as "raw" prior to her injury - her athleticism from day one on campus was undeniable. The difference now is that the raw power is harnessed and she clearly has become an all around force. She's imposing and intimidating... and she's an anchor. At a minimum expect a performance equal to her SLC Honorable Mention campaign in 2008. An even modest step forward and she's in the running for 1st team honors and SLC Player of the Year.


Her overall career numbers may not rival what Bottles totals will be by 2011, but that's only because Bailey played in the shadow of Traci Rohde until last year. Along with Bottles, she is as steady a contributor as the club has going into 2009. She's got no question marks hanging over her head like a few of her colleagues. Reliability is what to expect and she's got the ability to put the team on her shoulders - as broad and as strong as they are.


2 Paloma Buckner 5-11 Setter


During late October of last year primary setter Whitney Schott was fresh off a career high 62 assists in win against Sam Houston. No matter. Buckner was called on in the next conference match and responded with 41 of her own against rival Lamar. It was a very emotional match as the 'Jacks jumped out to a 2-1 set lead but ultimately had to watch Lamar celebrate a comeback win on our home floor. That match was the beginning of a shifting back and forth between Schott and Buckner as the primary play caller the rest of the year.

You need only know two things about how that setting seesaw eventually played out: 1) Humphreys went to Buckner in the decisive fifth set in the SLC Tourney game against Sam Houston and 2) Schott is probably now mixing in figure skating with setting on the frozen tundra that is Wisconsin-Green Bay.

I get the feel Humphreys genuinely trusts Buckner in an obviously more visible role this year. She won't have to carry the lion's share of the setting duties with teammate Laurel Kuepker trading in the libero jersey for her quarterback assignment alongside Buckner. Just how much time on the court Buckner gets in '09 is still unclear. But, I've got to believe that the combination of Buckner and Kuepker will be productive and the distribution of playing time looks to be fluid depending upon Kuepker's effectiveness in her new role. Be sure: Buckner is more than insurance against Kuepker's transition. Buckner would probably do just fine running the whole show - that probably won't be how it plays out, but its got to make the coaching staff comfortable knowing they can go with a twin attack of Lo and Buckner when necessary.

As I see it, Buckner's role is influenced to some degree by what freshman Maddie Hanlan can handle on the back row. Humphreys would like to see Hanlan contribute significantly at libero. If she can do that, then not having Kuepker in the off-colored jersey is a more comfortable proposition. One has to wonder if the club would be tempted to go back to Lo at libero if Hanlan needs more time before assuming a large defensive role. If so, Buckner would stand to benefit from increased time at setter. All signs point to Kuepker's role truly having shifted, but this is August and what really matters is what Humphreys sees as the best personnel to trot out on the court come November.

Buckner looks to make a significant contribution in '09. To what degree is the only issue. The bottom line: I think everyone involved sees the total contribution coming at setter as superior to what the club got last year.


6 Sydney Milburn 5-7 DS

Defensive Specialists don't get enough credit. All work, too little glory. The game is based around getting this ball-thingy over the net and they're the ones that play farthest away from it. "Back Row" players they're called. Where do you want to be at a concert? Front Row or Back Row? See what I mean. It's not fair.

For my money though, I still say the play I want to see the most is someone diving face first into the hardwood with arm extended saving a ball from going off the floor. Even the statistical term implies it's dirty work: the dig. Gotta love it. That's Milburn's job. Back row defense.

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Trivia: Take away the fact that Lauren Railey can't put on the uniform anymore and that the aforementioned Kuepker has assumed the role of setter and who does that leave as the returner with the most number of digs per game?

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Winner-winner chicken dinner: That'd be Milburn. Of the five freshmen that are just getting acclimated to college volleyball, only Hanlan is a back-row specialist. The club doesn't have near the DS depth that they do in the middle front - and maybe they don't need it, but when I scan the roster and only see "DS" twice that tells me that Milburn may very well see the court more in '09 than she did in '08. Hey, just like Buckner, Milburn was on the floor when the last set of the season commenced. She saw action in all five sets that night. Hopefully, she can build on the 12 digs that she put up in the final match of 2008.

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One interesting note: At the team dinner last Sunday, Coach Humphreys chose Milburn to end the night by telling all in attendance what they could expect from the team in 2009. That told me something. Whether on the floor a ton or not, Milburn is a senior - and with that comes the expectation of leadership. She seems to be up to the task. Make sure and yell just a little louder when she digs one off the floor while crashing into press row. Remember, DS's don't get enough credit.