Cowgirls Riding a Dark Horse?

Over the last handful of years, McNeese Volleyball has not been considered one of the pinnacle programs in the Southland Conference.  Despite this, my readers are aware that I feel that there have been times when the Cowgirls deserved some mention of credit and failed to get it.  Maybe the episode that got me the most riled up was in 2009 when all of Chanel Tyler, Nicole Bowden and Sarah Cartie got left completely off of the All-SLC teams.  It was ridiculous then, and it still is now.  I’ll leave you to go relive history and look up stats and talk to folks about it if you care.  Over the past six of years of writing this blog, that was the first, and maybe most obvious case of McNeese getting dissed by the conference.

Despite my penchant for noting McNeese’s positives more than most Southland observers, it’s not like McNeese can claim they deserve high praise.  It’s been six seasons since the Cowgirls were over .500 in the conference.  True, last year they were 9-9 and in 2010 they were an even 8-8.  But they’ve mixed a couple of 5-11 seasons in there along with the ugly 1-17 from just two years ago.  Yep, the last time the Cowgirls were flying relatively high was around 2006-2007.  In those two years, they won 23 conference games and lost only nine.  Those were the middle of the Dale Starr years as head coach in Lake Charles.  Yes, Dale Starr… he of the vain popping out on the partially bald forehead as he literally screamed at folks running around out of the hardwood.  There were a few times when we played at Johnson Coliseum that I almost had to shut down the mic doing PA since Starr was so darn vocal.. and shall we say, “colorful” with his choice of words.  A couple years ago, Starr made a return to Nacogdoches as current head coach of Robert Morris University and I found him much more complacent than I remember him while wearing yellow and blue.

But during those “glory days”, or if not glorious, at least respectful days of McNeese volleyball, do you know who was Starr’s assistant?  Ashleigh Fitzgerald.  And  after Terry Gamble decided to move on to coach at Jacksonville State, what did the athletics administration at McNeese do?  They decided to return to the glory days by tapping Fitzgerald as the new head coach in Lake Charles earlier this year.

I have the feeling that an instant impact has been felt in Memorial Gym.  It’s early on in the Southland Conference season, but I have heard more than one person tout McNeese as improved.  Certainly, the team is hungry after last years’ one-and-done in the conference tournament in Corpus Christi. 

McNeese is good.  I mean, legitimately good.  Both SID’s and coaches picked this club as a tournament team in the pre-season and I completely agree.  In fact, this team could be a dark horse.  Shoot?  Why not play with reckless abandon?  No one is going to give these gals much credit – no one ever does.  Until McNeese upsets someone big (and it almost happened last night), probably no one is going to really sit up and notice anyway.  After all, they only had one player on the pre-season all-conference teams and that same girl was the only player to receive any mention at all on last years’ post-season teams.  It’s not like the team is comprised of stars and names that even SLC volleyball aficionados recognize.

Something tells me that McNeese is fine with being underrated.  But, I say a team like this could really be dangerous and could find themselves in the hunt for playing on the second day of the tournament this time around.  Ask yourself: Has anyone in the Southland looked dominant so far?  No.  Universally, UCA and Northwestern State were regarded as the top two teams in the conference.  Now, they may very well be the top two.  But, it’s not exactly like those two teams are off to fast starts.  In fact, I’m a little surprised by the lack of progress by both teams to this point. I understand the only record that counts is the Southland record, and I understand that each team has played some tough matches.  Yes, each has a “signature win” (Demons over Mizzou and Sugar Bears over LSU), but really both teams have had some struggles.

Over the last few years, the Southland has become more and more wide open.  We may finally be seeing the culmination of all this building parity.  Just look at last night as conference play opened:  McNeese was right there with Northwestern State – they very easily could have won that match.  Abilene Christian stretched UCA to five sets and Southeastern Louisiana beat Texas A&M Corpus Christi.  Now, sure, I know UCA still has a 30-match win streak in conference.  I haven’t forgotten that.  Additionally, the Demons squad that played so brilliantly in the conference tournament last year is still completely intact.  Those programs aren’t going to fold up and go home anytime soon.  But with a myriad of other teams scratching at the door, one of which should be our own SFA Ladyjacks, a team like McNeese most certainly cannot be dismissed.  This is a team that could cause a lot of problems.  Plus, other than one lone senior, this entire team will be back in 2015.  So, what if they do make the tournament again?  What if they do get a mid-level seed and knock off another mid-level seed?  What if they play a top level seed and push them on Day 2?  Then, the team has even more momentum going into  2015.  Who knows, this team could be considered near the top tier this time next year.  We’ve seen things happen like this before.

As the ‘Jacks prepare for battle with the Pokes, let’s break the team down a bit so that SFA fans and others around the conference know what they are getting themselves into.

The Hitters:  There is one star here, but several others that can really leap up and bite you if you key on her.  Malina Sanchez is legit.  All of 5-foot-8, but I will jump out of the gym and bust you up Malina Sanchez.  Offense.  Defense.  You name it.  She can do it.  She’s as unsung a star at the SLC has.  She has 38 aces already.  That’s close to tops in the NATION.  She AVERAGES a double-double.  Averages.  At 2.87 kills per set, and 3.09 digs per set, you can expect Sanchez to put up 11-12 kills and 12 digs in a FOUR set match.  I got a chance to interview her at the SLC Tourney last year and she was an absolute delight.  Then, another underrated player:  Rachel Cagnina (Cag-KNEE-nuh).  While you are over there on the left trying to stop the hops of Sanchez, Cagnina can come rough you up on the right.  To be fair, Sanchez can score from anywhere on the floor… probably the locker room, so to call her “just” a left-side is too limiting.  Cagnina is actually leading the team in kills per set at an even 3.00, which is scary considering how good Sanchez is.  Cagnina is the only senior, and she is serving notice to the conference with a .303 hitting percentage which is good for third best in the SLC so far.  Amber Fryer can also be a big presence as she has chipped in with 2.40 kills per set and is 10^th in the league hitting .224.  McNeese can claim three of the top 10 hitting percentage players in the conference coming into this week’s play.  These three girls can provide plenty of offense as they showed last night as they combined for a whopping 47 kills.

The Setter:  Look out.  To me, this is the most interesting development over the last year for McNeese.  Kelly Graham (left handed) has regained the starting role that she had as a freshman in 2012.  During that year, I wrote a post titled “Twelve for ‘12” in which I highlighted a dozen freshman making an impact.  By the way, Sanchez, Fryer and Graham comprised a quarter of that list.  Here is part of what I wrote about her two years ago:

“Graham looks poised to grow up alongside of a long list of young McNeese players.  After that crop gets a year or two under their belt, Graham may emerge as a team leader.  Few girls get the opportunity to start at setter for four consecutive seasons.  We’ll have to see if Graham fits the bill.”

Prophesy, I tell ya.  Sure enough, Graham didn’t start last year as Gamble elected to use Vanessa Bentley.  Graham is back out there though for Fitzgerald’s team and really, you might need to include her in the “hitters” section above.  Graham is at .247 which is good for 5^th in the conference.  And…Guess who is the only setter in the conference is averaging over a kill per set? (1.23, actually).  Graham.  Without question, this is the player I am most interested in seeing in the match against SFA.

The Blockers: Fryer can play in the middle a bit and along with RS Cagnina has decent blocking numbers.  But, McNeese is led in the middle by sophomore Chrysta Stuart.  Here is the one player that if you have watched McNeese in the last couple years, you probably won’t be familiar with.  Stuart didn’t play much last year, but is off to a good start averaging just under a block per set (0.91 b/s).  The conference does this crazy thing where you have to average 1.00 b/s to even be listed on the leaderboard.  Only five girls have done that so far, so I am left to surmise that Stuart would be in the Top 10.  Possibly, she is as high as 6^th or 7^th in the conference so far in blocks per set.

The Back Row:   Hmmm.  Interesting.  In their first tournament, McNeese started three different liberos in the three opening matches of the year.  Since that time it has been junior Kimberlyn Patterson.  That is, until last night against Northwestern State.  Last night, freshman Adison Giambrone got the call.  Now, Patterson still played in a DS role.  In fact, Patterson had more digs than Giambrone (24 vs. 21).  Sophomore Kara Rockey also helps on defense.  Last year, the libero role was split up quite a bit, so no one here really can claim the title of incumbent.  It will be interesting to see who, if anyone, winds up with the full time job as the conference slate wears on.  For now, it seems as though the combination  of these three girls is doing an adequate, but not spectacular job on the back row.  For what it is worth, none of these names really stand out in conversations around the league.  That’s not a negative statement.  It’s just that many other teams have back row players that are more highly regarded than those at McNeese.

The Coach:  You can see for yourself!  I have an interview scheduled with Coach Fitzgerald on Saturday before the match.  Check that out on Sunday afternoon at our YouTube Channel.

This will be a good road test for SFA.  After a sweep of Nichols, I expect a bit more of a battle in Lake Charles on Saturday.  Internet Radio coverage begins at 1:50 PM right here in this space.

Southland Conference Hits the ReSet Button

Today’s post takes a conference wide look through the eyes of the quarterbacks for each of the SLC teams.  There isn’t much analysis in this post as much as there is calling your attention to all the names and suggesting that you pay close attention to the setters in the Southland Conference this year.

See, the SLC has pushed the reset button on the floor chiefs this year: 

Quick Question:  Can you name the All-Conference setters and their classifications from 2013?

Quick Question #2:  How many senior setters are there in the SLC in 2014?

The main operating premise I am working under in this post is that SLC 2014 “Setter of the Year” is wide open.  Probably as wide open as any year in recent memory.  As you’ll see in the rundown below, more than half of the teams in the Southland are using different setters in 2014 than they were in 2013.  Couple this with the fact that the answer to Quick Question #1 is comprised of three outgoing seniors from 2013 (Collins at UCA, Borque at TAMUCC, and Gray at SHSU) and that creates a situation ripe for a few new stars to emerge.  Who will they be?  Who are the best setters in our conference now that so many qualified seniors are gone?

In this list below, I’ll share a few opinions about the players with whom I am familiar.  If you’ve studied some of those that I haven’t, then feel free to chip in with a comment.  One final “hope” before the list:  I really “hope” that voters don’t just default to assists per set when choosing accolades for setters.  I’ve made this point before – a team can overcome adequate setting (not bad setting) with strong and versatile attackers, and excellent passing and floor defense.  Assists per set is not always the end-all-be-all for setters, just like digs per set isn’t a perfect measure of libero quality.  Let’s watch how these girls run the floor and discuss their abilities amongst each other to get a full picture of strengths before voting.

We all have different “blueprints” for what we like in a setter.  Former SFA assistant John Critzer and I would discuss this from time to time.  The two of us had/have fairly different molds that we like our favorite setters to fall into.  There may not be a right or wrong here, but just so you can get into my head a bit:  My favorite type of setter is a player 6’0” or taller, a strong blocker, and has a sort of lean, even wiry build.  For bonus points, I’ll choose left handed.

It is hard to imagine a player that is part of a 6-2 offense being able to win Setter of the Year.  Because of this, let’s start with the teams that primarily use one setter.  To this point in the season, 8 of the 13 teams in the SLC fall in this boat.  Southeastern Louisiana and SFA are special situations, so we will separate them out from this initial list of eight.

ACU:  Sarah Siemens (JR, 6’1”)  Last Year: Same Setter

Siemens is the one setter that I have not seen, that I am most looking forward to watch play.  She’s currently the tallest setter in the conference, and as I wrote earlier, I like setters on the tall side.  The combination of the big Siemens setting relatively small, but effective OH Loerch has to be interesting to see.  We’ll get that chance on our first SLC home stand.

UCA:  Amy South (JR, 5’6”)  Last Year:  Marissa Collins

The folks at UCA have raved about South in one-on-one conversations that I have had with them through the past two years.  Of course, Collins leaves huge shoes to fill.  This might be a case like what we addressed last year at Northwestern State.  UCA probably just needs South to be steady, rather than spectacular, given they have hitters like Schnars, Singleton, Petties and Dittrich and a good libero in Berringer.

HBU:  Kayla Armer (SO, 6’0”)  Last Year:  Same Setter

So, here it is.  This is my pick for setter of the year.  I’m afraid she won’t get it if her numbers are slightly below the setters for teams that may finish ahead of HBU.  I talked about her with head coach Trent Herman at last years’ conference tournament.  He said he has talked with her extensively about what made Collins, Borque and Gray so good.  She is the returning leader in assists per set in the SLC and she fits my “mold” of setter qualities perfectly.  She actually led the conference in total assists.  Only a sophomore, so watch out.. she could emerge as one of the consistent top setters in the Southland between now and 2016.  I like her a lot.

Lamar:  Ashley Ellis (SO, 5’6”)  Last Year:  Ellis & Alexa Johnson (at end of season)

I remember Johnson – she was setting when Lamar came to Nacogdoches last year.  But, I have never seen Ellis run an offense.  If her name has come up in conversation with players and coaches, I don’t remember it.  Lamar is winless and has only five set wins in 9 matches so far in 2014.  With a new coach, there are some things that might need some time to solidify here.

McNeese:  Kelly Graham (JR, 5’10”)  Last Year:  Vanessa Bentley

Very interesting.  Very, very interesting.  I remember being impressed with Graham as a freshman.  I seem to always think McNeese gets shafted on recognition when they deserve it.  You can comb through past years’ posts to see what I mean.  However, Graham found the pine in favor of Bentley in 2013.  But, with a coaching change, Graham has emerged the starter again in Lake Charles.  This is an interesting situation to watch.  I remember showcasing Graham in a post on the 2012 freshman in the SLC.  Don’t be surprised if she is among the leader boards.  I’m going to make the road trip to McNeese this year.  This is one situation I hope to learn a little bit about while there.

UNO:  Sara Hammoutene (JR, 5’9”)  Last Year: primarily Celeste Ramirez (now at Libero)

We just got a look at the transfer from Paris, France, last weekend at the La Tech Tournament.  At one point in the weekend, I found myself perched in the stands with our brain trust and the reviews on Hammoutene’s game were positive.  In my interview with head coach Van Norden, she alludes to communication gains that will have to be made.  Overall, I think Hammoutene was a good get for New Orleans.  She looked very polished to me.  Probably not a difference maker, but certainly a stabilizer.  By the way, since Ramirez was the setter last year, let me take this opportunity to say that I think she is now one of the more underrated back row players in the Southland.  Ramirez is just a flat out good volleyball player.

Sam Houston:  Michelle Griffith (SO, 5’7”)  Last Year:  Tayler Gray

Much like South at UCA, I have been hearing people talk about Griffith for a few years. Several folks I know that now work in the Houston area raved about her when she was recruited out of Woodlands College Park high school.  I can’t imagine much of a tougher situation than to follow the coaches’ daughter as the quarterback.  That said, if Sam Houston keeps churning out wins, Griffith may wind up getting a fair amount of the credit.  Even though she hasn’t played until this year, I get the feeling that she is still a pretty well-known entity.

TAMUCC:  Kristyn Nicholson (FR, 6’0”)  Last Year:  Logan Borque

I feel like there is someone out there I know that can give me the scoop on Nicholson.  If you are that person, shoot me a text or email.  The Islanders brought in both Nicholson and a JUCO transfer (Chelby Stanford) as a plan of takeover for Borque.  Nicholson has held down the job of late.  I mentioned former SFA assistant John Critzer earlier.  In 2009, TAMUCC brought in a freshman setter that started named Courtney Wypiszynski.  She was really big…I loved her.  John really didn’t.  John won that setter debate as none other than Logan Borque was brought on in 2010 and Wypiszynski was never heard from again.  I’ll be more careful this time around, but clearly, the 6’0” Nicholson is someone I need to do more homework on.

Next, here are two schools that to this point have been a bit of a special case:

Southeastern La.:  Mikayla Shippy (JR, 6’0”) and Morgan Miller (SO, 5’9”)  Last Year: Shippy

It’s tough to tell having not watched an SLU match to this point, but it appears that the Lions have been shifting back and forth – even within matches – between Shippy and Miller looking to find the right setter spark.  Several recent matches have produced box scores where Shippy has started three of five or three of four sets and Miller come into set for the remaining set or two.  So, this is a situation that doesn’t belong in the two-setter section of this post, but instead appears to be a special case of using the tournament season to see which girl may emerge as the primary in conference play.  Shippy has started the vast majority of SLU matches, but hasn’t finished them all.  Stay tuned.

SFA: Paige Holland (SR, 5’10”) and Shannon Connell (SO, 5’8”)  Last Year:  Similar

As of late, as Ladyjack fans know, SFA has shifted back into one setter format using Holland.  SFA ended last year utilizing primarily the 6-2 offense and began 2014 with similar structure.  However, the team’s recent success has all been with just Holland on the floor, so I wouldn’t look for any changes heading into the last tournament of the pre-season.  Connell is still there, of course, if the situation dictates a flow back to the 6-2.  So, this situation isn’t the same as SLU’s, but still is a bit different from other SLC schools in that the issue is mainly 6-2 vs 5-1 as opposed to which setter to use in the 5-1.  For the immediate future, it looks like Holland’s job again.

Finally, there are three schools in the conference that have utilized two setter format to this point in the year.  Again, it is difficult from a pure statistics perspective to see the 2014 SLC Setter of the Year coming from one of these systems, but still, let’s complete the roll call of the Southland Setters.  Along the way, we will see that the answer to Quick Question #2 is just two.

Incarnate Word: (6-2 with Kaitlyn Brooks, JR, 5’8” and Taylor McClelland, JR, 5’6”)

Last Year:  (6-2 with McLelland and Danielle Suarez)

Honestly, the only player for UIW that I am decently familiar with is outside hitter Angelique Vidaurri.  Well, I know Brittani Dear had a good season for the Cardinals as a freshman last year, too.  But, truthfully, I am in the dark on these two setters.  UIW is probably the team I have the least total familiarity with among the 13 in the conference.  They come here as our first home conference opponent this year, so some of my ignorance may get removed.

Nicholls: (6-2 with Alyse Barclay, JR, 6’0” and Ainsley Marroccoli, SO, 5’6”)

Last Year: (A combination of the above two and Marlee Bean)

Dude, what happened to Nicholls last year?  Talk about no buzz at no time.  They don’t win a road match all year, finish 5-23, and lose their last 11 matches of the year.  Last year was Tommy Harold’s first year coaching the Colonels and they appear to be in a rebuild.  After a few wins against SWAC schools, Nicholls has lost five straight.  They have a few matches at the North Florida tourney this weekend that they might be able to win, so let’s see how they do before we face off with them to open SLC play.  Again, I don’t have an impression of either setter than sticks in my mind other than “Ainsley Marroccoli” has to be the coolest name in the conference.  A PA announcer’s dream.  Marroccoli.  Marroccoli.  Marroccoli.

Northwestern State  (6-2 with Emily Johnson, SR, 5’6” and Natalie Jaeger, SO, 5-9 and a little Madison Walford, FR, 5-8 mixed in for good measure)

Last Year: (6-2 with Johnson/Jaeger)

Exhibit 1A on the principle that when you are deep all across the front row and have a libero that is both fundamentally sound and acrobatic, all you need is decent setting and you can soar.  Of course, I’ve seen EJ and Jaeger plenty over the last year.  Neither will set the world on fire, but you could do a ton worse.  Northwestern State has a game plan, they stick to it, and they are able to get players like Johnson and Jaeger to thrive amidst the beasts that are on the pins and in the middle.  Walford is worth checking in on to see if she earns more trust and eventually bumps one on the others down a peg.  After last year, NSU staff, players and fans fully expect their team to get an NCAA bid this year.  With those expectations (and they’d have obtained my vote for top pre-season team in the conference), let’s not nitpick the setters.  They’ve proven they can handle it.

And with that, you get the answer to Quick Question #2.  Did you get it right when you read it?  The only two senior setters in the SLC this year are Paige Holland and Emily Johnson.  Do you know what that means?  We better pay attention.  Some of these girls are going to emerge and be the next generation of standouts in the conference.  It’s a different year.  Collins, Borque, Gray and all that senior studliness is gone.

Who among this crew will rise?  It’s really wide open isn’t it?  If UCA wins a lot of conference games, South will probably put up good numbers.  Same with Griffith at Sam Houston.  Could Nicholson become a more familiar name as the year progresses if TAMUCC is near the top?   What about Holland?  If SFA is in the running for a top seed, could she be what people point to?  Lots of questions and no really super clear answer.  Again, to be on record… I don’t expect HBU to be a top two or three team, but I think Kayla Armer is as good as any player listed here.

Weekend Links and Observations

This past weekend, SFA Volleyball won the Louisiana Tech Invitational in Ruston, LA.  Here's a recap, set of links to interviews (audio and video) and some observations about the teams' play at the tournament.

Weekend Results:

SFA 3, UNO 0 Box Score
SFA 3, UTPA 1  Box Score
SFA 3, Louisiana Tech 1  Box Score

Tournament MVP:  OJ Olson
All-Tournament From SFA:  Madison Martin and Justice Walker

OJ Olson Named Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week


Tournament Interview Links:

Debbie Humphreys on Win over UNO (SoundCloud)

Paige Holland and Justice Walker on Win over UTPA (SoundCloud)

Interview with UNO Head Coach Millicent Van Norden (YouTube)

Interview with UTPA Head Coach Brian Yale (YouTube)

LA Lanford 2, Greg Miller 1 in Mini-Hoops Before UTPA Match (Twitter)


Observations:
There were lots of positives from this weekend, the most important being that SFA is riding a four game winning streak into Houston.  We all knew when the schedule came out that the middle two tournaments were weekends where we expected to walk away with championship hardware.  After being in all the matches up in South Dakota, but only able to get one win, the Ladyjacks sealed the deal in Louisiana.

Overall, I thought the three players that earned All-Tournament honors definitely deserved them.  I know Debbie Humphreys talked to me several times during the weekend about how steady the floor defense had been and that she wanted the net defense to rise to the same level.  Walker had a great hitting performance on Saturday by hitting 24-1-49 (.469) total.  That is truly outstanding work on offense.  No wonder she said in her interview she would rather get a big kill than blocks!  Of course, Justice got five blocks in the championship so she was doing her job there too.

SFA was granted three spots on the all-tourney team.  Again, all three girls named deserved it.  Despite the awesomeness of the back row (and my penchant to always acknowledge it), I think I would have voted Holland for MVP, and then cast my other two votes for Ivy and Olson.  Ivy had 46 kills in 11 sets (4.18 k/s) and Holland was simply magnificent at setter.  All that being said, I love it when passers and back row players get some glory.. they are usually the unsung heroes, so I don't begrudge the light being shined on players like Madison Martin at all. Can we start her fan club?  I am so glad we've gone to an offensive set where she can play across the back row.  It is a HUGE addition to the defense when she is in there.

The pin block on the right side attack against UTPA leaked a bit.  I am sure that is something that will get a lot of attention in practice.  The players teaming up there with the MB's are young.. and they'll progress and get better at net responsibilities on defense as we go from week to week.

All in all, it was a big step forward.  The company we will keep this weekend (Louisville, Rice) will be tough.  Because of that, I like the fact that we don't have a mid-week match and have more time to prepare.  We know we have to take additional steps forward in our overall game if we are going to hang with the Cardinals and Owls. Louisville is still receiving a few votes for the Top 25 and Rice just knocked off Marquette who was just outside the Top 25 earlier in the year.

Finally, heading into conference play next week, I love the challenges that Michigan, Arkansas, Louisville and Rice have brought us.  This has been my favorite non-conference schedule of the last few years that I can remember.  We have some momentum.  I am all for turning it up a notch in Houston this weekend and keeping the winning streak alive.

Expect a mid-week post focused on setters of the Southland Conference and who knows, maybe we can get to another YouTube video before Houston.  My microphone is scheduled for delivery tomorrow and I'll be anxious to try it out.

Internet Radio all weekend long in Houston.  We had 64 listeners for the UNO match, a record 118 for the UTPA match and 67 for the LaTech match (which overlapped with SFA Football).