2017 Volleyball

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MRJ said:
There are indeed transfers every year. And some do it for the sole purpose of playing more.

But like other sports, there's a myriad of reasons for players to transfer. Some have a family situation they have to deal with, some don't connect with players and coaches and some probably want a change of scenery. Of course. There are other reasons as well, but the point is there are a lot of reasons for transfers.

However, there hasn't been an epidemic of transfers over the years. Most teams tend to run between 15-20 players it seems.

As for the Gophers, if anything, there's been an influx of transfers into the program rather than out of it under McCutcheon.
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Ski U Mah Gopher said:
Remember, of the 18 on the roster, only 12 is on scholarship.
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Thanks guys.

Probably no use in arguing it further. I don't have any problem with girls being on the team who don't have scholarships. Sure, in my own personal opinion, it doesn't seem to do any good to have more than 12 players ... that's enough for 6v6 practices and it's more than likely only 8 or 9 are needed to play during the season. BUT ... more girls having the opportunity to be on the team, at least, probably doesn't hurt anything.

I guess it takes a special person, of those 6 non-scholarship girls, to put in the same amount of time and effort (expect possibly not traveling to away matches) all while getting "nothing" (in a sense) out of it.
 

Ignatius L Hoops said:
For comparison, Lohman in 330 serves has 24 aces and 18 errors. Seliger-Swenson in 415 serves has 24 aces and 14 errors and Hart in 334 serves has 14 aces and 29 errors. It seems to me that Hart's errors have dropped in B1G play; but I can't find conference only statistics.

I think you've nailed the rotation positioning requirements. Mentioning Seliger-Swenson reminds me that the reason for Martin (a 4 in the front row) moving to receive in the back zone is to get Seliger-Swenson (a back row player who is inevitably the 1) moved to the front zone closer to the net. This situates her better to receive a pass from the back zone players. Seliger-Swenson (the 1) is the farthest right of the back row players and yet is stacked behind her corresponding front row player (the 2).
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Thanks for the stats. The game I thought I was remembering was the earlier Wisc game in Madison. So maybe at that time she was having a bit of trouble ... or maybe the commentator had no idea what she was talking about.

Yes, exactly on your example. Another reason being simply that you don't want SSS to ever have to receive the serve, since she's supposed to set it on the 2nd hit. So in effect you're "protecting" her from having the serve hit at her in the back zone.
 

http://www.gophersports.com/sports/w-volley/spec-rel/110817aab.html

Gopher Sports wrap on the signees:


McGraw, a 5-foot, 9-inch libero, plays for Prior Lake High School and Minnesota Select. McGraw was named an Under Armour First Team All-American and will compete at the 2017 Under Armour All-America match at the NCAA Volleyball Final Four. A 2017 USA Today Preseason All-American, she was also named a two-time JVA All-National Team selection. A three-time all-state selection, McGraw is also a three-time Star Tribune All-Metro selection, including back-to-back first team honors, the only junior to do so in 2016. She was also a two-time Minnesota State High School League's All-Tournament team in 2015 and 2016 where she helped the Lakers to state runner up (2015) and consolation champions. As a junior, McGraw possessed over 1,518 career digs at Prior Lake. With Minnesota Select, she played with the 18-1's her sophomore and junior years as her team won the USAV open championship in 2016. She went on to become an All-American, as well as an AAU 18 open All-American. The daughter of Heather McGraw and Jim Gustafson and Tim McGraw, she is a board scholar and honor roll student.

"We think CC is the best libero in the 2018 class," McCutcheon said. "She is incredibly skilled and talented and we could not be happier with her decision to join our program.



McMenimen, a 5-foot, 9-inch setter, plays for Niceville High School and West Florida Waves. While with Niceville, McMenimen is a three-time all-metro player and has been her team's captain the last three years. Named the team's best offensive player, she also landed a spot on the 2017 Subway All-Star Team. McMenimen has also helped Niceville to a 19-5 record in 2017, three district championships and four regionals. In her senior year, she has over 390 assists, 56 aces and 147 digs. Playing in Germany from 2010-2012, McMenimen played U13, U14 and U16 with VC Stuttgart where her teams competed at the German Junior National Championships. With West Florida Waves, she helped her team to second place at the 2014 AAU Nationals. Playing beach, she competed in the USAV Beach Nationals and Rox Beach Nationals. The daughter of Gregory and Rachel McMenimen, she is in the top one percent of her class, an AVCA Academic All-American, class president and a member of the National Honor Society.

"Bayley is a wonderful setter," McCutcheon said. "She can locate well and makes great offensive decisions. We're so glad that she chose to play for our program."



Rendahl, a 6-foot, 1-inch middle blocker, plays for Murrieta Valley High School and Forza1 Volleyball Club. As a senior, Rendahl averages 2.7 kills per set, is hitting .426 and has 50 blocks this season. An all-conference and all-metro athlete, Rendahl also helped Murrieta make the CIF playoffs the past four years. As a junior, she posted 234 kills in 81 sets played. Named the team's offensive player of the year in 2016, she was also on the "just missed" list of Senior Aces in 2017. With Forza1, Rendahl helped her team to sixth-place finishes at the Triple Crown Invite (Utah) and Southern California's tourney in 2017. In 2016, Rendahl's team placed third at the Girls Junior National Championship, sixth in the Reno Junior National Qualifier. Rendahl is a four-year scholar athlete and the daughter of Deborah and Jay Rendahl.

"Becca is a great middle blocker who plays with skill and speed," McCutcheon said. "Her work ethic and her ability to compete makes her a perfect fit for our program."



Rollins, a 6-foot outside hitter, plays for Hebron High School and Texas Advantage Club Team (TAV). Like McGraw, Rollins was named an Under Armour First Team All-American and will compete at the 2017 Under Armour All-America match at the NCAA Volleyball Final Four. A 2017 USA Today Preseason All-American, Rollins helped lead TAV to the 17 Open gold medal at the recent USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships in Minneapolis. It marked the top prize for the third year in a row in that age division. Rollins was named the tournament's most valuable player. With Hebron, Rollins led the Lady Hawks to a 44-6 record in 2016 and a state championship. She was named the Texas 6A Most Valuable Player after she had 540 kills in a single season and also was the SportsDay's All-Area Hitter of the Year last season. A seven-time All-American, Rollins is the daughter of Zerick Rollins and Audra Patridge and a past Academic Achievement award recipient.

"Adanna is one of the most complete six rotation outside hitters I've ever seen," McCutcheon said. "She plays the whole game at an extremely high level and will be a great addition to our program."
 

Rendahl is a 6' 1" middle blocker. Isn't that pretty small for that position? Or does she have inhuman elevation? Likewise, Rollins, an OH, is only 6', but Hugh says she plays "at an extremely high level." Does his term "high" indicate leaping ability?
 

Hrothgar said:
Rendahl is a 6' 1" middle blocker. Isn't that pretty small for that position? Or does she have inhuman elevation? Likewise, Rollins, an OH, is only 6', but Hugh says she plays "at an extremely high level." Does his term "high" indicate leaping ability?
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I'd say yes on both accounts.

Not sure of Rendahl's actual vertical leap, but based on the highlights I've seen, she's very powerful physically and can really pound the ball when given the opportunity.

Rollins is really, really athletic. Someone on volleytalk compared her to Hart, which is actually is a pretty good comparison.

She can elevate and pound it and already possesses a number of different shots and looks she can throw at the opposition. Plus, all indications are that she can be a six rotation player.

Wouldn't be at all surprising if she sees plenty of court time next season in addition to McGraw from this class.



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Pittman is 6-5, but Taylor Morgan has come in at only 6-0. If your hands can get up, that's what matters at the end of the day.


Hart is only 6-0, and she smashes the ball. Martin is 6-3 and Kleinman is 6-2, both were second team UA All-Americans. Hart was a first team UA All-American.

You guys saying Rollins could replace one of them?

Surely she won't replace Samedy ..... right?



Man, these volleyball depth charts are brutal, year to year!
 

MnplsGopher said:
Pittman is 6-5, but Taylor Morgan has come in at only 6-0. If your hands can get up, that's what matters at the end of the day.


Hart is only 6-0, and she smashes the ball. Martin is 6-3 and Kleinman is 6-2, both were second team UA All-Americans. Hart was a first team UA All-American.

You guys saying Rollins could replace one of them?

Surely she won't replace Samedy ..... right?



Man, these volleyball depth charts are brutal, year to year!
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Not at all. Simply saying she's another piece to the puzzle...[emoji4]

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MRJ said:
Not at all. Simply saying she's another piece to the puzzle...[emoji4]
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Rollins is a first team UA AA, in her own right. Not that it proves anything at the college level, just saying.

How many OH does a team need in a season? I think Hart and Martin are already getting the vast majority of the rallies?? Not sure how much even Kleinman gets in there?
 



Tucker said:
Be careful of the word "nothing" ;) If the team wins the Big Ten, everyone on the team is a Big Ten Champion. If the team wins a natty, everyone on the team is a National Champion.

- all team members are responsible for developing and carrying the culture of the team, and upperclassmen have responsibility to help the freshmen and newcomers whether they are starters or not
- everyone needs to practice as hard as they can to help the starters (and everyone else) improve and maintain their focus
- sometimes starters need to rest during the week to nurse injuries- so the bottom of the depth chart picks up more responsibility in practice
- a bench player may need to buck up a starter when she's getting down, or having a tough match
- they are all student athletes, and they all can help each other with study habits and help stay on top of their responsibilities
- they can all help and support each other in the weight room
- a lot of these women cherish the relationship/togetherness aspects of the team; the bench players can go a long way toward developing the bond of the team and developing the thing they will remember forever. They are all part of the team, and they are all creating memories together.

Sure, virtually all these players are used to playing time when they get to college. But having team members not get playing time is a fact of D1 athletic life. I have noticed on the volleytalk message board that the back-up players get very little respect and I have even seen a poster recommend a coach offer his back-ups the opportunity to leave because it's "not working out". I can't imagine a better way for a coach to tell half his roster they are not important.

I understand some players are not OK with not playing, and it can take some adjustment and getting used to. But I think everyone on the team is important. Especially if it's a team that wants to win championships!
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I agree. A major part of a good coach's job is keeping everybody happy and avoiding dissension. I know, having played college baseball way, way back in time for a jerk of a coach.
 

Being mainly a baseball and softball guy, I miss all the nuances of techniques and strategy in volleyball. I watch it with an amateur's impressions. My main impression watching the Gophers play Purdue and Illinois at home was that MN won those matches on the strength of team depth [which, if true, addresses part of the roster discussion above]; I felt Purdue and, to a lesser degree, Illinois were tired by the end. I'd like to hear what some of you who are in-the-know predict about the Gophers playing Purdue and Illinois on the road? Those matches worry me a lot.
 


Purdue out muscled the Gophers 25-23, 21-25, 28-26, 25-14. The fourth set might be the worst set they've played in three years. Purdue jumped out 7-0 (I think) and never looked back.

Minnesota was wrong footed all night-too many overpasses, too many errant passes, and too many pat backs that returned as rockets. Still, Purdue with 5 service errors almost gave away the first set. In the third, Minnesota worked back from a large deficient to get to set point; but couldn't cash in.

I think Hugh pretty much let it play out in the fourth-ready to move on to IU.
 



Well, the ladies failed to show up in a big way tonight against Purdue. Watched the first and second sets and there wasn't much focus or intensity in either set even though they went into the intermission even up at 1-1.

Might have to kiss that potential No. 1 seed goodbye after an effort (or lack thereof) like that. McCutcheon talks about wanting the ladies to peak by December. Well, if that's the goal, tonight was a huge step backwards. They basically mailed it in after losing the third set. No excuse for that if you want to be a top-seed come December.

Should beat Indiana and Northwestern, but this was a piss-poor showing that should be of real concern if they have any hopes of beating Illinois or even being competitive with Penn State.
 

The Gophers had won their last few matches but not very overwhelmingly; they could've lost any of those matches. And tonight: despite the adversity of the match, they had set point in set three, but blew it. They could've pulled that third set out but lacked the drive. They're a good group of young women, but it takes some true effort to rise above an un-energetic loss like that.
 

Hrothgar said:
The Gophers had won their last few matches but not very overwhelmingly; they could've lost any of those matches. And tonight: despite the adversity of the match, they had set point in set three, but blew it. They could've pulled that third set out but lacked the drive. They're a good group of young women, but it takes some true effort to rise above an un-energetic loss like that.
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We've probably become a little bit spoiled as fans having watched the squads from the last two years. Those teams NEVER would have given up on a match or set like this team has. Even when they lost matches, they were in almost every set they played throughout the season. This year, there's been more than a few occasions where they have mailed it in, which is maddening to watch.

Perhaps they'll eventually figure out the level of focus they need to stay in every match to the end. They're still young in most spots, so they'll have plenty of chances to learn what they need to learn. What concerns me most is that when the team has come apart, it's been some of the upperclassmen (who should know better), who have been at the heart of it.
 

MRJ said:
We've probably become a little bit spoiled as fans having watched the squads from the last two years. Those teams NEVER would have given up on a match or set like this team has. Even when they lost matches, they were in almost every set they played throughout the season. This year, there's been more than a few occasions where they have mailed it in, which is maddening to watch.

Perhaps they'll eventually figure out the level of focus they need to stay in every match to the end. They're still young in most spots, so they'll have plenty of chances to learn what they need to learn. What concerns me most is that when the team has come apart, it's been some of the upperclassmen (who should know better), who have been at the heart of it.
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Let's keep in mind we're pretty young this year. We don't have 3 or 4 all Big Ten Caliber seniors patrolling the net. That killer instinct takes time. I don't see us as a strong favorite to win the title this year but I'd like another final four appearance and I really like our chances next year.
 

The gals swept Indiana yesterday, wasn't close. But l suppose that was expected. And I assume we expect a similar outcome vs NW. Could be interesting vs Illinois though.

Final home match vs Penn St should be fun!
 

MnplsGopher said:
The gals swept Indiana yesterday, wasn't close. But l suppose that was expected. And I assume we expect a similar outcome vs NW. Could be interesting vs Illinois though.

Final home match vs Penn St should be fun!
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I watched the replay this morning. It was a nice -12, -10, -15 win in Indiana's soon to be replaced high school gym. Minnesota had some dominating scoring runs. In the first set, Seliger-Swenson rode a short dropping serve to 3 straight aces which helped turn a 10-6 match into a rout. In the second set, Alexis Hart aced on 3 of 4 serves helping to turn another 10-6 game into another rout. And in the third set, Hart's served a 10-0 scoring run giving the Gophers an 11-2 lead. As far as I could tell, there were no line-up or rotation changes.


On a side note: I certainly don't think this team has given up on a match (especially after watching them win some tough five setters). But I do think we haven't developed an ability to control hot outside hitters. The last two years we had experienced and talented defensive players able to get up the block. Last season we really only had difficulty with Stanford. This year it's a challenge. And yes part of the problem is inexperience.
 

Even smaller side note: I seem to recall that Michigan St game in particular exposed Gophs serve receive for servers who do a high-toss, top-spin jump serve (not a float). Not sure how many servers are like that in women's game ... think it is pretty standard in men's high level game.

Anyway ...
 

MnplsGopher said:
Even smaller side note: I seem to recall that Michigan St game in particular exposed Gophs serve receive for servers who do a high-toss, top-spin jump serve (not a float). Not sure how many servers are like that in women's game ... think it is pretty standard in men's high level game.

Anyway ...
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Yes, unfortunately, there's also that.

For awhile I think coaches went away from the big spinning serves because of the increase in service errors; but a few clubs like MSU just pound away. In her freshman year, I remember Santana using the big serve to good effect. Her use of it diminished each season and I don't recall her even hitting one during her senior season. I remember now US national team coach, Karch Kirlay, doing color one year during the NCAA tournament and heavily criticizing that servers weren't utilizing the big top spin serve. But, if I recall, at the Rio Olympics his team went to lower risk serving.
 

Up to now anyway, this year's team still has a better W-L record than last year's team, doesn't it? What last year's team had that this team doesn't is a Sara Wilhite. Maybe the Purdue loss will strength their resolve. They had no business losing to Purdue; maybe they'll realize it and get mad. They weren't going to win or tie for the BigTen title anyway; they couldn't have caught both Penn State and Nebraska. The NCAA is where to make the real mark. It'd be great to beat Penn State!
 

Last night: #21 Purdue swept #10 Wisconsin -19, -21, -20 in West Lafayette.

Iowa also surprised Ohio State 3-1 and Michigan defeated Illinois in five.
 


Florida -- watched them on TV earlier in the year, and that definitely looks like a final four team. They had like 9 or 10k people in the arena for their tournament that also had Texas. They looked good back then.

Kentucky -- ..... ??? Not saying they haven't earned it, or anything like that ... my head scratching is simply "where did this program come from??" It's not like they hired a new coach from Stanford, Texas, etc. The guy has been there for many years, and they've never really been anything like a final four team that I recall.


The rest are the usual suspects, Texas, Big Ten, PAC. Though I know there are some nice programs outside the power conferences too, Creighton being a great example. I know BYU is usually a powerful program as well.
 


In Ann Arbor, Michigan swept Michigan State -20, -25, -23. It looked like fans were wielding light sabres. It must intimidated the Spartans.
 

Speaking of Michigan, one thing that stood out as a bit odd to me is that the official region within USA Volleyball for our area of the country, North Country Region, includes the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin ... and the upper peninsula of Michigan.

Not a big deal at all, just usually don't ever see Michigan split apart like that within geographical divisions that are otherwise defined by groups of states.


Anyhow ...
 

Watched the replay of Minnesota's 3-1 (25-22, 29-27, 13-25, 25-19) win at Northwestern. It was a struggle. Late in the first set the Wildcats led 21-18 before a Gopher 7-1 run closed it out. The run was aided by Minnesota's first two blocks of the match. Kleinman made an appearance in the first set.

The second set was headed the Gophers way at 24-22 but Northwestern fought back to have set point at 26-25. However, Samedy's kill attempt was dug straight up into, I think, the folded away basketball support in the high school gym's ceiling and bounced out of play on the side for a Gopher point. Even set point was a give away as a Northwestern player crashed into the net on her kill attempt.

The third set was a total mess for Minnesota. Hugh called timeout with Minnesota trailing 13-9. He then called timeout with Minnesota trailing 17-10. Neither time out had a noticeable effect.

In the fourth set Kleinman returned to the match. It was a side out battle until a rally win at 13-12 gave Minnesota a chance to open a lead.

Serving had an impact on the match: Minnesota had 10 aces and 4 serving errors. Northwestern's 7 aces were countered by 8 errors (Symonne Abbot hit one of the worst-a big top spin serve she drove down to the floor and under the net).

A consistent block continues to be problematic. Samedy was terrific with 24 kills (hitting .447) and 3 service aces. Still, percentage wise the Gophers were outhit in the first three sets due to off nights by Hart (.226), Pittman (-.091), Martin (.000) and Kleinman (.000).
 

The team is back in a funk and it couldn't come at a much worse time of year.

Wouldn't be at all surprising if Illinois takes them down.
 

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