Gopher Volleyball 2018

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Sparlimb said:
Going 5 sets last night will work to our advantage. That and we swept. I would expect us to show more energy to start the match...
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NB definitely showed up tonight. Goldy getting caught out of rotation.
 

Rollins was errorless after 19 kills. Ends up with 20 kills and only 1 error. Incredible performance!
 

I'm not sure how we gutted out this win. Looked bad in set 1 and not terribly good in sets 2 & 3, but somehow won them. Put them away in set 4. Congrats to the ladies on not having a let down...
 

If someone would have said that this team would go through the first half of the conference season 10-0 while only losing two sets, I would have called them crazy.

But sports are crazy by nature and the ladies are really impressing me more and more as the season goes along.

Nebraska came out and punched hard at the start while also refusing to go away when the ladies built leads in sets 2 and 3. Finally wore the Huskers down in set 4 and put them away. And Rollins was playing on a ridiculous level tonight.

Sent from my SM-J327V using Tapatalk
 

Rollins was superb on her kills tonight. But she was having problems receiving serve, as were the Gophers in general. Nebraska was clearly targeting Adanna, but she wasn't the only one having lots of difficulties with Nebraska's serves. They'll figure it out, and if they could beat Nebraska receiving as poorly as they did tonight, it says a lot.
 


Nebraska must being have nightmares about Rollins following her performances against the Huskers..

The first three sets were like old time, long rally volleyball. It was damn hard to terminate. Nebraska's D was especially strong. I thought Samedy had finshed off the third set with her flying, arched back swing; but back it came.

I think Hugh changed up the service rotation starting with Barnes in one set and CC in another. It was a night where both Cook and Hugh were sometimes pleased, sometimes baffled and coaching almost play by play.

Eventually, Nebraska's hitting errors caught up with them. And the Gophers strong serving racked up points late in the final set. Sending us home happy.
 

Tucker said:
DearGibsonSG,
Good luck on the game tonight. The Gophers are very uncomfortable knowing their fate this evening rests in your hands, but they are counting on you.
If you win, feel free to stop by a Gophers women's hockey home game sometime soon and bring them a victory as well.
Thanks
Tucker
ps-I bought an SG Special in 1971 or 72 very much like this one

https://www.chicagomusicexchange.co...YyL2nanWQoxYFIoSh8u6I2n__JSpYjdxoC0FsQAvD_BwE

and I still own it although I have messed with it a little bit!
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A very nice guitar indeed. I don't have any natural talent but I like to play as a hobby. Although, it has become increasingly difficult to find the time with a small child terrorizing my household. He wants to try playing too.

It appears that not even a professional "cooler" like myself could slow down a team as good as the Gophers. :D
 

MRJ said:
Gopher volleyball is on a whole other level of competence/performance from either men's hoops or football, so no worries. And they proved it tonight with a three-set sweep of the Illini. Hope Gibson enjoyed seeing a Gopher victory inside the Pav!
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Why I did very much enjoy the Illinois match! The group I went with...we all left wondering why we hadn't attended a match sooner and agreed that we needed to again. So much better than watching on TV.

With Nebraska's lopsided head-to-head series lead, is this the first time the Gophers have beaten the Huskers twice in the same season? I was a little worried after that first set. Nebraska seemed to be hitting it over the Gopher block with ease, especially on the slide. I was curious how the Gophers would respond when actually pushed by an opponent after a lot of convincing 3-0 sweeps. I guess they answered that! :p
 

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The out of system play of the night.

The reactions are priceless.
 
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Ten more Big Ten matches. It won't be easy, but the Nebraska game last night was a real confidence booster. Despite the Gophers' offensive strength, I think it's their back court defense that shines so often. Against Iowa, Rollins dug a vicious Iowa kill attempt off her shoe tops back at the Hawkeyes so hard it seemed to stun them.
 

I watched the volleyball match Vs Nebraska at an awesome sports bar in Lincoln. Outdoor television the size of a movie theater screen. Hundreds of people watching the match. Very fun and nice to get a win! Played well after the slow start.

I thought set 2 was crucial. Up 16-8 (I believe) and let them back in. But still won. Then rolled the rest of the way!!!

2 game lead on the rest of the conference. They’ll beat each other up. Feels good to be on top 1/2 way through.
 

Ignatius L Hoops said:
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The out of system play of the night.

The reactions are priceless.
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Incredible display of athleticism. Not sure anybody that saw it, on either team, could believe the swing she put on that ball. Everybody looks dumbfounded, especially SSS and Taylor Morgan. Also love CC McGraw's reaction.
 

MRJ said:
Incredible display of athleticism. Not sure anybody that saw it, on either team, could believe the swing she put on that ball. Everybody looks dumbfounded, especially SSS and Taylor Morgan. Also love CC McGraw's reaction.
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I also enjoyed Laura Kasey's reaction. It looked like she instinctively turned to Hugh amazed by Samedy's high lob. Hugh kept his poker face.
 



NCAA RPI as of Oct. 21 (Overall record/Big Ten conference record):

https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/volleyball-women/d1/ncaa-womens-volleyball-rpi

1. Stanford (18-1)
2. BYU (20-0)
3. Illinois (18-3/7-3)
4. Texas (12-4)
5. Pittsburgh (22-0)
6. Southern California (15-6)
7. Minnesota (16-2/10-0)
8. Wisconsin (14-4/7-3)
9. UCF (18-3)
10. Kentucky (14-4)
11. Michigan (18-3/7-3)
12. Washington St. (15-5)
13. Purdue (17-4/6-4)
14. Penn St. (17-3/8-2)
15. Nebraska (15-5/6-4)
 
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Ignatius L Hoops said:
I also enjoyed Laura Kasey's reaction. It looked like she instinctively turned to Hugh amazed by Samedy's high lob. Hugh kept his poker face.
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Kinda an interesting contrast between CC and Kasey's reactions while Hugh barely flinched.
 

let'sbeclear said:
NCAA RPI as of Oct. 21 (Overall record/Big Ten conference record):

https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/volleyball-women/d1/ncaa-womens-volleyball-rpi

1. Stanford (18-1)
2. BYU (20-0)
3. Illinois (18-3/7-3)
4. Texas (12-4)
5. Pittsburgh (22-0)
6. Southern California (15-6)
7. Minnesota (16-2/10-0)
8. Wisconsin (14-4/7-3)
9. UCF (18-3)
10. Kentucky (14-4)
11. Michigan (18-3/7-3)
12. Washington St. (15-5)
13. Purdue (17-4/6-4)
14. Penn St. (17-3/8-2)
15. Nebraska (15-5/6-4)
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At least get Pitt outta there! Thank you!

They don't deserve a top 4 spot, even if undefeated. They play in weak ACC. Same argument for BYU, sure, but at least they beat Stanford! Pitt has beaten nobody.
 

Gophers_4life said:
At least get Pitt outta there! Thank you!

They don't deserve a top 4 spot, even if undefeated. They play in weak ACC. Same argument for BYU, sure, but at least they beat Stanford! Pitt has beaten nobody.
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Definitely this year's Kentucky from last season.
 

Hi everyone, noob question:

How strongly does the selection committee consider RPI?
If they consider it as, say, 70% of the criteria, why aren't teams (including Gophers) try harder to get into higher RPI in the non-conference schedule?
 

My bet is that road wins are given considerable weight in the RPI. The Gophs are only 3-1 on the road; Illinois is 7-1. The first half of the Gophers' Big Ten schedule has been mostly home matches so far. They finish with 7 out of 10 on the road, so several more road wins should improve their RPI ranking. But then Pittsburgh is only 4-0 on the road so far, so this might not explain a whole lot.
 

Minnesota gets dinged this season in strength of schedule because 1) the Kansas State match was cancelled and 2) they played four teams with RPI's (this week) of: North Carolina (146), North Dakota State (238), UWGB (155) and Georgia State (291). North Carolina was part of the ACC/B1G challenge and North Dakota State is having a down year.

And of course, the Gophers losing to Stanford and Oregon didn't help. Anyway this years strength of schedule is likely an aberration.

As far as the RPI's use by the committee. Last season, the top 16 seeds were also the top 16 RPI teams. The top four seeds were Penn State, Florida, Stanford and Kentucky. The top four RPI teams were Penn State, Florida, Kentucky and Texas. The committee dropped Texas and inserted Stanford. Minnesota was number 7 in RPI and was 7th seeded in the tournament.

As with women's basketball, the committee may not use RPI; but it sure tracks whatever they do use.
 

Give Pitt a #5 seed to make them feel better about themselves and their weak schedule. They should not get to host a regional!!
 

http://www.mndaily.com/article/2018/10/s-samedy-hones-skills-while-leading-top-volleyball-team

Daily article on Samedy:

It's hard to be one of the best players on one of the best teams in the nation. It should be almost impossible for an underclassman.

Yet halfway through her sophomore year, opposite hitter Stephanie Samedy has carried over momentum from her promising freshman campaign and productive off-season to establish herself as one of Minnesota's premier players.

Samedy was named first team All-American as a freshman, something that no Minnesota volleyball player had done before her. She was also unanimously named to the All-Big Ten and Freshman All-Big Ten teams after the season.

...

She also earned a spot on the U.S. Women’s Collegiate National Team as the team traveled to China in May. When Samedy heard that she made the team, her response was simple.

“I was just like, 'Woah, that’s pretty awesome,'” Samedy said.

This wasn't the first time the opposite hitter had gotten the chance to represent her country. She competed in 2016 at the NORCECA Women’s U20 Continental Championship and was a part of the Youth National Team.

This time, however, Samedy said she learned the importance of being a well-rounded player.

“It kind of taught me the importance of being an all-around player and being able to play with anyone,” Samedy said. “Making sure I have the techniques I need in order to be able to compete with anyone.”

The USWCT traveled to China for a five-match tour over a 10-day span. The team finished with a 4-1 record and Samedy was a major contributor.

Samedy dominated by leading the team with 18 points in the first match against Shanghai Bright Ubest, a Chinese professional team.
 

Just got an email from the U that they are selling "postseason tickets" for the Round of 64 and the round of 16. Definitely buying. Hoping they host them all!
 

Ugly start to the MSU match. Pulled out the win in the first set. Down 0-4 to start the 2nd
 

UpAndUnder43 said:
Ugly start to the MSU match. Pulled out the win in the first set. Down 0-4 to start the 2nd
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Fell down as many as 6 but fought back en route to the sweep -22, -23, -15. Michigan tomorrow is worrisome.
 

Dominant third set by the gophers.

Tomorrow is a big one. Need to play better out of the gates
 

UpAndUnder43 said:
Dominant third set by the gophers.

Tomorrow is a big one. Need to play better out of the gates
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The Gophers are a better team than MI, but they need to play better than against MSU. They can lift their performance.
 

The passing last night was pretty spotty. During their timeout in the second set, Hugh was visibly unhappy with how the team was playing, which was the first time I have seen that in awhile. They got a bit better as the match wore on, but the passing issues from tonight can't be repeated against Michigan. It'll be interesting to see whether they can clean that up against the Wolverines.
 

Gophers_4life said:
At least get Pitt outta there! Thank you!

They don't deserve a top 4 spot, even if undefeated. They play in weak ACC. Same argument for BYU, sure, but at least they beat Stanford! Pitt has beaten nobody.
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Pitt is the only team in its conference (ACC) in the RPI's top 25. The next ACC team is #32 Syracuse. Similarly, though BYU did beat Stanford, they too are the only team in the WCC ranked in the top 25. The next WCC team is #31 Saint Mary's (CA). Meanwhile, the Big Ten has seven teams in the RPI's top fifteen.
 

Hard to ask for any team to be on your A game 100% of the time. Slipped a bit last night but still pulled it off. Thats a pretty good sign how good this team is.
 

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