Gopher Volleyball 2021 - Spring Season

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Gophers played with no emotion, didn't seem to care that they were there. Played poorly, probably as a result of no emotion. Deserved to lose. The better team today won.
 

What a disappointing end to the season. This team fell victim to their own belief that because they won the first set, that they would win the entire match. The always play sloppy, not loose, in the second set and Pitt took full advantage of that. They turned took the fourth set because sloppy play after the set win came back and then they exploited the shock by throwing all their tricks and gadgets at us to build an insurmountable lead in the fifth set.

I really thought this team was mentally tougher than the one on the court today.
 

I think Hugh is overrated. And my opinion is not just based on today’s performance. Great recruiter, but.....
 

Oh please, MN is lucky to have Hugh as a coach. The VB program wouldn't be where it is today without him.
 








jham13 said:
Oh please, MN is lucky to have Hugh as a coach. The VB program wouldn't be where it is today without him.
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Hugh is a good coach but still needs to prove he can win the big one like Rose and Cook in the conference have on multiple occasions. With that said it isn’t as if there is a better coach out there that Minnesota could or would ever replace Hugh with.
 

Disappointing loss. Gophers were very tight and Pitt was loose and having fun. Terrible receiving and passing. Sets were made from bad positions and were not good enough. Pitt had a good game plan. They knew how to handle the Gophers blocking and were great at digging out spikes. The Gophers have a lot of players who can screw light bulbs in the ceiling but few players who can wipe spills off the floor. Need some recruits or transfers who can play defense. They need to learn from the loss.
 

cncmin said:
Not to knock on Hugh, but the MN volleyball program was pretty solid before Hugh as well.
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Guess I don't remember the team being in the top 10 consistency. Yes Pittsburgh was very loose and having fun today. They had nothing to lose as they were the underdogs. Gophers meanwhile tighten up as it has been said by previous posters.

Crap happens every year regardless of the sport across the country. Holy Cross comes to my mind off hand.
 

maroonfive said:
Embarrassing that Wisconsin is better in women's hockey and now volleyball. Yikes.
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Since when were the Gophers the clear-cut superior volleyball team to the Badgers? Was this when Wisconsin was in the Final Four in 2014 or lost in the National Championship game in 2000, 2013, and 2019? Or when John Cook was the Badger coach for 7 seasons before heading to Nebraska?

Except for a 5 year lull before Sheffield became their coach, they have been in the NCAA tournament nearly every single year for 3 decades.

Yes, how embarrassing....
 



GopherGod said:
Hugh is a good coach but still needs to prove he can win the big one like Rose and Cook in the conference have on multiple occasions. With that said it isn’t as if there is a better coach out there that Minnesota could or would ever replace Hugh with.
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This is obviously true. You don’t replace somebody with nobody. Hugh is better than any possible alternative for the Gophers - it helps that he married a Minnesotan so it is in his interests to be hear.

It’s not like the NCAA and all the other teams are just handing national titles to the Gophers “just because”. It’s hard to win consistently. really hard. Look at Stanford post Plummer - they suck now. Just wait to see Wisconsin post Rettke/Hilley - they will be nothing overly special.
 

The Gophers obviously were overrated and over-seeded. And it's not their fault for that. It was a short season with no non-conference matches. They likely would have lost more matches if they would have had to face Ohio State twice, Wisconsin again, and some tough opponents in the PAC 12 & ACC challenges they seem to schedule every season. I can't figure out how they were seeded higher than Nebraska after the Huskers clearly dominated them in the rematch sweep. The Gophers played 8 players today - 5 of which are freshmen or sophomores. Contrast that with a team like Wisconsin. They played 10 players against BYU - of which 7 seniors and 1 junior. Experience seems to usually win in volleyball.

One gripe I do have with Hugh is his apparent refusal to use his bench. If something obviously isn't working, come on, give someone on the bench a chance. And I wonder why the passing game has been so subpar for quite a few seasons now. Is Hugh that confident that Kilkelly and McGraw will eventually figure things out that he doesn't even look to recruit other back row players who can pass well if they aren't getting it done? Or was that supposed to be Appiani?

It's actually remarkable how many matches the Gophers won despite such uneven play and sometimes sloppy ball control.
 

GibsonSG said:
The Gophers obviously were overrated and over-seeded. And it's not their fault for that. It was a short season with no non-conference matches. They likely would have lost more matches if they would have had to face Ohio State twice, Wisconsin again, and some tough opponents in the PAC 12 & ACC challenges they seem to schedule every season. I can't figure out how they were seeded higher than Nebraska after the Huskers clearly dominated them in the rematch sweep. The Gophers played 8 players today - 5 of which are freshmen or sophomores. Contrast that with a team like Wisconsin. They played 10 players against BYU - of which 7 seniors and 1 junior. Experience seems to usually win in volleyball.

One gripe I do have with Hugh is his apparent refusal to use his bench. If something obviously isn't working, come on, give someone on the bench a chance. And I wonder why the passing game has been so subpar for quite a few seasons now. Is Hugh that confident that Kilkelly and McGraw will eventually figure things out that he doesn't even look to recruit other back row players who can pass well if they aren't getting it done? Or was that supposed to be Appiani?

It's actually remarkable how many matches the Gophers won despite such uneven play and sometimes sloppy ball control.
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Overrated/over-seeded. Very likely. What struck me was how slim their roster was all season. In the end out of 14, McGraw was injured; Myers mysteriously missing; Atherton, McMenimen, Huseman, seldom entered games, if ever; for whatever reason Miyabe got less & less playing time. That left only 8 viable choices. Yesterday it felt like Samedy, Pittman, & Rollins were taking on Pitt by themselves.
 

GibsonSG Said:
Is Hugh that confident that Kilkelly and McGraw will eventually figure things out that he doesn't even look to recruit other back row players who can pass well if they aren't getting it done? Or was that supposed to be Appiani?

The Gophers have a commitment from Mandi Morioka, a DS/L from CA.
 

GibsonSG said:
Since when were the Gophers the clear-cut superior volleyball team to the Badgers? Was this when Wisconsin was in the Final Four in 2014 or lost in the National Championship game in 2000, 2013, and 2019? Or when John Cook was the Badger coach for 7 seasons before heading to Nebraska?

Except for a 5 year lull before Sheffield became their coach, they have been in the NCAA tournament nearly every single year for 3 decades.

Yes, how embarrassing....
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From 2015 to 2018 the Gophers were clearly superior. They won eight in a row over the Badgers during that time, including a pair of conference titles, and lead the all-time series. So yeah, you can make the argument that the Gophers have been the better program several times over the 2000s, especially in the early 2000s and until the start of 2019.

Other than that, you're right. The team really needs to improve in several areas. This roster basically showed very little fire as a whole most of this season. They noticeably lacked fire in sets where things weren't going well and seemed to actively pick and choose when they wanted to play with focus. Pretty much unacceptable imo.

Not a recipe for success, especially with the level of talent Hugh recruits.
 

MRJ said:
From 2015 to 2018 the Gophers were clearly superior. They won eight in a row over the Badgers during that time, including a pair of conference titles, and lead the all-time series. So yeah, you can make the argument that the Gophers have been the better program several times over the 2000s, especially in the early 2000s and until the start of 2019.

Other than that, you're right. The team really needs to improve in several areas. This roster basically showed very little fire as a whole most of this season. They noticeably lacked fire in sets where things weren't going well and seemed to actively pick and choose when they wanted to play with focus. Pretty much unacceptable imo.

Not a recipe for success, especially with the level of talent Hugh recruits.
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I like your comments. Sometimes I have this feeling for so many MN teams, i. e., lacking fire to get hot at just the right time & string together a row of stunning wins to a championship, but it seems to happen so seldom, if ever. (Maybe the Lynx for a few years; I remember Sheryl Reeves hotly desciribing not-winning simply as Losersville.) Gophers VB is good and it's flattering they get ranked so high, but that extra little bit always seems missing.
 

GopherGangsta said:
Pathetic performance.....No energy, lazy passing, Hugh tried nothing different....Reminds me of the loss to Oregon at home a couple years ago
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Not nearly as gut wrenching as that loss. Especially with the Final Four in Mpls on the line.

But a similar type of loss.

Just a heartless performance. And as noted, lack of passing was just sad.
 


GibsonSG said:
One gripe I do have with Hugh is his apparent refusal to use his bench.
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I would also gripe about how pathetically easy it is for teams to tip against us.

He actually said one time that he thinks the rules should change to prevent that type of shot at all. 😆
 

Moving forward, IMO, Minnesota has not been able to recruit too many top 20 players. However, this season we had the #1 ranked recruiting class in Division 1 volleyball. All three of those were given playing time this year. If it wasn't for CC being injured more than once, Wenaas would not have been seeing much playing time.

All three of our Freshman starters have potential, but they all need to grow in the sport, at this level. I was most impressed with Wenaas. She has that feel for the game that you want to see in a Freshman. Whereas it appeared Shaffmaster and Landfair needed more guidance.

Landfair looks so so lost and not into the game. Kinda reminds me of Jaz Martin at that position. She has a lot to offer but so much work ahead. Then there is Shaffmaster. I honestly do not believe, if Hugh wants that fast paced offense, she will ever be the answer at setting. I just do not believe she has the physicality needed for this and future Gopher teams. Unfortunately, by the end of the season she still could not set the middle and really struggled with OOS volleyball. I am feeling her game would be better suited at one of the net positions. I just wished she would wipe that smirk off her face. I'm not sure she is even aware she does it.

This year's recruiting class is strong, but could not improve by the end of the season like I'm sure they wanted to, because of our constant back court issues that have plagued us for some time.

People will say look at Rosado. Yes she could set and serve, but one needs to admit those two aspects of her game were much more productive than her digging and passing. I would like to know which coach(es) are behind the teaching of proper technique of our DS and Liberos because it isn't working.
 

4Ever, I will never ever suggest that you lack high expectations and standards for your beloved Gophers and their 18-22 year-old athletes.

I always try to remember that the Gophers’ opponents have million dollar programs and want to win too. Therefore, they are not trying to make it easy for us to spike the ball in their faces... they want to avoid that.
 

MplsGopher said:
:rolleyes:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Hebert
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Yeah I've heard of him, in fact I knew him. Mike really was successful at recruiting in good in state talent but was unable to get highly rated players from across the country. Hugh has elevated the program from what Mike built, that is why he was given the reins at MN. I remember Carlson was a name thrown out as a replacement when Mike retired and I imagine he would have been unsuccessful at MN and let go by now like he was at Ohio St if that would have happened.
 

Hrothgar said:
Overrated/over-seeded. Very likely. What struck me was how slim their roster was all season. In the end out of 14, McGraw was injured; Myers mysteriously missing; Atherton, McMenimen, Huseman, seldom entered games, if ever; for whatever reason Miyabe got less & less playing time. That left only 8 viable choices. Yesterday it felt like Samedy, Pittman, & Rollins were taking on Pitt by themselves.
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I have no idea why Miyabe got so little playing time. She was quite effective in every one of the samples I saw throughout her career. Strange that she wasn't put in even when the rest of the team was struggling the other night.
 

gophersports.com

Samedy Named First Team All-American; Pittman & Landfair Honorable Mention - University of Minnesota Athletics

Stephanie Samedy has garnered American Volleyball Coaches Association First Team All-America honors, announced today by the AVCA.
gophersports.com gophersports.com

Stephanie Samedy has garnered American Volleyball Coaches Association First Team All-America honors, announced today by the AVCA. Samedy is now a four-time All-American, including three on the first team. Regan Pittman and Taylor Landfair were also named AVCA All-America honorable mentions.

Samedy, a right-side from Clermont, Fla., is a four-time All-Big Ten selection and was named the 2021 Big Ten Player of the Year. Samedy was also named the recipient of the Senior CLASS award, which is chosen by a nationwide vote of Division I women's volleyball coaches, national volleyball media, and fans, is given annually to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in Division I women's volleyball. Samedy is the second student-athlete from the University of Minnesota to win the Senior CLASS Award. The AVCA North Region Player of the Year was a two-time Big Ten Player of the Week and also garnered AVCA National Player of the Week award once this season. Samedy was the first Gopher since 2011 to accomplish 20 kills and 20 digs in a match and had 20-plus kills in five matches this season. She also led the Gophers in kills and points 10 times. She averaged 4.11 kills per set in Big Ten play and finished the year with 4.15 kills per set and averaged 4.69 points per set when she had 295 kills and 333 points. Samedy finished her senior year with 1,485 career kills, which ranks 10th all-time in Gopher history. Samedy has led the Gophers in kills all four years.

Pittman garners her third AVCA All-America honor as a Gopher middle blocker. A three-time First-Team All-Big Ten selection, the Spring Hill Kansas native was a Senior CLASS Award first-team selection. A Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week once this season, Pittman had three matches where she amassed double-digit blocks. She finished the season averaging 1.48 blocks per set. Pittman finished her red-shirt senior season with 502 career blocks. She also accumulated a .356 career hitting percentage and had 902 career kills. She ranks eighth all time in career blocks and tied for third in career hitting percentage.

Landfair, an outside hitter, was named a First Team All-Big Ten selection as a true freshman. The Plainfield, Ill., native was also named to the Freshman All-Big Ten team. The AVCA North Region Freshman of the year averaged 3.03 kills per set and ranked second on the team in kills (212). She led the Gophers in match kills five times this year and held double-digit kills 11 times. She was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Week two times this season.
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I saw on the KSTP-TV ticker that Adana Rollins is transferring. Any corroboration?
 


www.seattletimes.com

‘Good after good’ approach takes UW Huskies volleyball team from bad to great — and to Final Four

The principle of "good after good" is that regularly functioning at a high level — in practice and games — will produce a top-level product. In other words, striving for quality at-bats is a more effective strategy than seeking nothing...
www.seattletimes.com www.seattletimes.com

Seattle Times: Good after good approach carries on:

Take, for instance, the Washington volleyball team’s approach to its craft.

Upon arriving on campus in 2015, Huskies coach Keegan Cook instilled in his players the “good after good” mentality. He borrowed the philosophy from former U.S. men’s volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon, who is now coaching the Minnesota women’s volleyball team.

The main principle of “good after good” is that regularly functioning at a high level — whether it be hitting the weights, studying film, performing drills or competing in matches — will eventually produce a product that is top level. In other words, striving for quality at-bats is a more effective long-term strategy than seeking nothing but homers.

“To me, there’s nothing more powerful in the world than compound interest. Those little things add up,” said Cook, whose Huskies will play their first Final Four match since 2013 on Thursday when they meet Kentucky in Omaha, Nebraska. “If you can just make good plays for a long period of time, then great moments will happen, or things will kind of snowball into something great.”

This is a concept more conducive to volleyball than it is to other sports. A football game can be broken open with a few big plays. Same with a soccer match or hockey game. But in volleyball, even the most spectacular of sequences nets a team nothing more than a point.

Besides, the Huskies don’t typically win by overpowering foes like Serena Williams and her scorching serves. They do it with poise, patience and perseverance.

You know those basketball teams that intimidate opponents with a string of thunderous, pregame dunks? The Huskies are definitely not their equivalent.

“I think a lot of people are looking at our team and not understanding who we are, and that’s OK,” Cook said. “One thing we always talk about is that we want teams to kind of walk away from a match going, ‘What just happened?’ “

Cook stressed that he didn’t want that quote to come off as arrogant or disrespectful. Talk to the guy for 10 minutes, and you’ll see he is as humble as
he is thoughtful.

But it isn’t just opponents asking themselves, “What just happened?” when it comes to this team — it’s the whole college volleyball universe
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