Volleyball Set to Open 2011 at Syracuse Tournament on Friday
8/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The Youngstown State volleyball team will begin its 37th season, and its second under coach Krista Burrows, on Friday at the Big Orange Tournament hosted by Syracuse.
The Penguins will open the 2011 campaign on Friday at 4:30 p.m. against Siena in the tournament's first match. They will then play the host Orange on Saturday at 12:30 p.m., and they'll conclude their weekend against Sacred Heart at 4:30 p.m. Live stats will be available for all matches during the tournament at http://www.sidearmstats.com/syracuse/wvball/.
Youngstown State has eight newcomers on its squad for the second season, and Burrows hopes the large roster turnover results in forming a winning identity. The Penguins do return three starters and its libero from last season, but their youth is evident as Brittany Grove is the only four-year member of the squad.
The offense ran through Missy Hundelt (St. Charles, Mo.) last season, and it likely will again in 2011. The sophomore will move from the left side to the right because Burrows wants to take advantage of her skills as a blocker. Hundelt led the Penguins in kills, attempts and points last season while ranking third in digs.
Bri Kern (Indianapolis, Ind.) finished last season as the starting libero, and the transfer from Centenary was named a team captain in the offseason. She finished ninth in the conference with 3.31 digs per set in league play, but she's been pushed by a hoard of newcomers in the back row.
The Penguins are particularly inexperienced at middle blocker and setter where the five student-athletes at those positions have made a combined 37 starts at the Division I level. Sophomore Jenna Cavanaugh (Cold Spring, Ky.) started 22 matches last year and led the team with 0.98 blocks per set. Sophomore setter Casey D'Ambrose (Addison, Ill.) started seven matches last year, but all of those came at defensive specialist. She and freshman Brianna Bartlett (Bloomington, Ind.) are the only two setters on the squad.
Scouting the Opponents
Youngstown State has a combined 2-2 record against the three opponents it will face this weekend. The Penguins are 1-0 all-time against both Siena and Sacred Heart, but they are 0-2 against the Orange. Siena went 10-21 last year and is picked to finish sixth this year in the MAAC. Sophomore Taylor Akana was named preseason all-conference after ranking 12th nationally last year with 4.48 kills per set. Syracuse has four starters returning from last season's 23-9 squad, but it also has nine freshmen on the roster. Senior Noemie Lefebvre led Syracuse in both kills (360) and digs (324) last year en route to earning second-team all-conference accolades. Sacred Heart went 29-7 and earned its first NCAA Tournament berth last year. Six of seven starters return for the Pioneers, including four All-NEC players.
End of the Year Improvement
YSU will look to build on a strong spring season and an improvement over the last 10 matches of last fall. In the last 10 matches to close out 2010, the Penguins averaged three more digs and nearly one more kill per set. They upped their digs average from 11.71 to 14.71 and their kills average from 95.8 to 10.43. YSU also improved its hitting percentage, assists per game and blocks per game. Senior Bri Kern led the defensive charge by averaging 3.97 digs over the final 10 matches, an increase of 1.89 per set.
About Season Openers
YSU will be looking to win its season opener for the first time since 2007. That season the Guins opened the year by going 5-0, which included a five-set win over La Salle to start the year. Since then, they've lost openers to Xavier, Villanova and Buffalo.
Back-to-Back Seasons with Eight Newcomers
Youngstown State will have eight newcomers on its roster for the second straight season. Of the 16 student-athletes on the roster, only senior Brittany Grove has been with the program longer than one full season. This year's roster is comprised of two seniors, two juniors, seven sophomores and five freshmen. Senior Bri Kern transferred in from Centenary prior to last season, and juniors Kelsey Wagy and Rachel Gambow transferred prior to this season.
Penguins Picked Ninth in Preseason Poll
YSU has been predicted to finish ninth in the Horizon League, according to a preseason poll of the league's coaches. Defending regular-season champion Milwaukee earned four of the nine first-place votes and finished with 60 points to earn the top spot. Cleveland State received two first-place votes and finished second with 52 points, and Butler and Valparaiso both finished with 51 points. Green Bay, UIC, Loyola, Wright State and YSU were picked to finish fifth through ninth.
