YSU Volleyball Starts Horizon League Play this Weekend in Wisconsin
9/20/2012 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
With its best non-conference record in 13 years a pleasant memory in the rear-view mirror, the Youngstown State volleyball team will embark on its Horizon League journey this weekend with matches at Milwaukee and Green Bay. The Penguins will play the defending champion Milwaukee Panthers on Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern, and they'll play the Phoenix of Green Bay on Saturday at 5 p.m. Eastern. Live stats and live video of both matches will be available through YSUsports.com.
Youngstown State won its final two matches at the UNC Greensboro Spartan Spiketacular last weekend to improve to 10-4 overall. After getting swept for the first time all season by Ohio Valley Conference favorite Morehead State in the opener on Friday, YSU responded to beat both UNC Greensboro and UNC Wilmington in four sets on Saturday. Junior hitter Missy Hundelt put an exclamation point on a solid non-conference schedule by posting 37 kills and 38 digs while hitting .365 in those two victories. She was named the Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week for her efforts. Hundelt finished the non-conference season ranking fourth in the Horizon League with 3.23 kills per set, and her .288 attack percentage is fifth best.
YSU, which was picked to finish last in the League's preseason poll, enters conference play with the best record in the circuit at 10-4. The 10 non-conference wins are the most by a YSU team since 1999, and the Penguins already have three more victories than their previous two seasons combined. The Penguins have also helped Mark Hardaway tie the school record for most wins by a first-year head coach.
Scouting Milwaukee
Milwaukee finished the non-conference season with a 5-8 record against a tough slate of opponents. The Panthers have lost their last four matches to Wisconsin, Iowa, Pacific and Marquette, but they won at least set in each of those matches except against the Badgers. Milwaukee has won three consecutive Horizon League regular season titles and nine of the previous 10. Further, the Panthers have won 25 straight conference matches and 39 of its previous 40. Elizabeth Egerer, Rachel Neuberger and Kayla Price were all named to the preseason all-league team, but Julie Kolinske has emerged as the Panthers' top threat. The sophomore ranks third in the Horizon League (one spot ahead of YSU's Missy Hundelt) with 3.98 kills per set, and her 3.35 digs per set rank ninth. Milwaukee has won five straight contests against YSU and leads the all-time series 23-5.
Scouting Green Bay
Green Bay has won its last four matches to push its record to 7-5 at the end of non-conference play. The Phoenix won the Davidson Wildcat Classic last weekend by sweeping NC Central and High Point and beating Davidson in five sets. The Phoenix leads the Horizon League with 17.80 digs per set, and they rank second behind YSU in blocks with 2.07 per set. Carmen Leiterman leads the conference with a .341 attack percentage, and libero Brittany Groth averages a league-best 5.78 digs per set. Groth was named preseason all-conference, and Green Bay was picked to finish fifth in the coaches poll. Green Bay has won six consecutive matches against YSU and leads the all-time series 23-5.
Hardaway Hoping to Provide Stability
First-year head coach Mark Hardaway has Youngstown State off to a strong start, and he's hoping that he can have a long stretch of success. Hardaway, who came to the Penguins after spending the last eight seasons as an assistant coach at Bowling Green, is YSU's third head coach in the last four seasons. Joe Bonner was the Penguins' head coach in 2009, and Krista Burrows was at the helm the past two seasons. Burrows resigned last December to open a family restaurant in Belize, and Hardaway's hiring was announced on Jan. 11, 2012. With 10 wins in the first 14 matches, Hardaway has already tied the school record for most victories by a first-year head coach. Hardaway came to YSU with 168 victories as a head coach, which included two seasons at Western Kentucky and eight at Evansville.
- Although none of YSU's 16 players have played for more than two head coaches, Jackie Carlisle and Missy Hundelt have been associated with three coaching staffs. They both signed early in 2009 to attend Youngstown State and were recruited by Bonner. The pair played their first two seasons under Burrows and are now being coached by Hardaway.
Looking at YSU's 10-4 Start
- YSU has at least 10 wins in its first 14 matches for the fourth time in school history. Its best start through 14 matches came in 1995 at 11-3. The most recent 10-4 start came in 1999 when the Penguins went on to go 27-5. Each time YSU has started at least 10-4, it has won at least 22 matches.
- Youngstown State posted 10 wins against non-conference opponents for the first time since 1999.
- YSU won eight consecutive matches for the first time since posting 20 straight wins in 1999. The eight-match winning streak tied for the third-longest in school history.
- The Penguins swept four straight opponents for the first time since 2001.
Main Improvement is Efficiency
Although Youngstown State has improved in nearly every statistic from 2011 to 2012, the most glaring is attack percentage. The Penguins are hitting .240 as a team in 2012, which is a monstrous step up from .152 in 2011. In fact, YSU hit above .240 just three times in 29 matches last season and did not hit above .220 in any match in 2010. Additionally, YSU's defense has been much better. The Penguins are holding opponents to a .152 attack percentage, which is the best in the Horizon League. Last year, opponents hit .231 versus YSU.
A New Version of Hundelt
Missy Hundelt showed that she was one of the top young players in the Horizon League in each of the past two seasons, and a new position and another offseason has helped her take another step forward. Last season Hundelt averaged 3.60 kills per set as primarily a left-side hitter, but she hit at a .168 attack percentage. This season she has tailed off slightly with 3.23 kills per set, but her percentage is a monumentally better .288. Hundelt has posted kills on 42.9 percent of her attempts in 2012, which is up from 35 percent in 2011. Similarly, she has recorded errors on 14 percent of her attempts this season, which is down from 18.2 percent last year. Hundelt has posted an attack percentage of at least .340 nine times in YSU's first 14 matches. She had hit above .340 just three times in 53 career matches heading into this season.
Efficiency Improved Everywhere
In addition to Missy Hundelt upping her attack percentage from last season, nearly every other Penguin has done the same. Middle blocker Jenna Cavanaugh has made the biggest jump, going from .151 to a team-leading .291. Shannon Watson has upped her percentage from .187 to .277 while playing in the middle and on the outside. Jackie Carlisle has upped her percentage from .201 to .240, and Alexis Egler is up to .192 from .138.
More Emphasis on Offense from Middles
The Penguins have done a much better job of incorporating their middle blockers into the offense this season. Shannon Watson, Jenna Cavanaugh, Aly Ryan, Nichele Johnson and Kelsey Wagy are contributing 5.27 kills per set over the first 14 matches. Last year, YSU managed 2.80 kills per set from its middles. The Penguins have 285 kills from their middle hitters through 14 matches this season, which nearly matches the 305 they got in 29 matches last season. Watson has upped her kills from 1.52 per set to 2.32, and Cavanaugh's kills have gone from 0.81 per set to 1.70. Ryan is averaging 1.41 kills per set as a freshman.
Ending Last Season Strong
Youngstown State gained some momentum at the end of last season by winning three of its final five matches. The Penguins defeated Chicago State, UIC and Loyola in consecutive weekends to up their record to 5-24. Even with just five wins last year, YSU won twice as many sets as it did in 2010 and improved statistically in nearly every aspect. Dating back to the final five matches of last season, YSU has won 13 of its last 19 matches. Prior to that, the Penguins had won 13 of their previous 91 matches.
YSU Running 6-2 Offense
Youngstown State has utilized two setters in all but one match this season as first-year head coach Mark Hardaway installed the 6-2 offense. Junior Casey D'Ambrose has played in every set and started all but one match, and she is averaging 7.02 assists per set. Freshman Erin Muir has played in 41 sets with one start, and she is averaging 4.39 assists. The new offense has helped the Penguins hit .240 as a team, which ranks second in the Horizon League. It is also a dramatic upgrade from last season when the Penguins registered a .152 attack percentage.
Next Week
The Youngstown State volleyball team will play at Beeghly Center for just the second time in 2012 when it welcomes UIC and Loyola to campus. The Penguins will play UIC on Friday at 7 p.m. and Loyola on Saturday at 4 p.m.
