After three wins last week, we return to the question, “Is this year’s team better than last year’s talented group?” We take a closer look at two more hitters, Redshirt Senior Opposite Brooke Smith and left OH Redshirt Junior Taylor Russell. Both of these players have missed matches in their Flyer careers due to injuries. We have seen those “coupling” circles on their hitting shoulders off and on this season. Taylor has had a knee brace at times in her three years on the court. We have also seen both of these players take huge swings and crush the ball this year. With the program’s resources, they appear to be managing their readiness every week.

“Both players have worked very hard in the weight room and with sports medicine to be the best versions of themselves,” Assistant Coach Balice shared.

One area that I feel both players are contributing at a high level this season, is their blocking. Brooke on the right pin has to put up a lot of block attempts because her position is responsible for the net defense against the opponent’s two left OHs, and the left OHs get the most swings.

Assistant Coach Christa Cooper is in charge of blocking and she offers some insight into work in this area.

“Brooke is an elite student of the game and has put a lot of time working on her blocking technique and vision,” she said.  “She is always eager to make the next upgrade, and she is a blocker that our middles love blocking with because she really makes it a blocking ‘unit’ where the weight is on both of the blockers to get the job done. (That means to) shrink the court or smother the balls we are supposed to.  She has great eyes and finds her hitters quickly, so whether they run different routes or try to attack different zones of the court, she is ready.”

Taylor on the left pin averaged .44 blocks/set last year. That has jumped to .58/set this season – which is very good for her position. To give you a point of reference, you want your middle blockers over 1.0 blocks/set and the really good ones have blocking numbers in the upper “1’s”, close to 2.0. Middle blockers technically can be in on every block attempt because they go coast-to-coast along the net. As an OH, in a round number, you  get half the block attempts as the MBs.  And when you play left OH, you get even less because you block the opponents’ Opposite hitter – who gets less swings than the left OHs. So Taylor’s .58 average so far this season can be looked at as better than a 1.20 average for a MB.

“Taylor is another Flyer that has put in a lot of time and effort to upgrade her skill in the game.,” Cooper explained. “ She has gone with our blocking group more often in practice segments and it’s been so fun to see her hard work pay off.  She is an extremely bright athlete so you tell her what to look for or a small focus and she takes that and runs with it.  She has taken ownership of her role in the blocking scheme and her excitement in that is contagious.”

Coach Balice added, “Both players have spent a lot of time mastering their craft. Specific skills both have improved are their eye work. Seeing the set and how the attackers are approaching can be a very difficult skill to master and both have evolved a lot in how they process information. Brooke specifically does a great job of setting up the block and Taylor has spent a lot of time evolving her hand and arm work and really pressing over the net.

“Brooke has always been a selfless teammate with a “team-first” mentality, Balice continued. “Last year she was needed to fill roles on both pins at times. This past spring we knew she would have to step up as an Opposite if we were going to move Liana to the MB1 position. Brooke has obviously stepped up to the task of not only being an elite attacker on the opposite but being what our defensive coordinator (Christa Cooper) would call ‘assignment sharp’ in her blocking and defensive responsibilities.”

Brooke’s block average  is only slightly lower than Liana’s from last year – and with many A10 matches left to play, could very well be better by season’s end. Taylor is blowing away her average from last year. I think this area of the game is an upgrade from last season at this point, with the opportunity to solidify this opinion and be a lot better.

Taylor was held out of the second Loyola match last week, so Brooke moved to the left pin and had a huge hitting percentage – .450 – and she put up a block. Sophomore Kaitlyn McNeel came in to play Opposite in the rotation. In her limited time on the court last year and this year, I have been impressed with Kaitlyn. She is hitting close to Brooke’s percentage on the right pin. Her blocks are .25/set. But…many sets she only gets in for 3 to 6 rotations, not the entire set.  That affects her average because she doesn’t get  as many block attempts.

Head Coach Tim Horsmon has historically held injury information close to the vest.  So Taylor’s availability this weekend against George Washington is TBD, but with Brooke and Kaitlyn available, the hits will keep on coming and I’m confident our outside blockers will continue to get better. Coach Balice provided some insight into George Washington, who was picked 8th in the preseason poll but is having a great season and currently sits 2nd in the standings.

“Statistically, GW is doing a lot of things well. We think they serve very tough and tie that into a pretty sound defensive unit. Offensively, GW runs some unique patterns which will make them a unique challenge to block and defend. Because they run a 6-2, they will have three offensive options in the front row at all times.”

Our serve receive will need to step up and pass the ball well to our setter. And, we will need our block to continue to stop attacks at the net. When those two parts of the game are critical to secure a win, it makes for great volleyball.