Change The Keyword For Volleyball In 2005
Aug 26, 2005 | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 26, 2005
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Throughout the history of recorded music, the word "change" appears in the title of more than 500 songs. Several bands have hit it big with change songs - from Chuck Berry's How You've Changed to monster ballad Wind of Change by The Scorpions to recent hit Never Change by Jay-Z.
The Tulane University volleyball team is looking for some hits of its own with several changes in 2005.
The most noticeable change occurred on Jan. 27, 2005 when former Green Wave standout and long-time assistant Liz Kritza was promoted to head coach. In addition, the 2005 team has seen changes to its roster with the arrival of nine newcomers - including Colorado State transfer Kristen Karlik, a pair of former Croatian Junior National Team members and two Junior Olympic gold-medal winners. And finally, the Green Wave will compete in the new Conference USA as a member of the West Division along with league newcomers Rice, SMU, Tulsa and UTEP, and C-USA holdover Houston Cougars.
"In college athletics, change is inevitable," Kritza said. "Players graduate, assistant coaches move up the ranks, and your opponents are never the same from year to year. The key to success is how you handle the challenge of change, and I am confident that we have a group of student-athletes who not only embrace challenges but will thrive because of them in 2005 and beyond."
The team returns five letterwinners from last year's 17-12 showing - seniors Kelli Dickson (libero/setter) and Blair Moon (outside hitter), juniors Chelsee Hurley (middle blocker) and Sarah Thorson (right-side hitter), and sophomore Lindsey Karlin (libero/defensive specialist) - but the Green Wave will rely heavily on newcomers to key its success in 2005.
Highlighting the list of recruits are outside hitter Sara Radosevic and setter Luna Rebrovic, who starred together on the Croatian Junior National Team. Freshmen middle blockers Jen Linder and Lauren Boatwright helped their respective club teams win gold medals at Junior Nationals in 2005, and the recruiting class is rounded out by sophomore transfer Lindsay Schaefer and rookies Ashley Bernards, Liz McGehee and Bridget Wells.
"We're going to be a team that relies on its senior leadership while our freshmen learn to play as a cohesive unit and compete in the new Conference USA," Kritza said. "Once we learn to play together, I believe this team can be quite successful.
"The newcomers add a great deal of size to our lineup, which is something we have not had in recent years. They will help us immediately at the net, both in our blocking and attack, and while there will be a learning curve, we expect them to contribute right away and get better as the season progresses."
OUTSIDE HITTERS
Tulane returns a starter on the outside in Blair Moon as the former high school All-American is back for her senior season and will remain primarily on the left side. In her first season at Tulane, Moon chipped in with 129 kills, 172 digs, 34 blocks and 18 service aces.
Moon will have competition for one of the outside positions from freshmen Radosevic and Wells, and sophomore Schaefer. Radosevic is one of the Green Wave's most decorated recruits with international experience as a member of some of the top teams in Croatia, including a three-year stint with the Junior National Team and two seasons with the Cadet Championship Team of Croatia, where she was named best hitter.
Wells lined up at setter, right-side and outside hitter during her high school and club careers and earned all-conference honors her final three prep seasons. Schaefer, meanwhile, enrolled at Clemson University last fall, but transferred to Tulane in the spring. An all-state and all-area honoree as a senior at Oak Hall High (Fla.), Schaefer practiced with the Green Wave throughout the spring and will add depth to a young group of outsides.
"There are basically two types of outside hitters: power hitters and ball-control hitters," Kritza said. "We are very fortunate to have both and that gives us some flexibility on offense. Our outsides shoulder a major load in our passing scheme and are constantly an option in our offensive patterns.
"The flexibility we have with the different types of players gives us some options, and I look forward to a high level of play from our outside hitters throughout the season."
RIGHT-SIDE HITTERS
Tulane returns a pair of players with starting experience on the right side for 2005 in Moon and Thorson, who will be challenged by true freshman Linder.
Moon will likely play exclusively on the outside in 2005, and that leaves the other two to fill the two spots in the lineup. Thorson bounced from the right side to the middle during her first two seasons at Tulane, and while she can play either position, she will probably spend most of her time on the right side.
"We're much bigger on the right side then we've been in my time at Tulane," Kritza said. "A right-side hitter's responsibilities are to defend the opponents' best outside hitters, and with the size we have, we should continue to be a solid blocking team from this position.
"We have several tall, heavy-handed hitters on the right side, and I expect them to provide a solid block and produce offensively. We have two types of right-side hitters this year - tall and taller - and we will take advantage of their size throughout the season."
Middle Blockers
One of the areas with the most change in 2005 is the middle blockers. Tulane, however, is not without the firepower to dominate as juniors Thorson and Hurley along with rookies Lauren Boatwright and Linder will all battle for playing time.
Hurlee saw limited action in 2004 but played extensively as a true freshman in 2003. Hurlee led Lamar University and ranked third in the Southland Conference in blocks as a rookie before transferring to Tulane.
Boatwright helped Lewis-Palmer High (Colo.) to three consecutive state playoff appearances and helped the Colorado Juniors win a gold medal at the 2005 Junior Nationals. Linder, meanwhile, helped guide Austin-Westlake (Texas) to four straight district titles and also won a gold medal at Junior Nationals with Austin Juniors.
Wells, who stands 6-3, will provide a solid block at the net as well as a solid offensive option, and Linder's experience from high school and club will help her push for playing time.
"Inexperience in the middle provides a challenge for any team," Kritza said. "We graduated two starters in the middle from last year, but we have four players who will push each other every day in practice.
"I'm a firm believer that competition brings out the best in every player. Sara, Chelsee, Laura and Jen all have good backgrounds, and while this position may be a work in progress early on, I think this can be one of our stronger positions by season's end."
SETTERS
The Green Wave have a few options at setter in 2005 with the return of Dickson and incoming talent Rebrovic and McGehee.
Dickson will likely line up at libero for the second consecutive season, but served as the team's setter her first two collegiate seasons and currently ranks fourth in Tulane history with 2,237 career assists. Rebrovic brings international experience to the lineup as a former member of the Croatian Junior National Team, while McGehee earned a spot in the Louisiana All-Star Game from her prep days at Episcopal School of Acadiana.
Rebrovic appears to have the upper hand on the position heading into the season with Dickson returning to her defensive role, while McGehee will add depth to a talented position.
"The setter is the quarterback of the team," Kritza said. "She is responsible for running the offense, reading the opponent's blocking schemes and making sure the right person is set in the right situations.
"We are fortunate to have someone as versatile as Kelli and with the international experience of Luna. We have three good options when you factor in Liz, and I expect this to be an interesting battle in the preseason"
LIBERO/DEFENSE
Like the setter position, Tulane will have several options at libero in Dickson, sophomore Lindsey Karlin and freshman Ashley Bernards.
In her first season as libero, Dickson posted the third-most digs in Tulane history (446) and enters the 2005 season ranked ninth in the school record book with 917 digs. Karlin played in 29 games last season as a true freshman and chipped in with 67 digs, and Bernards brings an impressive prep résumé from McMinnville High (Ore.) where she earned Pac 9 Player of the Year and second team all-state honors, and was named Northwest Register/MAC Club Player of the Year as a senior.
Adding to the mix is junior transfer Kristen Karlik, who played two seasons at Colorado State before transfering to Tulane in the fall. Karlik led the Rams in digs last year with 352 digs and ranked fifth in the Mountain West Conference with 3.42 digs per game. Karlik will likely redshirt the 2005 seaon, but will add a voice of experience off the bench and be ready for next year.
"We base so much of what we do as a team on our first contact, and we have the depth and experience at the libero position to provide consistent serve reception and floor defense," Kritza said. "They have to stabilize our passing unit and play tenacious defense, and I feel confident in the players we have at that position to do a good job of that once again this year."
SCHEDULE
Fifteen matches at Fogelman Arena, including a pair of home tournaments, highlight the 27-match schedule. In addition, Tulane hosts cross-town foe UNO on Sept. 6 and travels to Miami, Fla., to take part in the Hurricane Invitational on Sept. 9-10.
Tulane begins the 2005 season on Aug. 26 vs. Nicholls State and will play its first game in the revamped C-USA on Sept. 23 when the Green Wave travel to Greenville, N.C. to take on East Carolina. Tulane will play as a member of C-USA's West Division and will play home-and-home matches vs. division foes Houston, Rice, SMU, Tulsa and UTEP.
In addition, the Green Wave will play single matches vs. East Division opponents Marshall, Southern Miss and UCF while hitting the road to battle East Carolina, UAB and Memphis.
"We are excited about our 2005 schedule," Kritza said. "Fielding a team as young as ours, we wanted to give the girls an opportunity to play teams in the non-conference portion of our schedule that are expected to be successful in their respective conferences. We've been able to bring in quality teams like Notre Dame and LSU and will go on the road to play Miami, who has been in the NCAAs a couple of times in recent years.
"I'm also looking forward to playing the new teams in the realigned Conference USA. The new league will be very competitive, and we anticipate forming new rivalries with schools like Rice, Tulsa and UTEP."
CONCLUSION
Change will be the keyword for the Green Wave volleyball team in 2005 - from the players to the coaches to the opponents.
Tulane may live up to and embrace the lyrics of David Bowie's Changes and even Sheryl Crowes' A Change Will Do You Good, but perhaps the biggest slogan for Tulane in 2005 may be the old catch phrase, "the more things change, the more things stay the same."
With that in mind, the 2005 team will take the court with the same goals as Green Wave teams of the past - post a winning season and make a run at the C-USA title.
"This will not be a rebuilding year for Tulane volleyball," Kritza said. "We have some very good veteran players joining a list of talented newcomers. Tulane has four consecutive winning seasons dating back to 2001, and we plan on making it five straight."
