Quotes Following Volleyball's 3-1 Win Over Jacksonville State
Sep 12, 2008 | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 12, 2008
TULANE HEAD COACH Liz Kritza
On dropping the first set, 25-23
"We started off not being in system as much as we should be and we allowed Jacksonville State to creep in at points in the set when we should have closed it out."
On the performance of senior libero Liz McGehee
"It was different for us playing without our starting libero, but I need to compliment Liz McGehee for the great job she did tonight. She really stepped up. She found out 15 minutes before the warm-ups started that she was going to start. The libero's contact is the most important in volleyball. The position handles more of the first contacts and more of the serve receptions than anyone else. The more experience and game experience a libero has, usually the better she is. But I have to compliment Liz McGehee for stepping up for her team tonight. It is a good sign to know that we have players in every single position. Not only does that provide depth, but that provides competition which makes everybody better."
On getting the middles involved after the first set
"One of our biggest attributes and challenges at the same time is keeping good balance in our offense. When our first contact struggles, our offense automatically becomes unbalanced. You have to set more outside, high balls. In the past, we have played that type of offense, but for us to be successful for such a way that we can play against any opponent and we can replicate it night after night, we have to be able to set all three of our front-row positions. That is why we run the offense that we run."
On if it is easier for the setters to set the outside and right-side hitters rather than the middles
"It is when you are an outside-oriented team. When your strength has been on the outside, it is a balancing act for our setters to be able to find the middles at the right time and put them in the best possible position to score. When you are not a middle oriented team, the timing, the decisions setters make are that much more crucial for the offense to be firing on all of their cylinders - not just one or two. It is not an easy task that these hitters have. They have gifted hitters on the pin and they have gifted hitters in the middle. But they really have to orchestrate the offense properly for everyone to have a good night. It can be too easy to overload one or the other because often times they are easier sets to make. You can always throw a high ball outside and expect our outside hitters to take a decent swing on it. You have to be much more precise, you have to have much better timing and you have to have a pre-designed play in your head to set the middle properly and then shoot it to the pins on the outside."
On junior right-side hitter Ksenija Vlaskovic leading the team tonight with 14 kills
"I think Ksenija responded, came back, and did the job that we expect of her. To be able to take her usual number of swings and hit .400 is exactly where we need her to be. She and Bridget both are on that pin because they are not swinging and passing. They are swinging and blocking for us and they did a good job tonight. They have to continually hit at a high percentage and they will get a lot of the balls that usually go to the outsides. In our offense, the way it is designed, we want those balls going to the right side because they both have the capability of being extremely efficient hitters."
On the performance of freshman outside hitter Visnja Djurdjevic
"Visnja had one of her best, most complete matches that I have seen her play. Up until now, she has been passing at a high percentage and being very consistent, but she has been lacking in her offensive production. She definitely made up for that. At one point, we were telling our setters, "Look, Visnja is your hot hitter. Go to Visnja." That is a nice change from the way our offense has been running and the offensive load she has been carrying the last two weeks."
On the quality of opponent that Jacksonville State represents
"I think that dropping that first game was a combination of adjusting to that line-up switch. That was an abrupt lineup change to have to overcome and overcome it so quickly. The scores in sets two, three and four are much more indicative of our level of play. Jacksonville State is a good team. They are a quality opponent and they are well coached. The way that we matched up, they played us extremely well."
TULANE SENIOR LIBERO Liz McGehee
On her performance tonight against Jacksonville State
"It was an odd circumstance for me to be able to get in there as a starter, but I think it was a lot of fun. To be able to contribute a little bit of the level that (Jenn) Miller gets to contribute each and every game. I hope that I even did as much as she does for the team every day. I told her that it really meant a lot for me to play today, but I wished that it was her in there just because of the circumstances. I'm sure she'll be back in there soon."
On the team's overall performance against the Gamecocks
"I think the difference was just settling in because we were home and we have to be the dominant team. The first game was just kind of getting used to the crowd. It was great having everybody out here. We've been in big crowds before, but they weren't for us. Tonight, the crowd wasn't for Cal Poly or for BYU. It was out game. It wasn't for anybody else and we tried to play that way."
JACKSONVILLE STATE HEAD COACH RICK NOLD
On tonight's loss to Tulane
"I think we played a very powerful team. In serving, they were very aggressive. The thing I was happy with is that even when we got down, we kept fighting. I don't think we ever let down, but they didn't either. They are a solid team and that's sort of what happens. We're not disappointed with the games. I think if all of the sudden the other team is playing well and you back away, then that's a different story. Tonight, we just got beat by a better team."
On if there was any difference in his philosophy following the set-one win
"Nothing changed on our side. In the second game, we were a little bit down, but in the third and fourth games we played the same way we did in the first. It was just their side of the net played a bit better. I don't think we let down. I just think they stepped up."
