University of Minnesota Athletics
2001 Golden Gopher Volleyball Season Outlook
8/17/2001 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Senior Stephanie Hagen |
?The five-year plan was to win a Big Ten title and to move into the national spotlight,? said Minnesota head coach Mike Hebert, who enters his sixth year as the Golden Gopher head coach. ?We came within fractions of winning the Big Ten title last year, but by winning 30 matches and being nationally ranked within the top 10 for the entire season, we have grabbed our share of national attention. It is very difficult to establish a program as a national power on a year-to-year basis. That is now our challenge at Minnesota.?
The 2000 team was ranked higher than any team in Minnesota history before, during and after the season. The Golden Gophers swept defending national champion Penn State, the first time Minnesota had won two matches against the Nittany Lions in the same season, and snapped Penn State's 87-match home winning streak. The 2000 team established school records for winning streak (15 matches) and home winning streak (9 matches). No Minnesota team in the NCAA era had ever won as many matches, both overall and in conference play as the Gophers did in 2000.
However, the Minnesota players and staff were left a little unsatisfied at the end of the season.
| Head Coach Mike Hebert |
The biggest change for the 2001 season has nothing to do with the composition of the Gopher squad. There have been several rule changes for this season of college volleyball, but the one that will have the biggest impact is the new scoring system. Rally scoring (or point-per-play scoring) is not new to NCAA volleyball, as the fifth game of every match has been rally scored in collegiate competition since 1990. This season, every game will be rally scored, with the first four games being decided by a team reaching 30 points with a two-point lead. The fifth game will remain a rally-scored, 15-point game. Hebert believes this will have a major impact on the entire sport.
?Rally scoring will affect how everyone coaches the game and how everyone plays the game,? said Hebert. ?In some matches last season, we would get off to a slow start, but were able to come back because of our ability to side out. The comeback becomes much more limited, because you lose a point when you lose serve. I believe error reduction, in all parts of the game, will be critical in being successful in the rally-scoring system.?
Minnesota's 2001 lineup will have a new look to it, as four starters are gone from the 2000 team. Hebert likes the athleticism and versatility that his 2001 roster gives him.
?This is probably the best group of athletes I have ever coached,? said Hebert. ?Our size and athletic ability will allow us to deploy different people in different places to give us many looks. We may be able to make up for our lack of experience in team chemistry. The 1996 team was able to overachieve and do special things because of that factor, and I think this team could be similar to that team.?
The Golden Gopher breakdown, by position:
Setter
Minnesota's offense starts with senior setter Lindsey Berg. The two-time AVCA All-District and two-time All-Big Ten player has led the conference for the last three seasons in service aces, and is on pace to become the Big Ten's all-time leader in assists. It is not wise to judge the Gopher setter on her numbers, because she brings so much more with her to the court in every match.
| Senior Lindsey Berg |
The heir apparent to the Minnesota setting position is another Lindsey. First-year setter Lindsey Vander Well, a ?natural? setter according to Hebert, will be the understudy for Berg for the 2001 season. Vander Well and junior Carrie Noble provide as much depth to the Minnesota program as it has seen in years.
Outside Hitter
There will be a new look for Minnesota on the left side, as two-time All-American and four-year starter Nicole Branagh, and three-year starter Yvonne VanOort are not with the team in 2001. Hebert does not have a concrete plan as to who will be in the starting lineup August 31, but has several options at his disposal. The most experienced option is Kathy Tilson, a senior transfer from the University of Texas. Tilson was a two-year starter and a member of the 1999 All-Big 12 team. Sophomore Cassie Busse, first-year redshirt Trisha Bratford, and true first-year players Erin Martin and Amanda Cipperly give Minnesota more athleticism at the outside hitter position.
?Tilson is certainly the most experienced player, and she seems to have very good court sense,? said Hebert. ?I am encouraged at the progress that Busse and Bratford made during the spring, and both could make an impact during the season. Martin is a tremendous athlete and is extremely smart, while Cipperly is really competitive and has a good ball-control game. It will be interesting to see which players rise during fall practice.?
Middle Blocker/Opposite Hitter
The three starting spots encompassed by these two positions have been lumped together, because Hebert believes that any one of the middle hitters or right-side players could easily flip-flop and play the
| Sophomore Bethany Brafford |
?Hagen will be an anchor for us, wherever she plays,? said Hebert. ?She has sprinted up the ladder of improvement, including being able to serve and play defense. She has really become an all-around player.?
Sophomore Bethany Brafford also showed great improvement during spring practice and will be part of the Gopher mix in 2001. Sophomore Erin Lorenzen, first-year athlete Maggie Freiborg and Martin will also contend for time at these positions.
Defensive Specialist
Lisa Axel is the most experienced of the defensive specialists, having played in 65 of Minnesota's last 66 matches. Kelli Wicks made a noticeable impact when she was able to play, including a career high in digs in Minnesota's second round NCAA match against Arizona State. Those two players, along with senior Ali Berres, Noble, and first-year athlete Lisa Reinhart give the Gophers more depth at the position than in recent memory.
?We have a ton of depth, if they stay healthy,? said Hebert. ?Each of them brings something unique to the position, so all could see time, depending on the situation.?
The Minnesota schedule for the 2001 season features some of the top teams in collegiate volleyball. Half of the Golden Gophers? 32 matches will be contested against teams that qualified for the 2000 NCAA Tournament. Minnesota opens its season at the Jefferson Cup Invitational from August 31-Sept. 1 in Charlottesville, Va. The Gophers have won their last five non-conference tournaments in the month of September, but that streak will be tested by U.S. Olympian Logan Tom and the Stanford Cardinal in the season opener. The Gophers will also play NCAA Tournament teams Radford, San Jose State, Northern Iowa, Santa Clara and Oral Roberts before Big Ten play begins. Minnesota opens conference action with four consecutive road matches before returning to the Sports Pavilion for the Indiana match on Friday, Oct. 5. Featured matches at the Sports Pavilion include a nationally televised match with Wisconsin on Friday, Oct. 19, the weekend with the Michigan schools Nov. 2-3, and the final weekend of the season against Ohio State and Penn State on Nov. 23-24.
| Senior Stephanie Hagen |
?The five-year plan was to win a Big Ten title and to move into the national spotlight,? said Minnesota head coach Mike Hebert, who enters his sixth year as the Golden Gopher head coach. ?We came within fractions of winning the Big Ten title last year, but by winning 30 matches and being nationally ranked within the top 10 for the entire season, we have grabbed our share of national attention. It is very difficult to establish a program as a national power on a year-to-year basis. That is now our challenge at Minnesota.?
The 2000 team was ranked higher than any team in Minnesota history before, during and after the season. The Golden Gophers swept defending national champion Penn State, the first time Minnesota had won two matches against the Nittany Lions in the same season, and snapped Penn State's 87-match home winning streak. The 2000 team established school records for winning streak (15 matches) and home winning streak (9 matches). No Minnesota team in the NCAA era had ever won as many matches, both overall and in conference play as the Gophers did in 2000.
However, the Minnesota players and staff were left a little unsatisfied at the end of the season.
| Head Coach Mike Hebert |
The biggest change for the 2001 season has nothing to do with the composition of the Gopher squad. There have been several rule changes for this season of college volleyball, but the one that will have the biggest impact is the new scoring system. Rally scoring (or point-per-play scoring) is not new to NCAA volleyball, as the fifth game of every match has been rally scored in collegiate competition since 1990. This season, every game will be rally scored, with the first four games being decided by a team reaching 30 points with a two-point lead. The fifth game will remain a rally-scored, 15-point game. Hebert believes this will have a major impact on the entire sport.
?Rally scoring will affect how everyone coaches the game and how everyone plays the game,? said Hebert. ?In some matches last season, we would get off to a slow start, but were able to come back because of our ability to side out. The comeback becomes much more limited, because you lose a point when you lose serve. I believe error reduction, in all parts of the game, will be critical in being successful in the rally-scoring system.?
Minnesota's 2001 lineup will have a new look to it, as four starters are gone from the 2000 team. Hebert likes the athleticism and versatility that his 2001 roster gives him.
?This is probably the best group of athletes I have ever coached,? said Hebert. ?Our size and athletic ability will allow us to deploy different people in different places to give us many looks. We may be able to make up for our lack of experience in team chemistry. The 1996 team was able to overachieve and do special things because of that factor, and I think this team could be similar to that team.?
The Golden Gopher breakdown, by position:
Setter
Minnesota's offense starts with senior setter Lindsey Berg. The two-time AVCA All-District and two-time All-Big Ten player has led the conference for the last three seasons in service aces, and is on pace to become the Big Ten's all-time leader in assists. It is not wise to judge the Gopher setter on her numbers, because she brings so much more with her to the court in every match.
| Senior Lindsey Berg |
The heir apparent to the Minnesota setting position is another Lindsey. First-year setter Lindsey Vander Well, a ?natural? setter according to Hebert, will be the understudy for Berg for the 2001 season. Vander Well and junior Carrie Noble provide as much depth to the Minnesota program as it has seen in years.
Outside Hitter
There will be a new look for Minnesota on the left side, as two-time All-American and four-year starter Nicole Branagh, and three-year starter Yvonne VanOort are not with the team in 2001. Hebert does not have a concrete plan as to who will be in the starting lineup August 31, but has several options at his disposal. The most experienced option is Kathy Tilson, a senior transfer from the University of Texas. Tilson was a two-year starter and a member of the 1999 All-Big 12 team. Sophomore Cassie Busse, first-year redshirt Trisha Bratford, and true first-year players Erin Martin and Amanda Cipperly give Minnesota more athleticism at the outside hitter position.
?Tilson is certainly the most experienced player, and she seems to have very good court sense,? said Hebert. ?I am encouraged at the progress that Busse and Bratford made during the spring, and both could make an impact during the season. Martin is a tremendous athlete and is extremely smart, while Cipperly is really competitive and has a good ball-control game. It will be interesting to see which players rise during fall practice.?
Middle Blocker/Opposite Hitter
The three starting spots encompassed by these two positions have been lumped together, because Hebert believes that any one of the middle hitters or right-side players could easily flip-flop and play the
| Sophomore Bethany Brafford |
?Hagen will be an anchor for us, wherever she plays,? said Hebert. ?She has sprinted up the ladder of improvement, including being able to serve and play defense. She has really become an all-around player.?
Sophomore Bethany Brafford also showed great improvement during spring practice and will be part of the Gopher mix in 2001. Sophomore Erin Lorenzen, first-year athlete Maggie Freiborg and Martin will also contend for time at these positions.
Defensive Specialist
Lisa Axel is the most experienced of the defensive specialists, having played in 65 of Minnesota's last 66 matches. Kelli Wicks made a noticeable impact when she was able to play, including a career high in digs in Minnesota's second round NCAA match against Arizona State. Those two players, along with senior Ali Berres, Noble, and first-year athlete Lisa Reinhart give the Gophers more depth at the position than in recent memory.
?We have a ton of depth, if they stay healthy,? said Hebert. ?Each of them brings something unique to the position, so all could see time, depending on the situation.?
The Minnesota schedule for the 2001 season features some of the top teams in collegiate volleyball. Half of the Golden Gophers? 32 matches will be contested against teams that qualified for the 2000 NCAA Tournament. Minnesota opens its season at the Jefferson Cup Invitational from August 31-Sept. 1 in Charlottesville, Va. The Gophers have won their last five non-conference tournaments in the month of September, but that streak will be tested by U.S. Olympian Logan Tom and the Stanford Cardinal in the season opener. The Gophers will also play NCAA Tournament teams Radford, San Jose State, Northern Iowa, Santa Clara and Oral Roberts before Big Ten play begins. Minnesota opens conference action with four consecutive road matches before returning to the Sports Pavilion for the Indiana match on Friday, Oct. 5. Featured matches at the Sports Pavilion include a nationally televised match with Wisconsin on Friday, Oct. 19, the weekend with the Michigan schools Nov. 2-3, and the final weekend of the season against Ohio State and Penn State on Nov. 23-24.
