Women's Volleyball Thoughts "Things I think I think."

[phijo]

These are in no particular order.

1. What I thought might be this teams weakness, the development of the freshmen outside hitters, has turned out to be this teams strength.

2. There is a gap in the rotation. When Babcock rotates to the back, it appears it will be right side hitter by committee. At least that is the way it has played so far. Some Fairbanks early, mix in some Dalton and some Bayless too. I would kind of like to see Dalton take control there. She has height you just cant teach and is formidable blocking.

3. Initially when Bre went down, I was really worried about the drop off in the middle, but Monk seems to have filled in nicely. Now, I still think she is a step down from Bre, but I think she is and will be a very effective middle blocker and hitter. It seems it will be Chia as the other middle with Jepsen coming off the bench but sometimes Jepsen is quite the spark.

4. Speaking of Bre, I don't think she will be back this season. I don't have any inside information to base this on, but based on having gone through that type of injury, the recovery can take a while. Probably not fair to her to rush her back.

5. I do hope Fairbanks comes back soon. She is just so effective at everything that she does, it is a significant step down to Lexis and Haiti, and thats no disrespect to the others.

6. I see Pitt losing 2 maybe 3 conference games this year. There is still a pretty big gap between Pitt, Louisville and Ga Tech and the others.

7 At this point, it is hard for me to project another return to the final 4. But with some development from the freshmen, you never know.

 

[PittMBA]

These are in no particular order.

1. What I thought might be this teams weakness, the development of the freshmen outside hitters, has turned out to be this teams strength.

2. There is a gap in the rotation. When Babcock rotates to the back, it appears it will be right side hitter by committee. At least that is the way it has played so far. Some Fairbanks early, mix in some Dalton and some Bayless too. I would kind of like to see Dalton take control there. She has height you just cant teach and is formidable blocking.

3. Initially when Bre went down, I was really worried about the drop off in the middle, but Monk seems to have filled in nicely. Now, I still think she is a step down from Bre, but I think she is and will be a very effective middle blocker and hitter. It seems it will be Chia as the other middle with Jepsen coming off the bench but sometimes Jepsen is quite the spark.

4. Speaking of Bre, I don't think she will be back this season. I don't have any inside information to base this on, but based on having gone through that type of injury, the recovery can take a while. Probably not fair to her to rush her back.

5. I do hope Fairbanks comes back soon. She is just so effective at everything that she does, it is a significant step down to Lexis and Haiti, and thats no disrespect to the others.

6. I see Pitt losing 2 maybe 3 conference games this year. There is still a pretty big gap between Pitt, Louisville and Ga Tech and the others.

7 At this point, it is hard for me to project another return to the final 4. But with some development from the freshmen, you never know.

I agree with these observations-

Monks is proving to be really valuable

I get the sense Fisher wants Bayless to seize that other OH.

Fairbanks’ health is a little worrisome - she’s dressing , looks healthy , and in good spirits— but is clearly being held out for some injury— she’s wearing a knee wrap and something on her torso. Just hope she’s healing and will be fully ready for the bulk of the ACC and into the NCAAs

Obviously hard to predict another final 4- heck last year at this time we had just lost to Towson at home - so who knows where a season goes.

That said , PItt seems every bit a top 10 team at least and I think the NCAA is a little less top heavy than years past - don’t see an equivalent to Texas last year …

Klika might be the key - her play so far is the best Libero play we’ve seen under Fisher imo … a notch better than where she and the libero overall was last season

H2P !!

 

[pittdan77]

2. There is a gap in the rotation. When Babcock rotates to the back, it appears it will be right side hitter by committee. At least that is the way it has played so far. Some Fairbanks early, mix in some Dalton and some Bayless too. I would kind of like to see Dalton take control there. She has height you just cant teach and is formidable blocking.

There are plenty of opposites that can hit but I prefer someone who is very good at blocking the ball. Especially when you face so many talented outsides.

6. I see Pitt losing 2 maybe 3 conference games this year. There is still a pretty big gap between Pitt, Louisville and Ga Tech and the others.

This is reasonable. Louisville looks poised to make a deep run and GaTech may have finally arrived. Conference as a whole is improved.

 

[phijo]

I agree with these observations-

Monks is proving to be really valuable

I get the sense Fisher wants Bayless to seize that other OH.

Fairbanks’ health is a little worrisome - she’s dressing , looks healthy , and in good spirits— but is clearly being held out for some injury— she’s wearing a knee wrap and something on her torso. Just hope she’s healing and will be fully ready for the bulk of the ACC and into the NCAAs

Obviously hard to predict another final 4- heck last year at this time we had just lost to Towson at home - so who knows where a season goes.

That said , PItt seems every bit a top 10 team at least and I think the NCAA is a little less top heavy than years past - don’t see an equivalent to Texas last year …

Klika might be the key - her play so far is the best Libero play we’ve seen under Fisher imo … a notch better than where she and the libero overall was last season

During the games against Kentucky, some of the defense, especially the back row was exceptional. Would like to see this every game.

 

[mike412]

I agree with these observations-

Monks is proving to be really valuable

I get the sense Fisher wants Bayless to seize that other OH.

Fairbanks’ health is a little worrisome - she’s dressing , looks healthy , and in good spirits— but is clearly being held out for some injury— she’s wearing a knee wrap and something on her torso. Just hope she’s healing and will be fully ready for the bulk of the ACC and into the NCAAs

Obviously hard to predict another final 4- heck last year at this time we had just lost to Towson at home - so who knows where a season goes.

That said , PItt seems every bit a top 10 team at least and I think the NCAA is a little less top heavy than years past - don’t see an equivalent to Texas last year …

Klika might be the key - her play so far is the best Libero play we’ve seen under Fisher imo … a notch better than where she and the libero overall was last season

H2P !!

I agree it’s hard to predict this early, but the potential for this team is through the roof.

I didn’t think any of the freshman hitters would be so good so fast. Babcock and Stafford have been outstanding and Bayless, when given the opportunities, has been fine.

I had pretty much given up in Dalton ever contributing, but she seems healthy and ready to play. She is a good back row defender, and we have plenty of them in her, Fairbanks, Stafford and Vasquez-Gomez. I don’t think Klika is a notch better than last year at libero; I think she is at least two notches better. IMO she has made the biggest improvement from last year to this year. And, Jepsen has been good when getting a chance.

I think most of us thought we would be weaker at MB this season. Serena Grey was great, but the depth we have this year is much better. Kelley, if she gets healthy, Monk, Che, Jepsen; 4 deep.

One thing to remember: Babcock’s high school coach said that her biggest problem was jumping too high on her blocks. He had to get her not to jump as high as she could. If and when we face the really tall hitters like Wisconsin and Nebraska have, I suspect she has another 3 or 4 inches of height in reserve.

 

[vantheman1976]

I agree it’s hard to predict this early, but the potential for this team is through the roof.

I didn’t think any of the freshman hitters would be so good so fast. Babcock and Stafford have been outstanding and Bayless, when given the opportunities, has been fine.

I had pretty much given up in Dalton ever contributing, but she seems healthy and ready to play. She is a good back row defender, and we have plenty of them in her, Fairbanks, Stafford and Vasquez-Gomez. I don’t think Klika is a notch better than last year at libero; I think she is at least two notches better. IMO she has made the biggest improvement from last year to this year. And, Jepsen has been good when getting a chance.

I think most of us thought we would be weaker at MB this season. Serena Grey was great, but the depth we have this year is much better. Kelley, if she gets healthy, Monk, Che, Jepsen; 4 deep.

One thing to remember: Babcock’s high school coach said that her biggest problem was jumping too high on her blocks. He had to get her not to jump as high as she could. If and when we face the really tall hitters like Wisconsin and Nebraska have, I suspect she has another 3 or 4 inches of height in reserve.

Really nice thread....good comments from everyone. I took a quick look at some of the statistics for Monks, Babcock, and Klika at what is now the 1/3 point in this season compared to who they replaced from last year....Gray, Buzzerio, and Browske. Monks is actually outpacing Gray in hitting % and blocks/set. In fact, Monks is #6 in the country with blocks/set. Similarly, Babcock is also outpacing Buzzerio in hitting % and blocks/set. Finally, Klika outpaces Browske in digs/set by well over 30% and her receive error rate is about 50% of what Browske had last year.

Of course, we'll wait to see how the whole year plays out but we knew we had to replace 2 All Americans in Gray and Buzzerio and we had to have better libero play. So far....so good.

 

[pittdan77]

I didn’t think any of the freshman hitters would be so good so fast. Babcock and Stafford have been outstanding and Bayless, when given the opportunities, has been fine.

You're seeing a bubble of talent emerge onto the college scene all over the country. The number of freshmen that are walking into programs and succeeding is insane. Not all that surprising with the women's game is in the midst of a huge growth spurt at the club level and with fan interest. You have a number of schools that have set their own attendance records this season. Besides Nebraska's big stadium game, Wisconsin set another indoor record and Florida just broke the SEC record. I think Creighton just had over 5,000 at a game. I really hope Pitt does something special in November when Louisville rolls into the Pete. It's a cool time for the sport and I think you're primed for some big upsets come tournament time.

 

[PittMBA]

You're seeing a bubble of talent emerge onto the college scene all over the country. The number of freshmen that are walking into programs and succeeding is insane. Not all that surprising with the women's game is in the midst of a huge growth spurt at the club level and with fan interest. You have a number of schools that have set their own attendance records this season. Besides Nebraska's big stadium game, Wisconsin set another indoor record and Florida just broke the SEC record. I think Creighton just had over 5,000 at a game. I really hope Pitt does something special in November when Louisville rolls into the Pete. It's a cool time for the sport and I think you're primed for some big upsets come tournament time.

This is a nice write up

Pitt Volleyball Review After Finishing Non-Conference Play

Pitt volleyball has been one of the best teams in the country the past few years and this season has shown much of the same with the great talent they possess and solid performances they have shown so far. The Panthers are 9-2 and at No. 8 in the country with the completion of their […]

pittsburghsportsnow.com

 

[vantheman1976]

This is a nice write up

Pitt Volleyball Review After Finishing Non-Conference Play

Pitt volleyball has been one of the best teams in the country the past few years and this season has shown much of the same with the great talent they possess and solid performances they have shown so far. The Panthers are 9-2 and at No. 8 in the country with the completion of their […]

pittsburghsportsnow.com

The article mentions Duke who we play tonight. Just to add a little about them. They were picked 7th in the preseason ACC poll. The 2 players that stand out are Jess Robinson....MB and Kerry Keefe....OH. Robinson is a transfer from Michigan and is very good. Keefe was on the ACC all freshman team last year. I think it will be a good game.

 

[vantheman1976]

You're seeing a bubble of talent emerge onto the college scene all over the country. The number of freshmen that are walking into programs and succeeding is insane. Not all that surprising with the women's game is in the midst of a huge growth spurt at the club level and with fan interest. You have a number of schools that have set their own attendance records this season. Besides Nebraska's big stadium game, Wisconsin set another indoor record and Florida just broke the SEC record. I think Creighton just had over 5,000 at a game. I really hope Pitt does something special in November when Louisville rolls into the Pete. It's a cool time for the sport and I think you're primed for some big upsets come tournament time.

Yep....the ACC Freshman of the Year watch begins. We just might win it this year. It would be a 1st.

 

[Bethlehemjohn]

These are in no particular order.

1. What I thought might be this teams weakness, the development of the freshmen outside hitters, has turned out to be this teams strength.

2. There is a gap in the rotation. When Babcock rotates to the back, it appears it will be right side hitter by committee. At least that is the way it has played so far. Some Fairbanks early, mix in some Dalton and some Bayless too. I would kind of like to see Dalton take control there. She has height you just cant teach and is formidable blocking.

3. Initially when Bre went down, I was really worried about the drop off in the middle, but Monk seems to have filled in nicely. Now, I still think she is a step down from Bre, but I think she is and will be a very effective middle blocker and hitter. It seems it will be Chia as the other middle with Jepsen coming off the bench but sometimes Jepsen is quite the spark.

4. Speaking of Bre, I don't think she will be back this season. I don't have any inside information to base this on, but based on having gone through that type of injury, the recovery can take a while. Probably not fair to her to rush her back.

5. I do hope Fairbanks comes back soon. She is just so effective at everything that she does, it is a significant step down to Lexis and Haiti, and thats no disrespect to the others.

6. I see Pitt losing 2 maybe 3 conference games this year. There is still a pretty big gap between Pitt, Louisville and Ga Tech and the others.

7 At this point, it is hard for me to project another return to the final 4. But with some development from the freshmen, you never know.

Good stuff.

Agree as well. Yeah