Jaguar Invitational Tournament Notes (.pdf)
MOBILE, Ala. – After practicing for nearly a month, the University of South Alabama volleyball team will begin its 2013 season this weekend when the Jaguars host the Jaguar Invitational. The four-team, two-day tournament is scheduled to get underway with a pair of matches on Friday and a full slate of four matches on Saturday.
USA will begin the season Friday at 7 p.m. when it takes on Tennessee State at Jag Gym. South Alabama will then take on Southern Utah at 12:30 p.m. and Georgia Southern at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
Second-year Jaguar head coach Amy Hendrichovsky expects the opening-season home tournament to provide the club with some interesting challenges this weekend.
"It's early (in the season) and you don't really know what you are going to see (from opponents)," Hendrichovsky said. "It's really the only weekend you don't get to watch an opponent prior to playing them, especially that first match. I know Tennessee State's going to be a very athletic program. They're bringing in a lot of new players as well this season, so they'll probably be going through some similar phases like we are going through right now. Southern Utah is also going through that and has a few newcomers coming in, so they'll be in the same boat, but the West Coast style of volleyball is very different than here, so I anticipate those two programs will be very different.
"Then we top it off with Georgia Southern. Last year, we competed against them and they won a conference championship during the regular season. They have a new coach, but they're going to be a solid program, because they have some good tradition."
Live stats for all of the tournament matches, as well as video for USA's matches, can be accessed at www.USAJaguars.com. A tournament central page is also available on the athletic web site.
Heading into the season, Hendrichovsky has noticed a change in the in the program from a year ago.
"I'm very excited when I look in our gym," Hendrichovsky stated. "We have a different energy in our gym, a different atmosphere and culture. Our returners have worked very hard and I think that we have something that we're very excited to see produce on the court.
The Jaguars come into the 2013 season returning eight letterwinners from last season's squad which posted the program's most wins since the 1995 season, finishing with a 13-17 record. USA also welcomes a talented group of freshmen this season. The Jaguar head coach has been impressed with the group of first-year players as a whole during the preseason camp.
"As a group, they've all come in and they're all competing for spots on the floor and that's all we can ask from them," Hendrichovsky said. "Right now, it's just building their confidence and getting them comfortable in our team. I think we'll see some big contributions (this season) from Mechell (Daniel) and on the outside from Jessica Lewis as well. Overall, the whole group is competing to get on the floor. Offensively, everyone talks about who's going to get the kills and those are the two who will help us this year, but behind the scenes Abby Baker, Kiki (von Piekartz) and the middles – Symone Stephenson, all of them and Mallory Moore are going to be part of our team."
Over the weekend, the Jaguars held their Red vs. Blue match and received some good performances from their newcomers in their first collegiate action. Freshman outside hitter Jessica Lewis led the way with 19 kills and 13 digs, while fellow freshman Mallory Moore had 12 kills and five block assists. Mechell Daniel, a 6-3 hitter that is scheduled to see time on both the left and right side positions also turned in a double-double of her own with 10 kills and 14 digs. Abby Baker led all players with 17 digs in the defensive back court.
Hendrichovsky liked what she saw in the intra squad hopes the group can carry over those performances, heading into the regular season.
"I thought both sides competed and that it was a very close match overall," Hendrichovsky said. "We saw some offensive contributions from some areas we weren't getting those from last year and defensively, I thought our team battled pretty hard as well. This week, we'll definitely be focusing on our offense and getting that tempo back. We worked very hard in the spring on the speed of our game, so we need to focus on that, as well as serving. Going into the first weekend of the season, it's about who can make the least amount of errors and stick to their system."
Sophomore outside hitter Deanna Canfield paced the group of returners for the Jaguars in the scrimmage as she had 15 kills and 12 digs of her own. The four-set match had players rotating between the two clubs.
One position with a couple of players battling for time on the floor is the setter spot. After the graduation of three-year setter Katariina Kananen, sophomore Emily Hundt returns with the most experience as she played in all 30 matches for the Jags a year ago and registered 369 assists in a reserve role. Hundt also ranked eighth in the Sun Belt in service aces with 32 - 0.28 per set. Hundt dropped in six in the scrimmage on Saturday. Kiki von Piekartz a 6-0 freshman from Ootmarsum, Netherlands, also in a battle for the starting spot, has been on campus since January and went through spring practice with the team.
Tennessee State – South Alabama's opening round opponent – enters the season after finishing with an 18-14 overall record and a 10-6 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference a year ago. The Tigers were picked to finish third in the OVC's East Division earlier this month.
TSU returns five players from last year's squad, including all-OVC selections Erika Moss and Naomi Wells.
Moss - a two-time First Team all-OVC selection - is the all-time assists leader at TSU with 3,356. Last season, the senior setter recorded 1,203 assists for the Tigers and was a First Team all-OVC selection. Wells was also selected to the all-OVC First Team last season after leading TSU in kills with 433. The junior averaged 3.67 kills per set and also finished second on the team with 345 digs.
TSU also welcomes seven newcomers this season. Highlighting the list is Taylor Swayzer a 5-8 outside hitter. The JUCO transfer from Missouri State-West Plains earned Second Team All-American honors from both the NJCAA and AVCA last season after recording 340 kills and 456 digs.
Southern Utah enters the 2013 campaign after finishing with a 12-20 record and an 8-12 mark in the Big Sky. The Thunderbirds were picked to finish ninth in the league during the preseason and will be making their first-ever trip to Mobile. SSU returns nine letterwinners from last season, while also welcoming six freshmen.
The Thunderbirds will have two big positions to fill this season as they lost both their leading offensive and defensive weapons to graduation. Gone is Analaine Mailoto who led the team in kills each of the past four seasons, as well as Cashaana Renfro who paced the club at the net in blocks over the last four years. Mailoto recorded 441 kills and averaged 3.82 kills per set for SSU, while Renfro had 145 blocks (1.26 per set) in 2012. SSU will also be young at the setter position as three freshmen will contend for the starting spot after sophomore Gabi Mirand suffered a knee injury during the spring.
Among the list of returners are Kylie Schofield who was second on the club offensively with 254 kills and a 2.17 kills per set average. The senior will be moving from the right side to the outside hitter position this season. Alissa Youart is also changing positions for SSU this season, moving from libero to the outside also. The Thunderbirds do return three players in the middle with significant playing experience, led by 6-3 junior Annie Stradling.
Georgia Southern returns three starters and nine letterwinners from last year's squad, which finished 25-7 overall, 15-1 in the Southern Conference and won the league's South Division regular-season title. The Eagles are under the direction of first-year head coach Dustin Wood.
Earlier this month, GSU was chosen to finish second in the SoCon Preseason Poll. Middle blocker Kym Coley and libero Alexandra Beecher were also earned preseason all-conference selections.
Coley - a 2012 SoCon all-tournament selection – started 31 of 32 matches for the Eagles and hit .293 a season ago. She ranked third on the team with 255 kills and led the club with 98 blocks and 23 solo blocks. Beecher was named the SoCon All-Freshman Team after setting a school single-season record with 604 digs. The sophomore played in every set last season and posted 20-plus digs in 13 matches.
Georgia Southern will have to replace its top two offensive weapons from 2012 – Meredith Paskert (3.46 kps) and Moriah Bellissimo (2.84 kps), along with setter Kate Van Dyke who had 1,349 assists.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
NOTES: South Alabama is 12-26 all-time in its season-opening matches…USA has also dropped its last three season openers, including a 3-1 decision to Central Arkansas last season at the Southern Miss Invitational…The Jaguars hold a 21-17 all-time record in their home openers and have won three-straight, including a 3-0 victory over Nicholls State last season…The meeting between South Alabama and Tennessee State will be the second ever between the two clubs and the first since 2009…USA holds a 1-0 lead in the all-time series after picking up a 3-2 victory in that lone meeting…The Jaguars are 8-6 all-time versus Ohio Valley members…The last time USA faced an OVC opponent was during the 2011 season where the Jags fell 3-0 to Belmont…South Alabama will also face two more OVC members this season - Jacksonville State (Sept. 6) and Tennessee-Martin (Sept. 13)… The meeting between South Alabama and Southern Utah will be the first-ever between the two programs…The meeting will also be the first for the Jaguars versus an opponent from the Big Sky Conference… The meeting between South Alabama and Georgia Southern will be the third in the all-time series between the two clubs…USA trails 0-2 in the series with the last meeting versus the Eagles coming last season, a 3-1 GSU victory…The Jaguars are also 17-17 all-time versus opponents from the Southern Conference…Last season, USA faced two members from the SoCon - Georgia Southern and Samford - both 3-1 losses…USA will also face Samford (Sept. 6) next weekend at the Lipscomb Invite.
—USA—
