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2012 Volleyball Season Preview
8/23/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
The Seton Hall volleyball program turned to a familiar face, in five-year assisant coach Allison Yeager, to lead the Pirates' program. Even with a new head coach, the attitude of the 2012 squad remains the same, and after three straight BIG EAST Championship appearances, the bar has officially been raised.Allison Yaeger
"We were competitive all season and we were happy with our place in the standings," first year head coach Allison Yaeger said. "We drew a tough team in Marquette in the first round, but I think everyone was disappointed with losing that match in three sets. Because of that, the kids have come back with a real sense of urgency that they've never had before."
Even under new leadership, do not expect the Pirates to change their identity on the floor. In recent years, Seton Hall has prided itself on playing a high-octane offense, which means lower sets to hitters forcing the opposing team to react quickly in order to get into blocking position and organized in the back row. The Hall is also known for its stout defense, in terms of digs, and has been among the BIG EAST leaders in that category in the past several seasons.
"Over the last couple of years, we have worked hard to develop our offense the way we want it to be and improve our ball control," stated Yaeger. Our goals are to have the best defense and the fastest offense in the league."
"It's been an advantage for us because we train for so long against our offense, and then when we play another team who run things a lot slower. In turn, that helps our blockers close better because of the pace. Right now, we're looking the best I've ever seen us play in the preseason."
Depth should not be an issue for this year's version of the Pirates. However, one big question does remain. Who fills in the void left by right-side hitter Meghan Matusiak? One of the best players in program history, Matusiak scored a high-percentage of Seton Hall's points and was undoubtedly the Pirates go-to player.
"It would be impossible for one person to replace someone the caliber of a Meghan Matusiak," said Yaeger. "Those are tough shoes to fill. What we do have are a lot of really good pin-hitters. I see us really just going with whoever is playing well and we can make that determination match-by-match. It's really a luxury for us to have this much talent."
The most experienced option to play on the right-side is sophomore Stacey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.), who patrolled that position in high school and during her club days. Manthorpe played was second on the team with 281 kills last season and was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Week on September 26 after helping SHU get off to a 2-0 start in conference play.
"Stacey was dedicated to her conditioning in the offseason and you can really see it with her play so far," noted Yaeger. "Stacey is so physical on the outside and she was great for us last year, but she's even better now. She's definitely a leader too because of her mental toughness."
Freshmen Kayla Kohler (Whitehall, Pa.) and Molly Grammer (Center Valley, Pa.) have also been tried on the opposite hitter spot in the preseason. Another freshman, Kacey Richards (Macedon, N.Y.), was expected to compete for time in that spot, but is dealing with an injury.
"Molly Grammer is such a hard-nosed player," Yaeger said. "She only knows one way to play. And that's hard. Every time she goes up, she's looking for a kill. She's giving the rest of the outsides a run for their money. And Kayla Kohler is picking up our offense and swing blocking and very nicely."
As for some other notable outside hitters, senior Hannah Hugeback (Virginia Beach, Va.) and red-shirt sophomore Simona Sekulova (Aukland, New Zealand) are the favorites to start at the beginning of the season. Both players were hampered by injuries in 2011, but when healthy have shown flashes of dominance.
"Hugeback looks good right now and she looks like she's back where she was before the injury," said Yaeger. "She worked so hard over the summer and it's definitely noticeable. Simona played all summer long with her team in New Zealand and she was very sharp from the second we got on the floor. She's bigger, stronger, faster, and better. We couldn't ask for anything more than what she's done in the offseason."
One of the most intriguing storylines of the preseason is the battle for the starting setter position. Senior Olivia Trudeau (Shell Beach, Calif.) spent her first two seasons as the Pirates main distributor and ranks among the career leaders in assists. However, last season Trudeau shifted to a defensive specialist role, where she excelled averaging 2.27 digs per set, in lieu of the arrival of Shelbey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.), who won the job last preseason and never relinquished it. Manthorpe went on to earn All-BIG EAST Second Team honors as a freshman and posted four triple-doubles, and is the only player in program history to accomplish the single-match feat.
"Olivia and Shelbey are fighting it out for that setter spot," Yaeger said. "They both have good ball control and they both run the offense the way we like it. They have also done a great job of being leaders and are vocal on the floor which you need your setter to be."
"A kid like Olivia Trudeau is not going to sit the bench," continued Yaeger. "She brings too much to the table. She's going to find a spot, whether it's setting, whether it's as a defensive specialist. I'll even put her on the right side if it means getting her on the floor. Shelbey had a great freshman year and came back in great shape. With a year of experience under her belt, she's just going to continue to get better."
There are plenty of opportunities for both players to step on the floor in different roles. Being left-handed also gives Shelbey Manthorpe an opportunity to see action at the opposite hitter slot. Yaeger stated she would have no issue continuing to play Trudeau in the defensive specialist role again this season.
The lynchpin to Seton Hall's defense will once again be junior Alyssa Warren (Joliet, Ill.). The standout libero averaged 5.07 digs per set to rank among the BIG EAST leaders and broke the school's single-match record after notching 45 digs against Boston College last September. She comes back to South Orange with another year of U.S.A. A2 tryouts under her belt which continued to enhance her development.
"I expect Alyssa Warren to assume a lot of the leadership responsibility," Yaeger said. "She's one of the best players we have. Her experience trying out for the national team and her just being on the court all the time, I think as a player you naturally turn to a libero for direction. We've talked a lot and she's ready to step up into that role for us.
On the blocks, senior Morgan DeVries (Grand Rapids, Mich.) brings a wealth of experience to the table and freshman Amanda Hansen (Pewaukee, Wis.) is expected to join her as the other middle blocker in the Pirates' lineup. DeVries averaged a career-best 0.88 blocks as a junior and will be expected to add more offense this season. Hansen won three-straight Wisconsin State Championships at Catholic Memorial High School and was a named Second Team All-State in 2011.
"Morgan, being a four-year starter, has kind of seen it all," Yaeger said. "She has done a nice job helping the freshmen adjust to things on and off the court too. She's one of our best blockers and knows the offense well and is capable of hitting at a high percentage for us."
"Amanda Hansen is a middle-blocker who just came in and made an immediate impact," continued Yaeger. "She has been pounding the ball since day one. She's probably one of the biggest, strongest kids we've ever had in the program. Amanda is great at making adjustments and has been making bad sets look like good."
What Yaeger has seen in the early stages of preseason is a team hungry to take the next step and vie for a conference title.
"In the past, it's always been exciting to just go to the BIG EAST and we're happy to be there. This year we're sick of just going. We want more. We want to win a round or two rounds, and this year we are actually talking about winning a BIG EAST Championship. I think that's a real possibility. We were happy with it, but we want a different result this time."
