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Volleyball
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The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Volleyball Takes Charge At The Net
7/24/2000 12:00 AM | Volleyball
July 24, 2000
The Utah women's volleyball program made unprecedented strides last season. The Utes made their second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and once again advanced to the second round. With a 22-10 overall record, Utah posted 20 wins for the fourth straight year and the fifth time in its history. The 1999 season held many impressive accomplishments for the Utes. Records were broken, goals and expectations were met and greater challenges set for 2000. This year's squad is ready to take those new goals and expectations to lift the Utah volleyball program to the next level.
With five starters, 12 letterwinners and a redshirt freshman returning, along with the addition of three top-notch newcomers, the Utes believe they will contend for the Mountain West Conference Championship in 2000. Recent history proves the Utah squad keeps getting better and better, and after the 1999 season, the nation is taking notice. Utah received 31 votes to rank 29th in the season end USA Today/AVCA Top 25 Poll. Utah's final RPI ranking, produced by the NCAA, was 22nd.
"I think 1998 legitimized our program, and last year solidified it as one of the top teams in the country," commented Head Coach Beth Launiere. It also allowed us to have a plateau to work from again, and obviously it's a higher plateau than from two years ago."
"Our biggest strength this season will be our depth. At almost every position, we go two to three deep. I feel just as comfortable with our backups in the game as our starters. In fact, I think we'll see a lot of people playing and that is going to be huge," says Launiere.
The Utes lost only one letterwinner, starting setter Graciela Torres-Lopez, from last year's team. It may seem like a weakness for the Utes to lose their four year starting setter, but Launiere thinks differently.
"Graciela ran the offense for us for the past four years and knew our system extremely well. Her competitive drive, physical strength and experience will be missed, but I also have tremendous confidence in Lucie Turkov?. Lucie has proven herself for three years as a competent setter at this level. She is extremely experienced and has a lot of qualities * like her quickness * that are exceptional," says Launiere.
Outside Hitters
With the return of six seasoned outside hitters, a redshirt freshman and one newcomer, the Utes don't have to worry about finding someone to play, but rather how to get them all playing time.
Returning starter and second team MWC defensive specialist Brooke Barton should once again step up to her role.
"Brooke Barton is extremely experienced as a passer, defensive player and an outside hitter. She is also a huge leader for us and I couldn't think of a better person to put my team in the hands of," says Launiere.
Jen Snow-Richards brings three years of experience within the Utah system to the outside hitter position.
"Jen has been a part-time starter for us since her freshman year. While she's never been on the court all the time, she's been on the court a lot of the time. She really stepped it up for us at the end of last season and this past spring. I expect some really good things from Jen," says Launiere.
Alisa Geddes and Adrianne Bradley-Drake played important roles for Utah in 1999, but both had shoulder surgery after the season and were unable to participate in spring ball.
"Alisa and Adrianne are our primary passers and our best defensive players," says Launiere. Both players gained a tremendous amount of experience last year. Their swing may be in question after having the shoulder surgeries, but they will see court time because they are very valuable to us."
Lenka Urbanov?, a 6-1 junior from the Czech Republic, made great strides and earned a starting position at the end of last season.
"Lenka became very valuable to us last year because of her ability to play many positions. Her passing became very important and she give us tons of versatility on the court," says Launiere.
Amber Fish saw limited time last year, but improved over the spring season, giving the Utes some extra depth at the outside hitter position.
"Amber is a hard worker and understands her role on the team. Her blocking really improved in the spring. We put her on the right side and I anticipate using her there when needed," says Launiere.
Tara Henriksen is a redshirt freshman with a bright future.
"Tara is probably one of the most hard working kids I've ever coached. She expects a lot out of herself and I can't keep her out of the gym," says Launiere.
Middle Blockers
Utah is deep and experienced at the net, where the Utes return four veteran middle blockers and bring in one freshman.
McKelle Stilson anchored the middle in 1999 and Launiere sees more of the same ahead in the upcoming year.
"McKelle established herself as one of the best middle blockers in the conference last year, and I think she needs to start looking at what level she can go to next," says Launiere. She needs to push herself to that realm and we're going to challenge her to do that."
Brenda Beal is another player capable of improving on her impressive numbers from last year. Beal, a sophomore played on an international 20-and-under team in Italy this past summer.
"Brenda is our best and biggest athlete, and is versatile as well," says Launiere. We moved her to the left side in the spring, a totally new position for her, and she did very well there. She handled the pressures throughout last season as a freshman better than I anticipated. Mentally, I feel she can handle being a 'go to' player for us." Katrena Ellett, like Beal, proved herself as a freshman in 1999.
"Katrena exceeded our expectations and handled pressure situations without any problems last season. She is our most competitive player and is not afraid to step up to any challenge. Katrena has the ability to play a lot of different positions and that is a real big asset for us," says Launiere.
Megan Anderson, who has struggled through ongoing shoulder problems, still plans to be a factor in 2000.The injuries forced her to develop other strengths in her game.
"Megan was a legitimate middle blocker for us before she got injured again last season," says Launiere. She has a tremendous amount of competitiveness and poise. If she can play front row, she'll be very valuable for us. She gained a lot of experience in defense and passing last season, and I think she'll find a way to have a role on the court."
One of Volleyball Magazine's Fab 50 high school recruits, newcomer Kim Turner, is expected to make an immediate impact at the middle blocker position.
"Kim is one of the biggest recruits we've ever landed at Utah in terms of high school and club team accolades, so that is a good thing for our program," says Launiere. She is very talented and I anticipate that she will play right away."
Defensive Specialists
One returner and one newcomer will round out the rotation in the back row.
Walk-on Jade Millo saw limited time last year. Her role will remain a defensive specialist.
"Jade improved her passing in the spring and worked really hard at it. That is going to help her playing time this year," says Launiere.
Newcomer Taryn Horner will also vie for time as a defensive specialist in 2000.
"Taryn comes to us from Hawaii and is genuinely excited to come and play for the Utes," says Launiere. You can never have enough of those type of kids in your program and we're excited to have her."
Setters
Utah lost its all-time assists leader in four-year starter Torres-Lopez. Although Turkov? was the back-up and has not been a starter at the setter position for Utah, she has gained a tremendous amount of experience over the past three years and will run the offense for the Utes in 2000.
"I think we're in great hands with Lucie. She runs the offense well, she is quick, she has good defensive skills and is a positive influence," says Launiere.
Jackie Morrill, a 1999 Utah High School Coaches Association MVP, will backup Turkov? at the setting position.
"Jackie is also a very good passer and defensive player," says Launiere.
The Schedule
Utah will have its hands full in the early part of the season with some very tough non-conference competition. Utah's 2000 schedule features nine matches against seven teams that competed in the 1999 NCAA Tournament. The Utes will face Stanford, San Diego, Cal Poly, Temple and Arizona in non-conference competition, and Brigham Young and Colorado State twice each in MWC play.
Utah travels to the East Coast Sept. 1-2 to take part in the New Hampshire Tournament. The Utes open up at home against No. 2 Stanford on Sept. 5 and hit the road Sept. 8-9 to play in the Cal Poly Tournament in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Utah plays host to Temple on Sept. 15 and Arizona on Sept. 16 before opening MWC play on Sept. 22 against San Diego State.
"I feel very good about our schedule," says Launiere. I think it stacks up with the scheduling over the past few years in terms of toughness and competitiveness. It is the perfect balance. It is a strong schedule, but it still allows us to go after our 20 wins and have a very successful season."
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