Kristen Carlson at San Diego for AA?

[BearClause]

Some of the recent talk has been about players who might make national/conference POY or perhaps All-American. I remember last season there was some talk about Kristen Carlson possibly qualifying for AA status (playing in required # of games) when she tore her ACL. Well - so far she's hitting .275 with 5.19 kills/game (tops in the WCC) and 3.51 digs/game. With San Diego leading the WCC, I'd think she's probably the odds on favorite right now to be WCC Player of the Year. She definitely should make an AA team if she keeps up this pace. There's also something to be said for a lefty playing the left side.

I think there will be several WCC players making the AVCA Pacific Region Team. Carlson, Dawson, and Nyrop at USD seem to be good candidates. Cmaylo and McGiven at Santa Clara are having good years. I have the feeling that several of the fans of Pac-10 teams are going to be disappointed because players they root for are left out of AA consideration. I'm wondering if the AVCA has considered expanding the sizes of their All-Region teams. There have been some really great players in the Pacific Region who have been shut out because there are only 12 first team slots and 6 HM - shared between the Pac-10 and WCC. Perhaps a rearrangement of the regions.

[bucky415]

If she has those stats for a ranked team that wins its conference, I think she has to be a serious candidate. I remember her from televised matches as a freshman at WSU. They mentioned how raw she was then, but her talent was obvious then and she has emerged as a very good all around player, obviously.

[SakiBomb25]

I agree completely - I think Carlson should be an All-American candidate. She is taking on the role of Devon Forster from a few years back - the terminator from the left side who can always be counted on for a kill. Jessica Nyrop is also doing a fine job of filling the role vacated from Lindsey Sherbourne. She waited her turn for two years and now it's her turn to shine, which is great to see. And Christie Dawson should get some sort of props as well. She carried the team last season when Carlson went down and she is continuing her great play into this year.

Carlson is having a great year even after her ACL tear and that is a great testament to her work ethic and the great coaching and physical staff at USD. Kudos to everyone all-around at San Diego.

[IdahoBoy]

She's got my vote.

[BearClause]

I saw San Diego play twice this season. Carlson is very (how should I say it) demonstrative, but not in a bad way. I probably saw her play as a freshman, but there wasn't anything that really knocked my socks off. When San Diego beat Cal in five games last season she was the tournament MVP, but I was too shellshocked to really notice much about the USD players. At a more "neutral" setting I really noticed how much she took over the game. Gotta love the wild hair too. I loved this expression (esp #9 Jessica Nyrop) when they took match point on St Mary's.

[BearClause]

BTW - was Carlson the first player to jump ship at Washington State before Cindy Fredrick left?

[IdahoBoy]

bearclause said:

BTW - was Carlson the first player to jump ship at Washington State before Cindy Fredrick left?

No, I don't think so... One of the first, though.

[BearClause]

idahoboy said:

bearclause said:

BTW - was Carlson the first player to jump ship at Washington State before Cindy Fredrick left?

No, I don't think so... One of the first, though.

I don't think Brenn Larson was the first either. Jen Todd asked for her transfer after Fredrick left. That's a lot of talent, which makes me wonder why they couldn't do more with all those players. Oh - here was an article that was probably discussed here at the time:

www.dailyevergreen.com/story/8507

Carlson's displeasure with Fredrick began during her redshirt season in 2002. Growing tired of Pullman's small-town atmosphere and wanting to be closer to her family in Nevada, Carlson quit the team and moved home.

The decision did not please Fredrick, Carlson said. "She said she would keep me out of volleyball for four years," Carlson said. As a result, Carlson said she suffered an emotional breakdown. She wanted to play volleyball and did not want to come back to Pullman. While she was gone, rumors circulated. "I wasn't raped and I wasn't pregnant," she said, clarifying some of the gossip she heard

During Christmas break that year, former WSU player Adrian Hankoff came and visited Carlson. She told her Fredrick really wanted her back with the program. Carlson wrote Fredrick a three-page apology letter.

When Carlson met Fredrick, she told the coach "everything she wanted to hear." Carlson said Fredrick made her sign a contract, agreeing to stay with WSU or not play college volleyball again. Carlson signed, not knowing that the contract held no weight with the NCAA.

Perhaps this was one-sided, but it doesn't conflict with some of the things I've heard said about Cindy Fredrick.