Spring brings new offense scheme for NU

[GoBigRed]

By: Jordan Pascale
Posted: 3/29/07
Things are different around the NU Coliseum this spring for the Cornhusker volleyball team.

For starters, Dani Busboom and Dani Mancuso are gone after using up their eligibility. And a new face, Lindsey Licht, a 6-foot-5 freshman, has joined the team.

But there will be an even more drastic change on the court for Nebraska in matches this spring - the Huskers' offensive system has changed.

Nebraska will utilize two setters in spring matches after using a one-setter scheme in its 2006 national title run.

NU Coach John Cook said the change was the best fit for spring practice because it would help develop individual players and get everyone on the court as much as possible.

"The way we have it set up is we will have four hitters on the court - three in the front row and one in the back," Cook said.

The Huskers should be deep at the outside hitter position this year with the return of starters senior Sarah Pavan, the 2006 AVCA National Player, and junior Jordan Larson, a 2006 first-team AVCA All-American.

Christina Houghtelling, the 2005 AVCA National Player of the Year, also will be back in the mix after being sidelined last season because of offseason knee and shoulder surgeries.

Then there's Licht, the touted recruit out of Aurora, Colo., who was the No.11-ranked prospect in the nation according to PrepVolleyball.com.

"We have two 6-foot-5 right-side hitters in Sarah and Lindsey, and we are going to attack a lot with those two," Cook said. "It puts teams in a tough position - it's going to be hard to defend.

"But we got to have good ball-handling and good back sets in order to get good swings out of them."

For senior setter Maggie Griffin, the new offense means a lot more playing time during the spring.

In 2005, Griffin started all 35 matches in NU's 6-2 offense. But last season Rachel Holloway, a redshirt freshman at the time, was given control of the Huskers' offense when the team switched to a 5-1 system.

Griffin said she feels good about her role on the court in spring practices.

"I'm excited because I'll be on the court a lot more, but it's going to be different, too," Griffin said. "I'll be on the other side of the court setting different hitters, and it's been challenging so far. I'm going to be rusty for a little while, but I just have to ease back into it."

Cook said the key to success in the two-setter offense is consistency in passing and distributing good sets to hitters. Developing a good offensive rhythm, he said, is crucial.

"You want to have a consistent tempo with the hitters," Cook said. "Setters need to set the same ball over and over with the same height and speed."

The Huskers will have a couple chances to test their two-setter offense in matches this spring.

Nebraska plays Wichita State on April 7 in North Platte before hosting Colorado State in Lincoln one week later.

Cook said he wasn't sure whether the Huskers would stick with the two-setter offense in the fall.

"Spring is all about working on the small improvements," Cook said. "We've challenged our team to smooth out the little things like block defense, attack and serving."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© Copyright 2007 Daily Nebraskan

[huskervbfan]

For spring ball, I think this makes perfect sense. It gets the maximum number of players on the court. It gets Maggie back in the groove and gets Licht valuable playing time. Although winning isn't critical at this time of the year, Nebraska is certainly good enough, no matter what offense they run, to win the spring games so working on fundamentals is more important than working on team offense.

I strongly suspect they will move back to the 5-1 for fall but for spring, this is a smart move. And who knows, maybe the 6-2 might even make the team stronger and be the best offense for next season. Regardless of whether that happens or not, I do think it makes the most sense for now.

[Deleted]

The problem is 2nd guessing yourself. If both options are available, you're always tempted to switch when you hit a rough patch.

[huskervbfan]

Of course another way to look at it is that do you have options if you hit a rough patch.

[OverAndUnder]

huskervbfan said:

Of course another way to look at it is that do you have options if you hit a rough patch.

Yes, that's exactly what they want you to think.



And by they I'm talking about certain pee-colored rodents in the US tundra.

[Deleted]

Pee-colored?

Ouch.

We prefer "Golden" or "Mountain-dewish", thankyouverymuch.

[roy]

huskervbfan said:

For spring ball, I think this makes perfect sense. It gets the maximum number of players on the court. It gets Maggie back in the groove and gets Licht valuable playing time. Although winning isn't critical at this time of the year, Nebraska is certainly good enough, no matter what offense they run, to win the spring games so working on fundamentals is more important than working on team offense.

I strongly suspect they will move back to the 5-1 for fall but for spring, this is a smart move. And who knows, maybe the 6-2 might even make the team stronger and be the best offense for next season. Regardless of whether that happens or not, I do think it makes the most sense for now.

I agree. Spring ball is fine. This is probably the best way of getting all players some practice time as well as allowing everyone to work with both setters. In the event something happens to Holloway, players have some familiarity with Griffin. And Licht also gets some playing time in the event they need her.

Cook is a good coach and I do not want to second guess his decisions (after all, he knows more about his players than the rest of us), but the 6-2 for the fall seems to play into the Huskers weaknesses rather than strengths. Seeing it in the AVCA showcase against Hawaii and Stanford was a surprise. It was hard to defend, however as the season progressed, it seemed that other teams figured out the offense. Without the libero, the team seemed to have some difficulties in the back row. That being said, all the outside hitters are veteran players, with Pavan and Houghtelling being seniors and Larson being a junior. All should have the experience not to allow a replay of their finan against Washington.