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Post by nebraskafan9 on Sept 12, 2007 21:17:18 GMT -5
Has she narrowed her list down or does she have any idea where she's going?
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Post by Wolfgang on Sept 12, 2007 21:21:48 GMT -5
Who's Murphy?
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Post by GatorVball on Sept 12, 2007 21:22:07 GMT -5
New article on Kelly Profile: Kelly MurphyColleges — at press time, Murphy had narrowed her list down to Florida, Texas, Nebraska, Michigan State, Purdue and Stanford — are attracted by her numbers, no doubt. But it’s Murphy’s knowledge of and enthusiasm for the game that has made her the Class of 2008’s ultimate prize. Though another article did not include Nebraska or Purdue in her final 4. So who knows. |
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Post by Wolfgang on Sept 12, 2007 21:28:31 GMT -5
There's no need to go to the top volleyball schools. It's not like it's a ticket to the National Volleyball League with a $3M signing bonus and a 7-year contract worth $65M.
Pick the school for having degree programs in, say, five of your possible majors. Why five? Well, it could be ten, but five is a more manageable number. There's a 60-70% that college students will end up changing majors at least once before graduation and 40% chance that they will change majors at least twice.
As an example, let's say I'm a svelte and healthy volleyball chicka. Let's also say I don't know what I want to be but I know I like math. Here are some professions that appeal to me now: accountant, engineer, marine biologist, architect, math teacher. Well, pick a school that has good programs in math, accounting, engineering, the sciences. Take the basic courses your freshmen year and then re-evaluate in your sophomore year. You don't want to be stuck in a school that has NO courses in your desired major. Safe bet is to pick a big school. Small school is okay if you're into the small student-teacher ratio crap, but the school may be so small, it may not have what you're looking for in life.
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Post by redincolorado on Sept 12, 2007 21:29:12 GMT -5
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Post by GatorVball on Sept 12, 2007 21:39:52 GMT -5
Wonky link.
Player Profile: Kelly Murphy
“Drop… The… Ham… mer.” The chant, which originates in the student section before ringing throughout Joliet Catholic’s (Joliet, Ill.) gymnasium, signifies two things: One, senior All-American setter/opposite hitter Kelly Murphy has just registered one of her trademark kills. And two, the capacity crowd is fired up about it.
The spirited scene is a relatively new phenomenon at Joliet Catholic. Veteran volleyball coach Christine Scheibe says when she first started coaching the Angels eight years ago, powder puff football games drew bigger crowds than the girls’ volleyball team.
But after Joliet won the Class AA state title in 2003, the crowds started showing up and haven’t subsided since. And why would they? For the past three years, spectators have been able to get an up-close look at Murphy, an Olympic hopeful and the nation’s consensus No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2008. Not a bad ticket.
“I was kidding her about the 2016 Olympics, which could be in Chicago, and I said, ‘Those could be your Olympics, Kelly,’” says Scheibe. “I would love to be in the stands saying I knew her when. I think she has unlimited potential as far as volleyball goes.”
Angel fans are not the only ones who know just how dynamic a player Murphy can be. She made the USA Volleyball Junior National Team this past summer, and when the phenom walks through the gym at local tournaments, opposing players stare and whisper, “Do you know who that is?”
At more elite gatherings, the respect Murphy garners takes on a different form. At last October’s Nike Challenge, a Chicago-based tournament that drew five of the nation’s top six high school teams, Murphy was named to the all-tourney team. And at the 2006 Junior Olympic Championships, Murphy was named MVP after leading her club team, Sports Performance, to the under-16 national title.
Murphy has earned the attention. She grew up playing setter but added hitting to her repertoire after growing to her current height of 6-foot-2 as a freshman. Her ability to excel at two very different positions means she can control the game in any manner since opposing teams don’t know whether she’ll dish the ball off to a teammate or slam it across the net. She also plays left-handed, making her even more of a threat. In short, Murphy can single-handedly change a game.
That was evident enough in last year’s state tournament, when Joliet faced off against Barrington in the Class AA third-place game. The Angels came out flat in the first game — “we didn’t belong on the floor,” recalls Scheibe — and after a 25-17 loss, it looked like Joliet might be doomed to repeat its fourth-place finish from 2005. But in the second game, Murphy took over.
“I knew we got fourth [in 2005] and I knew how that felt. I knew that we all wanted it, but sometimes it just takes a little something,” says Murphy, who provided that something by recording several big blocks and finishing with a match-high 16 kills to go with 14 assists and three aces in Joliet’s 2-1 match win.
“I like having that kind of control and knowing that I can make a difference,” Murphy adds. “It makes you perform because everyone is going to be looking to you if there is something wrong. You always have to be ready.”
To be fair, it seems Murphy has been prepared for the role her whole life. She learned the game from her mom, Sandy, a former high school volleyball coach who played Division I ball at Illinois State. Kelly would take in the game by following her mom around at matches and practices, where she’d also get lessons on serving, a crucial part of youth volleyball games. By the time she started organized play in fifth grade, the younger Murphy already had a leg up on the other players.
By high school, that precociousness translated into flat-out dominance. Murphy made the varsity squad at Joliet as a freshman and was a solid contributor who tallied 212 kills and 130 assists. She soon started attracting national attention with her club team play and received her first recruiting letter — from Penn State — in ninth grade.
Scores of other colleges followed suit as Murphy continued to impress as a sophomore, registering 359 kills and 270 assists to help Joliet to a fourth-place finish at state. She was even better while playing setter full time as a junior last year, tallying 353 kills and 496 assists en route to the third-place trophy.
Colleges — at press time, Murphy had narrowed her list down to Florida, Texas, Nebraska, Michigan State, Purdue and Stanford — are attracted by her numbers, no doubt. But it’s Murphy’s knowledge of and enthusiasm for the game that has made her the Class of 2008’s ultimate prize.
“She was sitting next to me [last spring] at a boys’ volleyball match and it was killing her not to be on the court,” says Scheibe. “That’s the passion she has for the game. Often, you wonder if the girls playing year round are going to be bored by the sport. Not with her. She just loves playing volleyball.”
Murphy, a two-time PrepVolleyball.com All-American and the reigning Herald News Player of the Year, appreciates the attention. But she is much more concerned with helping her team than with how high she ranks on a college coach’s list.
So now, as Murphy enters her senior year, the focus is on getting back to state and winning it all this time. It’s a feat well within reach for Murphy and her fellow Angels, which is good news for the throngs of Joliet fans who pack the gym every week.
As if they needed anything more to cheer about.
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Post by Wolfgang on Sept 12, 2007 21:42:42 GMT -5
Here are some alternate schools for you to consider:
CA: UCLA, UC Berkeley, Cal Poly-SLO
TX: Texas A&M
IL: Illinois, Northwestern
IN: Indiana
VA: Virginia, Virginia Tech
NC: North Carolina, NC State, Duke
GA: Georgia, Georgia Tech
MI: Michigan
CO: Colorado, Colorado State
TN: Tennessee
HI: Dave Shoji University
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Post by runninrebel44 on Sept 12, 2007 21:53:33 GMT -5
I agree with you to a certain point. It is not important to go to the biggest, baddest team in the land. In four or five years, all you will most likely have, besides memories, is a degree in what you chose. That will slate the rest of your life, not whether you went with Penn State or Nebraska to the Final Four. I'm personally interested in seeing her go to a school closer to home. Mich State and Purdue come to mind going to the list, but somewhere where she can assist a team on the rise all the while staying close and possibly even bringing some of those crazed Joliet Catholic fans with her.
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Post by wsufan on Sept 13, 2007 0:29:57 GMT -5
A few more to consider:
CA: Long Beach State, Pepperdine, USC
KS: Kansas State, Wichita State
plus Oregon State, U. Washington, Rice (good education), etc.
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Post by ugopher on Sept 13, 2007 9:07:32 GMT -5
Ohio U or Ball State!!!
I am not affiliated with either but if she doesn't come to my team I don't want to have to face her twice each year. And BANTA, BASTA, BAPTA, BAFTA, etc!
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wtrvb
Sophomore
Posts: 142
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Post by wtrvb on Sept 13, 2007 9:25:07 GMT -5
Whats so great about Long Beach State?
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Post by wsufan on Sept 13, 2007 9:53:52 GMT -5
Whats so great about Long Beach State? They will be great when they get a new coach? LOL |
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Post by Gorf on Sept 13, 2007 10:03:20 GMT -5
With a last name of Murphy I'm surprised Notre Dame isn't at the top of her list.  |
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Post by AntennaMagnet on Sept 13, 2007 12:29:29 GMT -5
I don't understand the college wish list. Usually kids who look at Stanford also look at other academically selective private schools and maybe a couple of academically prime time public colleges. I guess what the list tells us is that volleyball is first and scholastics are a distant second on this prep's mind.
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Post by Mix Breed-TEXAS,HI,LBSU on Sept 13, 2007 12:31:59 GMT -5
Nebraska doesn't need her!.....I hope she picks Florida or Michigan....... |
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