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Post by truthandjustice on Jul 31, 2014 23:23:07 GMT -5
1. Long Beach State 2. Hawaii 3. UCSB 4. Northridge 5. Fullerton 6. SLO 7. Irvine 8. Davis 9. Riverside
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Post by geddyleeridesagain on Jul 31, 2014 23:30:05 GMT -5
Maybe. The G-Man has to integrate nine or ten new faces into a squad that (IMO) underachieved last season and lost their best player to graduation. It everything goes right - Hudson is an improvement at setter, Lawmaster solidifies the libero spot, Reid improves as a terminator, the Canadian OH (or whomever) can contribute immediately, etc - then LBSU could be formidable. I tend to think Hawai'i will end up at the top of the heap, though. And I'm not ready to dismiss UCSB, either. Sure, they lost Katey Thompson, but there's still talent on that team. You think Hudson will be setting? I think Missy "Misdemeanor" Owens wins that spot and is a big piece of what'll make them good. Hmm. I saw Owens in club, and I didn't see anything to lead me to believe she'd be ready to take over the reigns of a (potential) top 25 team as a frosh. I think Hudson's experience and athleticism will get her the nod. But, hey, I've been wrong before.
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Post by VivaLaVolley on Aug 1, 2014 0:21:40 GMT -5
1. Long Beach State 2. Hawaii 3. UCSB 4. Northridge 5. Fullerton 6. SLO 7. Irvine 8. Davis 9. Riverside I am a CSUF fan but I don't see how losing Consani, Moreland, Hensley, and Rockmore makes Fullerton better. I think 1. Beach 2. Hawaii 3. Northridge 4. UCSB 5. UCI 6. SLO 7. Fullerton 8. Davis 9. Riverside
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Post by BeachbytheBay on Aug 1, 2014 10:14:45 GMT -5
Maybe. The G-Man has to integrate nine or ten new faces into a squad that (IMO) underachieved last season and lost their best player to graduation. It everything goes right - Hudson is an improvement at setter, Lawmaster solidifies the libero spot, Reid improves as a terminator, the Canadian OH (or whomever) can contribute immediately, etc - then LBSU could be formidable. I tend to think Hawai'i will end up at the top of the heap, though. And I'm not ready to dismiss UCSB, either. Sure, they lost Katey Thompson, but there's still talent on that team. You think Hudson will be setting? I think Missy "Misdemeanor" Owens wins that spot and is a big piece of what'll make them good. LB lost their best player last season?? you must be thinking of DAS - no way she was LB's best player, she played well for the role she had as the leading OH, but Okpala was by far the best player, then I'd rank DAS behind Okpala, then Mackie, then Cabrajac (although in the DS role) as LB's best players. OH: DAS vs Miley/Bukovec/Reid - this is a toss-up, still think at least one of the 3 should be better than DAS OH2: Reid vs Reid - gotta believe an improvement S: Juley vs. Hudson - would think Hudson will be an improvement (Juley with injuries) MB: Okpala vs. Okpala - contender for BW POY MB2: Hampton vs. Wallace/Henrickson - this should be an marked improvement, especially with consistency - as good as Hampton could play at times, her best occurred about 15% of the time last year with her usual injuries, Wallace has steadily improved Lib: TJackson vs. TJackson/Lawmeister - competition is good, this should improve, TJ needs consistancy OPP: Mackie vs. Mackie - DS: Cabrajac vs. Cabrajac - the core comes back - but LB has a new setter, and lots of competition, a softer pre-conf schedule vs last year, it will be interesting - if Hudson is a good as some think, LB should be markedly improved. IMO, A lot is riding on how much Miley/Bukovec/Hudson can add to last years core, and assuming the experienced core seniors make a statement - LB has talent and experience, but there is a question mark because of the setter/OH changes for next year
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Post by volleyguy on Aug 1, 2014 10:19:47 GMT -5
Delaney was the go-to player without doubt. That leaves a big void, regardless of whether she was the "best" player.
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Post by beachgrad on Aug 1, 2014 11:12:00 GMT -5
Hudson is the starting setter hands down and should be a great improvement over Juley. The big question mark for this team is on the left side. If one of the foreign recruits do not turn out to be an upper tier left then LBSU should not be considered a conference favorite. Reid is an average L2 so if she is your go to player the Beach is in real trouble. The wild card is whether super athletic Miley can put it all together and become an elite LS player. IMO, Reid will not be a starter once the conference season begins.
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Post by beachgrad on Aug 1, 2014 11:14:35 GMT -5
Okpala was the best player last season but when you have passing and setting issues your middles do not shine.
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Post by BeachbytheBay on Aug 1, 2014 12:02:10 GMT -5
Delaney was the go-to player without doubt. That leaves a big void, regardless of whether she was the "best" player. I think LB's problem last year was LB didn't really have a 'go-to' player, hence 4th place. Nothing against DAS, she had a good season. setter inconsistency, Hampton inconsistency, back-row inconsistency-partly DAS, and lack of a OH terminator. every team by and large 'goes to' their LSOH, but that doesn't make that OH necessarily the 'go-to' player if LB needed to put the ball down, they had to go to Okpala
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Post by volleyguy on Aug 1, 2014 12:56:31 GMT -5
Delaney was the go-to player without doubt. That leaves a big void, regardless of whether she was the "best" player. I think LB's problem last year was LB didn't really have a 'go-to' player, hence 4th place. Nothing against DAS, she had a good season. setter inconsistency, Hampton inconsistency, back-row inconsistency-partly DAS, and lack of a OH terminator. every team by and large 'goes to' their LSOH, but that doesn't make that OH necessarily the 'go-to' player if LB needed to put the ball down, they had to go to Okpala She barely hit over .200. She didn't have a good season. But the point is she took the most swings and carried the most responsibility offensively. That she didn't do it effectively merely underscores the importance of finding a good replacement.
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Post by Garand on Aug 1, 2014 14:15:50 GMT -5
I think Hudson will set this season over Owens who is a freshman and will need some time to learn and adjust. Hudson will be new to CSULB, but her experience will allow her to adjust very quickly. Given Juley's injury limitations last year, the team will see an upgrade in setting. Hudson is very solid.
I also believe that Joy Miley will step up this season and become the go to hitter for Long Beach. She's a very special player.
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Post by Garand on Aug 1, 2014 14:21:22 GMT -5
I just noticed that Long Beach still shows their 2013 roster, and the two girls who transferred away (Juley and Johnson) have been removed from the 2013 roster, even though they were both on the squad last year. Hampton and Aigner-Swesey, having merely graduated, are still on there. A little bitterness, you think? If these players were on the 2013 team, they should be on the 2013 roster, regardless of their manner of departure from the program. Or am I missing something?
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Post by BeachbytheBay on Aug 1, 2014 14:56:59 GMT -5
I just noticed that Long Beach still shows their 2013 roster, and the two girls who transferred away (Juley and Johnson) have been removed from the 2013 roster, even though they were both on the squad last year. Hampton and Aigner-Swesey, having merely graduated, are still on there. A little bitterness, you think? If these players were on the 2013 team, they should be on the 2013 roster, regardless of their manner of departure from the program. Or am I missing something? no need to read more into it other than just low budget web-site/roster maintenance in updating for next year - no need to speculate drama - the 2014-2015 roster is simply not out and those players will not be on it - all will be fixed prob after school starts look at the archived 2013-2014 roster for that year's roster
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Post by BeachbytheBay on Aug 1, 2014 14:57:56 GMT -5
Okpala was the best player last season but when you have passing and setting issues your middles do not shine. or you shine despite the obstacles
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Post by Garand on Aug 1, 2014 15:38:40 GMT -5
I just noticed that Long Beach still shows their 2013 roster, and the two girls who transferred away (Juley and Johnson) have been removed from the 2013 roster, even though they were both on the squad last year. Hampton and Aigner-Swesey, having merely graduated, are still on there. A little bitterness, you think? If these players were on the 2013 team, they should be on the 2013 roster, regardless of their manner of departure from the program. Or am I missing something? no need to read more into it other than just low budget web-site/roster maintenance in updating for next year - no need to speculate drama - the 2014-2015 roster is simply not out and those players will not be on it - all will be fixed prob after school starts look at the archived 2013-2014 roster for that year's roster I just thought it was strange that they deleted the transfer players but not the graduating seniors. I can't think of a reason why all of them wouldn't have been removed together. Still seems odd to me.
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Aug 1, 2014 18:47:44 GMT -5
lbsu's issues last year had a lot to do with injuries at a key middle position (hampton) and at setter. the players at those positions are now gone. so the questions are: can they stay healthy this year? and how will the new players perform?
aiger-sweesey was their go-to hitter on the outside, but she graduated. the other OH -- reid -- wasn't all that impressive. the other key question is: who will be on the outside for the beach?
lbsu has just as many questions on their side of the net as the other teams in the top half of the big west. they could win it this year, but their chances are just as good as any (including hawaii, who has just as many question marks).
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