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Post by Vballin on Aug 27, 2014 22:25:32 GMT -5
I think you might have missed the sarcasm... I guess I did, I'm old and not very fast on the uptake. I actually think I took it as a sarcastic remark, when you are suggesting the poster meant it as ironic. I tend to be sensitive when it comes to criticism of the Illinois volleyball program by those who are not supporters. Glad to see you recognize it was sarcasm. He was actually complimenting Hambly. |
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Post by redbeard2008 on Aug 28, 2014 0:09:22 GMT -5
So, how much of this decision goes back to the "Stuff Huff" loss to Washington last season? In the post-game interview he specifically refers to the trouble their defense had handling UW's fast offense. Although he doesn't specifically say anything about UW's 6-2, it is hard to think it didn't make an impression, since he's now running a 6-2.
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Post by notpriddy (COIF) on Aug 28, 2014 5:35:46 GMT -5
For those expressing concern about Illinois' passing and defense switching to a 6-2 in 2014 (from Champaign News-Gazette):
Volleyball's 'D' is right on
Wed, 08/27/2014 - 11:34pm | Scott Richey
CHAMPAIGN — Illinois spent the offseason making some wholesale changes to its offense following its fifth Sweet 16 appearance in six seasons. Gone is the high-ball attack. Gone is the 5-1 rotation.
Instead, the Illini are picking up the pace — a lot — and playing in a 6-2 system.
And they were able to spend much of the spring and summer revamping their offense because of one critical reason. Coach Kevin Hambly considers the 2014 team to be one of the best defensive squads he’s coached.
“We can kind of work through this offensively because our defense can keep us in matches,” he said. “If you have terrible defense, you better score quick. We don’t. We have good defense. We can get in grind-out matches, so then we can try to do some things where maybe we’ll be a lot better at the end of the day.”
While the defense didn’t change as much as the offense, the move to a 6-2 rotation will give the Illini a different look defensively. Specifically, the 6-2 allows for the use of a second right-side player. For the Illini, that’s redshirt junior Ali Stark.
“Ali Stark, who didn’t block for us all year but is one of our better right-side blockers, so you’ve got her and (Liz) McMahon on the right side versus the left-side attack,” Hambly said. “That presents a challenge just physically. Our first line of defense is really good. I feel like we have, obviously, one of the more physical teams, but that should translate to be one of our better defensive teams.”
Redshirt senior middle blocker Anna Dorn, who’s topped 100 total blocks each of the past three seasons, will help anchor the Illini’s frontline.
“I think from a blocking aspect we’re one of the most experienced teams,” Dorn said. “I think we’re probably the tallest that we’ve been as well, which definitely helps. I think, especially from the four middles we have, we’re all really tall, athletic and quick. We can get out to the pins faster, and I think that really helps the block.”
Illinois’ back-row players are just as appreciative of the Illini’s big block up front.
“I love it. They always get to the right spots, and it’s really easy to play defense behind a huge block,” sophomore defensive specialist/libero Danielle Davis said. “When Anna and Ali are next to each other, I know I don’t even need to be behind them pretty much. They’re fast, too, so they’re really closing a lot of blocks. There’s not many seams we have to fill, so we just have to go to the right spots.”
Hambly is just as impressed with his back row and called it “much improved.”
“Jocelynn (Birks) is much better,” he said. The redshirt junior outside hitter is one of the few Illini to play every rotation. “You get Danielle Davis out there who’s much better. The little guys, the wee ones we have with (Julia) Conard and Brandi Donnelly, they both play great defense.”
The only truly open starting spot was at libero after four-year libero and all-time digs leader Jennifer Beltran graduated, but that position seems to be filled. Donnelly, a true freshman, started Illinois’ intrasquad scrimmage with the rest of the likely starters and played all four sets as the Orange team’s libero, while Davis and Conard split time as the Blue team libero.
“You can tell, if Brandi ends up being the libero, she’s going to be a great defensive player and at times she can be a good passer, but she’s still a rookie trying to figure it out,” Hambly said after the scrimmage.
Davis said Donnelly, who enrolled early and got a jump-start on her collegiate career in the spring, has the upper hand at libero — for now.
“Jules and I are definitely fighting her,” Davis said.
“It’s a really healthy competition going on between the three of us,” Conard added. “All of us are really good defensive players. You can’t really go wrong either way.”
A closer look
Here are some Big Ten defensive players to watch, courtesy News-Gazette staff writer Scott Richey:
Kori Moster, Michigan State
Moster is the two-time defending Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, she earned AVCA third-team All-America honors in 2013 and is the all-time digs leader in Michigan State history with 1,668.
Hannah Tapp, Minnesota
Tapp burst onto the scene last year for the Gophers, totaling 152 blocks (1.28 per set) that ranked second on the team behind now-graduated first-team All-American Tori Dixon. That earned the 6-foot-2 middle blocker All-Big Ten Freshman Team honors.
Kiki Jones, Purdue
The Boilermakers senior isn’t the tallest middle blocker out there at 6-1, but she can get the job done. She led Purdue with 1.21 blocks per set last season, which placed sixth in the Big Ten and helped her earn AVCA honorable mention All-America status.
Cecilia Hall, Nebraska
Only two other players in the Big Ten racked up more blocks per set than the Huskers’ 6-3 middle blocker. Hall had 140 total blocks in 107 sets as a sophomore to lead Nebraska and returns to anchor the Huskers’ defense again.
Caroline Niedospial, Northwestern
The Wildcats libero came off her redshirt season in 2012 to lead the team and rank second in the Big Ten last fall with 4.46 digs per set as a sophomore, placing her just behind Moster.
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Post by oshkoshdadmjs on Aug 28, 2014 18:52:27 GMT -5
Who does this Hambly guy think he is? Doesn't he know that you are supposed to fit the system to your players, not make the players fit the system you want to run? Any coach here on volleytalk knows that. They struggled with it and were apprehensive. You know that means scrap it and give up. Who cares if they eventually get it? You don't have enough time to work on it. They were already good the old way. He is making players have to be perfect. Players don't want to be perfect. They want to be average. And play in their comfort zone. I completely disagree. I've stated my opinion on here before about Hambly's decisions, and I am generally very skeptical and have not been a huge fan in the last. To put it bluntly, he is doing the opposite of what you're saying. The high ball offense only works well when you can play very good defense and have banging pin hitters, a la 2011. It worked then. He has used that same offense for the past few years without great success even though he has had relatively good recruiting classes (better than previous ones). I think this is a step in the right direction. I am happy to see that he is keeping his mind open and making changes because the personnel they have are not suited to play an old school Cali high ball offense. Cheers, Kevin. Behind you 100% and good luck. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2014 19:23:15 GMT -5
So, how much of this decision goes back to the "Stuff Huff" loss to Washington last season? In the post-game interview he specifically refers to the trouble their defense had handling UW's fast offense. Although he doesn't specifically say anything about UW's 6-2, it is hard to think it didn't make an impression, since he's now running a 6-2. Is this typical demeanor for Hambly in a regular season post-match conference? |
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Post by vbman100 on Sept 2, 2014 8:36:09 GMT -5
Who does this Hambly guy think he is? Doesn't he know that you are supposed to fit the system to your players, not make the players fit the system you want to run? Any coach here on volleytalk knows that. They struggled with it and were apprehensive. You know that means scrap it and give up. Who cares if they eventually get it? You don't have enough time to work on it. They were already good the old way. He is making players have to be perfect. Players don't want to be perfect. They want to be average. And play in their comfort zone. I completely disagree. I've stated my opinion on here before about Hambly's decisions, and I am generally very skeptical and have not been a huge fan in the last. To put it bluntly, he is doing the opposite of what you're saying. The high ball offense only works well when you can play very good defense and have banging pin hitters, a la 2011. It worked then. He has used that same offense for the past few years without great success even though he has had relatively good recruiting classes (better than previous ones). I think this is a step in the right direction. I am happy to see that he is keeping his mind open and making changes because the personnel they have are not suited to play an old school Cali high ball offense. Cheers, Kevin. Behind you 100% and good luck. I know sarcasm is difficult to understand in writing. I was hoping some of my statements would help figure that out. When I say 'coaches on volleytalk' know something more than a coach who has been in a national championship, or say players want to be average, or give up on something just because players are apprehensive, I hoped it would be understood that I was kidding. I was trying to compare it in some ways to the national team's threads that have been discussed recently. It seems some got it and some did not. You weren't alone oshkosh dad. My fault. I am all for the new offense. I was at the Illinois-Washington match last year, and other than being really warm and sweating profusely, I remember the high ball offense putting me to sleep (figuratively). It just didn't seem like it was a great idea. They could run a little bit faster. I hope it works out and gives other coaches the idea that it is ok to try new things and keep going even if players struggle or are apprehensive. I hate the statement "create a system that fits your players, rather than make the players try to fit your system". How do you know what they are BEST at until you try some different things? And that you can make players fit a system, you just have to try sometimes. We don't all get PSU and Texas and Stanford recruits and can just roll the balls out and tell them to play faster and hit harder. |
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Post by notpriddy (COIF) on Sept 2, 2014 12:45:11 GMT -5
Precisely what I thought when I read the post. Question is, are his players athletic enough to handle a fast-tempo offense AND defense? If the first weekend of play is any indication, the answer is ABSOLUTELY! (Last year Illinois with it's high ball offense lost to Long Beach State 25-16, 19-25, 22-25, 17-25. This year an Illinois victory 25-21, 25-21, 25-15) (Last year Illinois with it's high ball offense lost to North Carolina 18-25, 15-25, 17-25. This year an Illinois victory 25-19, 25-17, 25-23) |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 12:51:29 GMT -5
Were last year's matches at home? Did these teams all lose only one starter from a year ago?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 14:46:00 GMT -5
So, how much of this decision goes back to the "Stuff Huff" loss to Washington last season? In the post-game interview he specifically refers to the trouble their defense had handling UW's fast offense. Although he doesn't specifically say anything about UW's 6-2, it is hard to think it didn't make an impression, since he's now running a 6-2. Is this typical demeanor for Hambly in a regular season post-match conference? LEAVE HAMBLY ALONE. |
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Post by VB Watcher on Sept 3, 2014 13:09:02 GMT -5
I like what I see from the 2014 version of Illini volleyball. Having a faster tempo is holding the middle blockers of opposing team long enough to free Criswell and Stark, to create a one on one for them to score (which they couldn’t do last year with the slower tempo). The faster tempo will also open up the middle game as long as the passing holds up. If Donnelly can keep playing like she did last weekend I believe to future looks bright.
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Post by notpriddy (COIF) on Sept 4, 2014 5:38:46 GMT -5
From Champaign News-Gazette:
New Combination Is a Big Hit
Wed, 09/03/2014 - 10:08pm | Scott Richey
CHAMPAIGN — Three wins, sweeps no less, in the season-opening Illini Classic did more than give the Illinois volleyball team a little momentum heading into this weekend’s Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge at Stanford with matches against UCLA and the No. 2 Cardinal.
Wins against Long Beach State, Southern Illinois and North Carolina also provided three matches worth of film for coaches and players alike to pore over, searching for areas where on-court play can be improved.
One of those areas is the setter-hitter combination of Allison Palmer and Jocelynn Birks. Birks, Illinois’ top outside hitter, is the only Illini to play all six rotations in the new 6-2. Half the time she’s getting set by Alexis Viliunas — her high school teammate and only setter a year ago — and half the time she’s working with Palmer, a redshirt sophomore who transferred to Illinois this spring from Arizona State.
Through one weekend, that new setter-hitter combination is a work in progress. But it’s coming along.
“That’s one thing that we’re working on this week before we head out to California is me getting used to setting her a little bit higher and not rushing her as much,” Palmer said. “When she has that higher ball, she can really see the block and kill. She’s good at that.”
Getting a chance to work with Palmer in live game situations in the Illini Classic is something Birks said has helped this week.
“We’re working on a few tweaks because she hasn’t really set a lot to me,” the redshirt junior said. “It’s getting better, and over the weekend, we did learn that I need to wait, and she needs to set higher. There’s a lot of things that we’ve been able to figure out from the weekend and being out there.”
The rest of Illinois’ switch to the 6-2 has gone off without much of a hitch offensively. Viliunas primarily sets Birks and senior opposite hitter Liz McMahon, working a slightly higher ball, while Palmer is paired with Ali Stark and Morganne Criswell for a more up-tempo look.
Birks led the Illini with 32 kills, and McMahon earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after hitting .426 with 24 kills as the Illini Classic MVP working mostly with Viliunas, while Palmer and Stark’s connection led to 22 kills and a .286 hitting percentage for the redshirt junior opposite hitter in the first weekend.
“She’s such a great hitter — super-quick twitch, dynamic and she makes every set look good,” Palmer said of Stark, who led Illinois with eight kills in the win against the No. 20 Tar Heels. “It’s not too tough to set her.”
UI coach Kevin Hambly said setting up the rotations like he did fit to his team’s strengths. It also gives the Illini two completely different looks offensively every three points.
“It’s almost like we put a whole different vibe out there,” he said. “Given the way they play, it’s like Liz and Joc are big and physical, and they play physical, and Mo and Ali right now are super-quick and just flying around. It seems like, in theory, it should present some challenges.”
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