Penn State 2018

[gnu2vball]

I could think of descriptors worse that "trolling," I was simply trying to be polite.

[Deleted]

Jan 6, 2018 16:04:52 GMT -5 @nyline said:

Jan 6, 2018 14:50:11 GMT -5 @allamerican11 said:

How am I trolling? I'm responding when quoted.

Well, you started all of this by saying "Maybe [Penn State] signing four pin hitters in "the greatest class ever" had some disadvantages."

When I responded that they recruited three, not four, you said

Sorry, I count four. Thelen was always projected as a pin player, if I remember correctly.

Akbar responded with this:

She was the best pin to pin blocker (lateral)even in her soph year just didnt have the arm to do much damage there. Neither Washington nor Whitney closed like her. Fact.

There were myriad of issues and concerns in 2015. How best to utilize Thelen or her short comings was just one of them.

The staff did a great job being creative in playing to the strengths of her by her senior year and she worked hard to adjust to the outside.

She was never recruited as a pin hitter.

You then said:

Why are we even arguing about this? Who cares what she was recruited to play? PSU fans are so sensitive. Maybe it's best that the majority of you moved to your own forum.

And bkedane, who I would vote as the VT poster who knows more about Penn State Women's volleyball than any other -- and certainly more than you or I, said [twice!]:

What is this discussion about? Thelen was recruited to psu as a middle.

And then said this (responding to you):

Don't you think that recruiting services listed Thelen as they did because of what positions she played in club?
This doesn't show what position she was recruited for by PSU. According to her coaches she was recruiting as a middle. When she committed she had not yet started playing on the pin at all in club. That came after her commitment. When she was at PSU camps both before and after committing she played in the middle exclusively. That's because she was projected as a middle. Much of her training and some of her playing time at PSU was in the middle.
As someone who has for years claimed to know so much about PSU volleyball one would think you would know.

And Russ Rose, the Head Coach of the Penn State Women's Volleyball team, and who probably knows a thing or two about the team and it's recruits, said in this article:

Heidi is projected as middle and I think her skills indicate that she is a really nice, natural blocker. If she gets up to the physical demands then she'll make a great contributions to the team.

You then switched the narrative to the fact that she ended up on the rightside, arguing that meant she was recruited as a pin. Others pointed out that she played middle her freshman year [9 games] and sophomore year [63 games], and that her junior and senior years there were reasons for her switch to rightside that were unrelated to what might have been the best position for her [leaving the team out of the equation].

Your response was that she didn't play much her freshman and sophomore years, which somehow, in your mind, buttressed your argument that she was recruited as a pin hitter.

You pointed to where she played in the Mother McCauley match (at a pin) as evidence that she was recruited as a pin. I pointed out Jenna Hampton played OH in high school -- it was meant as Reduxio ad absurdum.

So, I don't know (or care) whether that constitutes trolling. But when you ignore the words of Coach Rose, and ignore the word of bkedane, the most knowledgeable Penn State poster, in my book, that is somewhat odd.

I never claimed that she wasn't a middle when she committed.

I never claimed that she wasn't ever going to play middle in college.

I never claimed that she didn't play middle at PSU camps.

I never claimed that the PSU staff exclusively projected her as a pin hitter.

I never claimed that Rose never said she was a middle.

- - - - - - - - - - 

I did, however, claim that, from my recollection (a disclaimer I included several times), most observers and reports on the 2014 class DID think she'd be likely to end up on a pin, as evidenced by the fact that 1) following her verbal commitment, she began playing almost solely on the pins in high school and club, and 2) every major recruiting service from 2012 onward listed her as an OH/MB, including PSU themselves. I said the word "projected" in my original post, not "recruited." "Projected," as in, "literally everybody is listing her as an OH/MB and she's actually playing OH."

So, is it that hard to imagine that someone, reflecting four years into the past, genuinely MIGHT remember that Thelen was a possible pin-type player in college due to those two things and is not attempting to troll PSU fans? That's all I ever claimed.

[Deleted]

The Penn State Women's Volleyball Booster Club held its annual post-season banquet this afternoon. Highlighting the event were the announcements of two annual awards: the Coach's Award, given to the player who made the most improvement during the season, went to Simone Lee, who couldn't be in attendance because she is playing professionally in Italy (replacing Megan Easy, who some of you may have heard of). The Pops Award, which Coach Rose described as going to a player who did all the things not listed on their resume, went to Haleigh Washington. Two great players who will be missed.

[redcard]

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

[wishinwestcoastvb]

Jan 13, 2018 14:37:58 GMT -5 redcard said:

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

where did you find this out

[redcard]

Jan 13, 2018 16:32:53 GMT -5 wishinwestcoastvb said:

Jan 13, 2018 14:37:58 GMT -5 redcard said:

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

where did you find this out

Saw it on IN PrepVb Twitter and her Dad confirmed the tweet stating it was a 4 year scholarship.

[wishinwestcoastvb]

Jan 13, 2018 16:41:04 GMT -5 redcard said:

Jan 13, 2018 16:32:53 GMT -5 wishinwestcoastvb said:

where did you find this out

Saw it on IN PrepVb Twitter and her Dad confirmed the tweet stating it was a 4 year scholarship.

very good get for them then. Physical player. Can be very good with Rose coaching

[akbar]

Jan 13, 2018 14:37:58 GMT -5 redcard said:

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

From what I understand she has a big arm

[cbrown1709]

Jan 13, 2018 14:37:58 GMT -5 redcard said:

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

I feel bad for Travis.

[Deleted]

Jan 13, 2018 18:00:14 GMT -5 akbar said:

Jan 13, 2018 14:37:58 GMT -5 redcard said:

Looks like state sign a new 2018 pin. Prep VB #71 Ace- 6’ Allison Cathey out of New Albany IN and KIVA VB.
Was a Western Kentucky commit.

From what I understand she has a big arm

Welcome Allyson!

[Northern lights]

I am looking forward to see how Penn State and RR do next year. I have never really seen his program enter an upcoming season with more uncertainty as this one.

[redcard]

Cathey actually made the switch from KIVA to Lexington United this season. Now playing with future State teammate Kaitlin Hord!

[Millennium]

Jan 13, 2018 21:14:17 GMT -5 Northern lights said:

I am looking forward to see how Penn State and RR do next year. I have never really seen his program enter an upcoming season with more uncertainty as this one.

Just imagine the uncertainty if they didn't have the #1 class in 2018?

[Northern lights]

Jan 13, 2018 21:46:30 GMT -5 Millennium said:

Jan 13, 2018 21:14:17 GMT -5 Northern lights said:

I am looking forward to see how Penn State and RR do next year. I have never really seen his program enter an upcoming season with more uncertainty as this one.

Just imagine the uncertainty if they didn't have the #1 class in 2018?

I did not know that, should have known better than to doubt the devil. Do you think RR will stay for that whole cycle?

[Millennium]

Jan 13, 2018 21:49:53 GMT -5 Northern lights said:

Jan 13, 2018 21:46:30 GMT -5 Millennium said:

Just imagine the uncertainty if they didn't have the #1 class in 2018?

I did not know that, should have known better than to doubt the devil. Do you think RR will stay for that whole cycle?

I've heard nothing to the contrary.  He'll probably coach until his health doesn't allow him the luxury any longer.