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Post by c4ndlelight on Dec 14, 2018 14:41:05 GMT -5
I needed a solid night to collect my unbiased thoughts on the match, because I truly didn't care who won, but here they are: -I loved the Illini's initial game plan of making Nebraska play OOS any time the set wasn't absolutely perfect. Hames defended well all night, but so many of her 19 digs were balls that Illinois put on her lap just to take her out of the play. Hames only assisted on 46 of Nebraska's 68 kills, meaning 22 of them came from somebody else or unassisted. That is the mark of a team playing a lot of OOS volleyball. However, props to the Huskers for finding ways to kill a ball OOS. It may have taken them until the 3rd set to do so, but they did it with just enough time to come back. Maloney's 2nd contact was excellent IMO, as evidenced by her 10 assists. -While making Nebraska play OOS worked at first, I actually thought it wore down the Illini faster than playing the match straight up would have. It was clear about midway through the 4th set that they had wasted a good number of jumps putting the ball on Hames rather than trying to find a way to score. Quade completely wore down, and Bastianelli wasn't as much of a factor. However, the X-factor for me in the Illini losing was the absence of Prince. 2 K/S for your O1 does not get it done in a national semifinal. -I thought tonight showed a major flaw in Lauren Stivrins' game. While the passing in sets 1 and 2 was not conducive to setting her the ball, their transition touches were good enough that if Stivrins could hit effectively off of two feet in front of Hames, they could've forced her the ball. Stivrins is an elite slide hitter-I will not take that away from her at all-but her inability to score in front of the setter makes the Nebraska offense so much more predictable in transition. That brings me to Lexi Sun. As the outside who is up with Stivrins for two rotations, she has to take so many swings that she frankly isn't good enough to take yet. Lexi is, IMO, an elite in-system attacker, but her numbers are so diluted by the bad situations she is placed in trying to cover for Stivrins' deficiencies. If Stivrins finds a way to score in front of the setter, I promise that Sun's efficiency goes up probably 40 points. -Mikaela Foecke- girl, you didn't have it all night, but dang did you step up when it counted. The match point swing was so good; a 3/4 swing, snapped off at the top and into a deep corner. It must be so nice to have a player that can pull herself out any sort of funk. Her impact will be SORELY missed next year. -After the 5th set touch call (I'm not going to get into whether it was touched or not because I don't care to get into that argument), I thought Tamas should have taken a timeout as soon as it was reversed. That's a bigtime call to have go against you in that moment, and even if it was just to sit everyone down and refocus, I thought it could have helped. He still had 2 TO's, so burning one there would have been a good idea IMO. -The Illini's serving was so good for so long, but that come-down-to-earth phase came at the worst possible time. I know that kind of service pressure all night was unsustainable, but 3 straight missed serves in a 5th set is BRUTAL. -Jordan Poulter. Enough said. I could watch her set all day and all night and never get tired of it. Was her location and tempo off at times? Absolutely. But it's clear just how good she is, and I think that's incredibly exciting for the future of our National Team. Finally, Jaylen Reyes- I don't know how he is in the gym. I don't know how the team feels about him, or whether he's even a good coach (I imagine he is, or else Cook wouldn't keep him around). What I do know is that watching him on the sideline is embarrassing. I thought Hildebrand was childish on the sideline last year, but Reyes takes that to a whole new level. He needs to sit down and freaking relax. You are a professional-act like it. I'm looking forward to a good final. Based on what I saw last night, I'm taking Stanford in 4. In reality, I just hope for some good volleyball! Interesting thoughts on Stivrins. Her athleticism and movement are jaw dropping. I agree that her hitting in front of Hames needs to improve. However, it seems to me that many teams have abandoned (at least minimized) the 1 and 31. This baffles me as the 31 is still highly effective and can be set without a perfect pass. Nebraska was setting the 31 more early in the year when they were struggling (with good results), but I haven’t seen it much lately. The thing about the gap set is it's really designed to isolate your RS hitter, so if you don't trust your oppo or you're wanting to go left a lot it can actually really shrink the net for opposing blockers.
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Post by lvcalum on Dec 14, 2018 14:48:52 GMT -5
Interesting thoughts on Stivrins. Her athleticism and movement are jaw dropping. I agree that her hitting in front of Hames needs to improve. However, it seems to me that many teams have abandoned (at least minimized) the 1 and 31. This baffles me as the 31 is still highly effective and can be set without a perfect pass. Nebraska was setting the 31 more early in the year when they were struggling (with good results), but I haven’t seen it much lately. The thing about the gap set is it's really designed to isolate your RS hitter, so if you don't trust your oppo or you're wanting to go left a lot it can actually really shrink the net for opposing blockers. True. The game has evolved into a battle of left side pin hitters ☹️. Although, it has become a little more balanced the past couple of years.
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Post by bball on Dec 14, 2018 15:07:15 GMT -5
If there is some feed the officials see that we don't see, then I don't understand why the feed the officials see is not available to the viewers. That seems like a no-brainer. It is a national broadcast for godsake! Hiding the official calls behind a curtain of secrecy is not the way to generate confidence in officiating. It's a way to make the game seem parochial. And, no, I am not going to read anything into the responses of the illinois players, because, not being there, I couldn't actually see the response, and because they needed to stay focused. As a coach I would have told them not to dwell on it. It was late in the set afterall. Pinky Gate........ shakes my head...
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Post by NebraskaVBfan93 on Dec 14, 2018 16:28:28 GMT -5
A lot of commentary on the touch/no touch - has it crossed your mind that there are video angles that the replay technician has access to that have higher frame rates than the ESPN camera feeds? Don’t go basing your judgements off what feeds ESPN has access to. Exactly!! I was in row one right behind e monitors and saw a clear touch. I didn't get a chance to watch my DVR of the match until today and what was shown on TV was NOT the only angle they were looking at. There is no controversy here folks. Move along.
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Post by Steve vb on Dec 14, 2018 16:29:38 GMT -5
Some thoughts from last night's match - 1. Kudos to Jazz! Even in this match thread, some people were ragging on her, but she had 9 kills and 2 errors on 20 swings (.350). That is a SWEET contribution to the team! 2. Looking at the numbers, it looks like the Huskers couldn't block anything, but two significant factors in this match won't be there tomorrow. First, JP is incredible. The speed of her sets disrupted the Huskers' ability to set the block. Stanford is not THAT fast. Second, the Illini were covering everything. There were several times Nebraska's block put the ball down and the next thing you know the ball is popping back over the net. They were the the kind of plays that you might see once a match, but the Illini just kept doing it. 3. Foecke seemed to be having a bit of an off night (by her standards) but she ended up with 19 kills (hitting .300), 4 assists, 2 aces, 2 block assists, and 11 digs. Not a bad line for an off night. I expect she'll be in full finals form tomorrow night. It will be, again, Maloney and Foecke time (one last time ). GBR! I think Jazz was one of the key components of why Nebraska turned it around. She was frustrated during the first two sets and it reached the boiling point when she hit a ball over on 1 instead of setting it up. After that point, she turned it around somehow.
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Post by gob1gred on Dec 14, 2018 17:18:49 GMT -5
No matter what, Nebraska will get crushed by Stanford. Stanford just has to many weapons, Nebraska does not stand a chance. Would not shock me when Stanford takes it 3-0. Stanford, will put Makaela into a cavern she will not be able to get out of. LMFAO. Another joke of a take from this troll.
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Post by holidayhusker on Dec 14, 2018 17:20:52 GMT -5
A lot of commentary on the touch/no touch - has it crossed your mind that there are video angles that the replay technician has access to that have higher frame rates than the ESPN camera feeds? Don’t go basing your judgements off what feeds ESPN has access to. Exactly!! I was in row one right behind e monitors and saw a clear touch. I didn't get a chance to watch my DVR of the match until today and what was shown on TV was NOT the only angle they were looking at. There is no controversy here folks. Move along. Did you happen to meet the Wendlands? They were right in your immediate area.
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Post by NebraskaVBfan93 on Dec 14, 2018 18:19:33 GMT -5
Exactly!! I was in row one right behind e monitors and saw a clear touch. I didn't get a chance to watch my DVR of the match until today and what was shown on TV was NOT the only angle they were looking at. There is no controversy here folks. Move along. Did you happen to meet the Wendlands? They were right in your immediate area. I did not.
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Post by ay2013 on Dec 14, 2018 20:29:55 GMT -5
Whatever Nebraska did to adjust after the break, +100.
Stanford is gonna win this thing. That block can stop Foecke, and that’s all Nebraska got, sorry, but it’s the truth.
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Post by vup on Dec 14, 2018 20:32:52 GMT -5
Whatever Nebraska did to adjust after the break, +100. Stanford is gonna win this thing. That block can stop Foecke, and that’s all Nebraska got, sorry, but it’s the truth.
We've got a darn good serving team, and one of the best liberos in the country.
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Post by ay2013 on Dec 14, 2018 20:37:57 GMT -5
Whatever Nebraska did to adjust after the break, +100. Stanford is gonna win this thing. That block can stop Foecke, and that’s all Nebraska got, sorry, but it’s the truth. We've got a darn good serving team, and one of the best liberos in the country.
That’s all good and well, but you still gotta push points. Stanford’s block can stop Foecke. I mean, if Nebraska can pass well enough to give stivrins and sweet good cracks at the balll, sure, but.... well we shall see. Stanford is also a quality serving team and has a darn good libero too. Nebraska only chance is if Stanford passing and Grays setting tanks. And maybe if Foecke gets dialed into hitting against gray and Campbell.
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Post by vup on Dec 14, 2018 20:48:55 GMT -5
We've got a darn good serving team, and one of the best liberos in the country.
That’s all good and well, but you still gotta push points. Stanford’s block can stop Foecke. I mean, if Nebraska can pass well enough to give stivrins and sweet good cracks at the balll, sure, but.... well we shall see. Stanford is also a quality serving team and has a darn good libero too. Nebraska only chance is if Stanford passing and Grays setting tanks. And maybe if Foecke gets dialed into hitting against gray and Campbell.
Stanford is a quality serving team, but Illinois is better by aces/set. I think Nebraska's passing goes up against Stanford.
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Post by ay2013 on Dec 14, 2018 20:51:31 GMT -5
That’s all good and well, but you still gotta push points. Stanford’s block can stop Foecke. I mean, if Nebraska can pass well enough to give stivrins and sweet good cracks at the balll, sure, but.... well we shall see. Stanford is also a quality serving team and has a darn good libero too. Nebraska only chance is if Stanford passing and Grays setting tanks. And maybe if Foecke gets dialed into hitting against gray and Campbell. Stanford is a quality serving team, but Illinois is better by aces/set. I think Nebraska's passing goes up against Stanford.
Meh, Stanford faced a tougher schedule than Nebraska and Illinois over the year, and that’s not even debatable. Aces per set is a bad metric anyway. Stanford can serve the ball.
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Post by mikegarrison on Dec 14, 2018 20:51:52 GMT -5
That’s all good and well, but you still gotta push points. Stanford’s block can stop Foecke. I mean, if Nebraska can pass well enough to give stivrins and sweet good cracks at the balll, sure, but.... well we shall see. Stanford is also a quality serving team and has a darn good libero too. Nebraska only chance is if Stanford passing and Grays setting tanks. And maybe if Foecke gets dialed into hitting against gray and Campbell. Stanford is a quality serving team, but Illinois is better by aces/set. I think Nebraska's passing goes up against Stanford.
We shall see.
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Post by plm on Dec 14, 2018 21:30:35 GMT -5
Illinois making Hames lead Huskers in digs tonight I doubt that very much because Hames is a great passer & she has 23 double-doubles this year before this match I believe it is according to what was said during the match. Hames has led the team in digs more than once.
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