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Post by sisyphus on Sept 2, 2019 19:08:43 GMT -5
Cool on moving to the CU thread. My main point is that Parker's efficiency is lower because she was given a lot more balls...and a lot of balls given to her were out-of-system balls she could only get over as essentially a free ball. That lowers her efficiency. Parker also has more blocks and better defense, and is a better overall player. Anyse was usually given balls when CU was in system and the balls set to her were a lot easier to get a kill out of. You can see that they changed using Parker as a go-to when out-of-system in the 3rd match, and went with Spann for that (which is usually the obvious choice). You can see Spann's number of swings in that one and Parker's much better efficiency. I mentioned she is as good (if not better) as Anyse. It seemed that your main point was that Parker was already a better player than Smith. I don't think there is enough clear data to support that. I agree that Parker was set more often than Smith. There's a small issue of Smith playing 8 of 12 sets while Parker played 10 of 10 but even if we were to scale Parker's attempts, she still had more. I agree that her zeros lower her efficiency but not as much as all the errors do. Here's a comparison of the two from their first three matches: AS: 15K 4E 28A 53%K 14%E 32%0 SP: 25K 12E 64A 39%K 19%E 42%0 To me this shows that Smith was better if we are talking about kills and errors, which I thought was your original point about why Parker is better than Smith was. If we move the goal posts to say that Parker kept more balls in play, then the numbers bear that out. Parker has a higher percentage of zeros but I venture that it is the higher percentage of errors that changes her efficiency so much. How do we know that Parker received a higher percentage of sets when the team was out of system than Smith did? It seems to me that the passing was better this weekend than it was last year. How do we know that Smith was given a greater percentage of her swings when the team was in system? Do either of those factors take into account the location of the set? Do we think that set location affects attack efficiency more or less than pass quality? I think that we are getting into much more subjective judgements that we can't support or disprove here. Again, I agree that Parker is good and going to get better. I just can't go with you when you say that she's better than Smith was already unless we can answer the questions above. For me, it's not about if I think that Smith is better or not, it's about if I can adequately support a statement about one over the other. I don't think that there's data to support it either way, so I'll wait on making a decision about it.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 2, 2019 19:31:51 GMT -5
Because I saw it in the matches. They went to Parker a lot out-of-system and I also saw that Anyse was rarely set an out-of-system ball all of last season. The out-of-system sets for Parker were often from the libero or even the setter from an awkward location, and were not placed in an efficient spot for Parker to hit. I believe they thought she was a good option because she was hot at first and then took advantage of it too much. Plus, you're also missing the blocks and overall playing aspect (getting balls up, etc).
We shall see how it all plays out in the end. It's early.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 7, 2019 23:48:39 GMT -5
Colorado had a heck of a weekend - sweeping both Iowa and #5 Illinois. CU has now won 15 of 16 sets in their 5-0 undefeated record for the season. The team has had an amazing hitting percentage in the last 2 matches -- making very few errors. Several Buffs have hit over .400 for the entire weekend. I would guess that Spann will take PAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week and Schneggenburger may take Freshman-of-the-Week. Both of them had very high hitting numbers. Not only is Ewert a stud of a setter that has assisted in amazing hitting numbers, but she is currently the season dig leader and has had her hands on some good blocks. With that, the Buffs Block is also doing well -- with freshman Sterling Parker getting just as many stuff blocks as the MB's -- while also getting a number of kills with a high efficiency on the right side. The Colorado serve has also finally shown life after years of easy serving. Colorado currently has an AMAZING #7 RPI ranking (it's early, I know). The biggest opportunity for CU is back row defense and serve-receive, but it certainly isn't poor...it just needs work and more consistency. Colorado now gets ready for 2 matches against in-state rival, Colorado State, at CSU and then at home. After a loss to Cal, CSU has won all of its matches and swept a Florida State team that beat Minnesota. It should be 2 fun matches to watch! The Buffs are a team to watch this season. The freshmen class has been underrated and overlooked, and the PAC coaches picked them to finish 10th in the PAC. It's early, but all signs point to a much better finish right now. I always knew this team was going to be good, but this soon and THIS good? Let's hope they can keep it up! cubuffs.com/news/2019/9/7/volleyball-buffaloes-upset-no-5-illinois-in-sweep.aspx
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Post by brunie on Sept 8, 2019 20:59:29 GMT -5
Agree with most of what VolleyballFella says about Colorado but not that the freshman class has been underrated and overlooked. The class was ranked as the tenth best freshman class in the country. To me that is not overlooked. I think the big question all along has been will the newcomers and the returners mesh and how quickly will the newcomers learn the system and play to their capabilities. Coach Mahoney has been saying all along that the team will be good but he wouldn't speculate on when that would happen. It seems to be happening sooner than expected. I'm sure that the trip to China, with its extra practices and early games, has helped immensely in this growth.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 8, 2019 21:16:34 GMT -5
Agree with most of what VolleyballFella says about Colorado but not that the freshman class has been underrated and overlooked. The class was ranked as the tenth best freshman class in the country. To me that is not overlooked. I think the big question all along has been will the newcomers and the returners mesh and how quickly will the newcomers learn the system and play to their capabilities. Coach Mahoney has been saying all along that the team will be good but he wouldn't speculate on when that would happen. It seems to be happening sooner than expected. I'm sure that the trip to China, with its extra practices and early games, has helped immensely in this growth. Only one source has ranked them #10 in the nation. Others did not rank as high. I betcha most folks (including many coaches) are somewhat oblivious to how talented this freshmen class is...including the fact they probably should have been ranked higher than those schools that were ranked higher and haven't performed as well yet. If they were not overlooked, I think the PAC coaches would have voted Colorado higher than 10th in the conference. So, yeah....underrated and overlooked. That team only played 3 matches in China. Otherwise, everything else was the same (except more time to get to know each other, etc). I DO think that the team has a high level of camaraderie that often goes a LONG WAY with team success. The Colorado coaches do a very good job of finding under-the-radar recruits that are known as good by many schools...but not as highly prioritized...and CU snatches em up while making sure they will blend well with the team. I remember a few folks personally telling me that no one knows who Ewert is as a setter and that it was funny that Coach Mahoney was saying she is one of the best setters in her class, and now at least one of them concedes/agrees that she is already an elite setter.
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Post by brunie on Sept 8, 2019 23:04:43 GMT -5
Those who said they didn't know who Ewert was as a setter weren't paying much attention as she was ranked #72 in PrepVolleyball's class of 2018 senior aces and, in her write-up in that list, is described as one of the premier setters in the class. I guess I'm more of a recruiting geek since I always look up all the CU VB recruits in PrepVB's Aces to see what is said about them.
Most of Coach Mahoney's Colorado recruits have been ranked in the 50-100 range on the Senior Aces lists. Those players are not the super stars that everyone has heard of but they are very solid players with the potential to be excellent players at the college level.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 8, 2019 23:31:29 GMT -5
Those who said they didn't know who Ewert was as a setter weren't paying much attention as she was ranked #72 in PrepVolleyball's class of 2018 senior aces and, in her write-up in that list, is described as one of the premier setters in the class. I guess I'm more of a recruiting geek since I always look up all the CU VB recruits in PrepVB's Aces to see what is said about them. Most of Coach Mahoney's Colorado recruits have been ranked in the 50-100 range on the Senior Aces lists. Those players are not the super stars that everyone has heard of but they are very solid players with the potential to be excellent players at the college level. Curious...how many setters were ahead of Ewert in that Senior Aces class? It has to be a number of them if Ewert was #72, right? Mahoney has basically said she is probably 1st or 2nd best setters in that class....not 10th or just one of the better setters. My point is that Mahoney/Maes/Sanders saw that Ewert was better than what she was getting credit for/seen as.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 9, 2019 7:52:47 GMT -5
Also, can you tell me if Parker was a Senior Ace of any kind? I'm thinking she wasn't, and you can already see that she is good...and has the potential to be an All-American in her career. Again, goes back to my point that Colorado finds under-the-radar recruits and develops them well.
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Post by brunie on Sept 9, 2019 11:28:47 GMT -5
I think there were maybe 10 or 11 setters ahead of Ewert. Some bigger names like Hames, Blossom, Powell, etc. Others I have never heard of. Maybe they didn't get the chance to play yet as they are behind upper-class players; maybe not turning out to be as good as projected. Ewert clearly is doing well. She had the chance to come in as a freshman and has developed into a terrific setter. Credit to the coaches for getting her here and helping her develop.
Sterling Parker was in the "Next 150" on the PrepVB senior ace list. I think that is reflected in Jesse's comments about her in her bio …. that she really developed her VB skillset and VB IQ during her senior season. A late bloomer if you will. Another great find.
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Post by aztecbuff on Sept 9, 2019 21:35:46 GMT -5
Just to consolidate various Colorado news from today into this thread- Congrats to (!!!) - - As noted in the AVCA Poll thread, the Buff team for going from un-ranked (tied for 33rd most votes) last week to #19 this week in the AVCA Top 25 poll. (They're also #19 in the PV poll.)
- Redshirt sophomore MB transfer Meegan Hart and freshman OH Jill Schneggenburger for earning, respectively, Pac 12 Defensive Player and Pac 12 Freshman player of the week honors. (Pac 12 release - pac-12.com/article/2019/09/06/pac-12-announces-volleyball-players-week )
- Senior OH Justine Spann for being named Co-MVP (with Washington's Kara Bajema) of this past weekend's Big 10 / Pac 12 Tournament, and OH Jill Schneggenburger for being named to the All-Tournament team.
Also, as someone who likes (benign versions of) tradition, fun to me that they've created a trophy for the winner of what hopefully will be an annual match (or 2 this season this Thursday and Friday) vs. Colorado State.
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Post by VolleyballFella on Sept 22, 2019 19:25:49 GMT -5
#25 Colorado's pre-conference season ended with an 8-2 record (losing to one Top 20 team twice). 3 players were playing hurt during those losses, so you wonder what could have been if they weren't hurt, but that can be said of a lot of teams. They beat one Top 20 team (Illinois), and a few other Top 50 teams (including a very impressive UCSB team). Going into the PAC schedule, their current RPI national ranking is 13th of 335 NCAA teams (3rd best in the PAC).
CU's front row continues to impress with smart hitting, great setting, and solid blocking. It appears the team has gotten better each week. If it wasn't for a miserable loss at #19 Colorado State, their numbers would be very high. The Buffs' main focus should be back row defense and serve-receive. If the defense/serve-receive was just a bit better, CU would easily be contending for the #2 position in the PAC. However, that is only an "if" for now. Reading the opponents hitting better during play, reacting quicker on serve-receive and digs, and hustling more would benefit the team quite a bit.
Colorado's very young underclassmen-heavy team will be a great contender in a year that was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Without putting pressure on the team, CU coaches are more focused on getter better each week on specific tasks and development.
At this point, I would guess Colorado finishes in the Top 5 in the PAC (well above the coaches 10th place prediction).
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Post by VolleyballFella on Nov 8, 2019 0:36:21 GMT -5
After getting back key starters/players from long and lingering injuries AND cleaning up the awful serve-receive that left Colorado with a 0-10 start in the PAC, Colorado has now won 3 in a row and has beaten a #23 ranked (#14 RPI) UCLA in Los Angeles.
Colorado is now ranked in the low to mid 50's in RPI... and believe it or not, has a chance for post season if they can win 4 more and take off another higher RPI team or two. The NCAA Tourney is still not likely, but possible if Colorado can win some big matches. CU has a decent resume already with wins over Illinois, UCSB, and UCLA.
Even if the tourney doesn't happen this year, the CU freshman have really grown through the season and are the reason why matches are being won now. The 2020 team looks to be a major contender with those ladies -- while bringing back Deluzio at L/Setter and bringing in Southern Conference Player of the Year, Clayton, at OH.
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Post by rtael on Nov 8, 2019 0:55:36 GMT -5
Don't get my hopes up and then let me down, Buffs! Awesome performances from Hart, Alcantara, and Parker. Nice to see the younger players stepping up and taking some of the load off of Spann.
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Post by mikegarrison on Nov 8, 2019 1:09:29 GMT -5
All of a sudden it's like Colorado realized that the ABCs don't stop at "L".
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Post by VolleyballFella on Nov 8, 2019 1:13:14 GMT -5
All of a sudden it's like Colorado realized that the ABCs don't stop at "L". 2019 CU is the perfect example of why the serve-reception and passing game is often key to winning matches with about the same level of play from opponent conference teams. The CU front row attack and block has always been Top-25 level. The back row and reception just needed to get there (injuries or not).
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