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Post by Boom on Dec 1, 2004 16:28:15 GMT -5
Quite surprised at Tom Hilbert's outlook on the subregional and the non-seeding of the Rams. He said the same kind of stuff last year when they got shipped off to Maryland - I think he's just really good at media sound bites. While I do think they are thrilled to play at home, I can't fathom that he would be pleased with their placement in the draw relative to other teams.
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Dec 2, 2004 1:03:12 GMT -5
Boilers hope to ram CSU in tournament play By David Heckard Senior Writer
The Purdue volleyball team has been in a state of euphoria since receiving an NCAA tournament bid on Sunday.
Now, the Boilers (16-14) have to focus on their opponent.
Purdue will play host No. 9 Colorado State tonight in the first round of the tournament in Fort Collins, Colo.
"We’re just excited that we’re in and nothing is going to diminish that feeling," coach Dave Shondell said. "On the other hand, we’ve had a chance to see Colorado State on tape and they are without a doubt a top 10-level team.
"They’re better than I expected."
The Rams (26-3), who are making their 10th-straight tournament appearance, are led offensively by junior Tess Rogers, who averages 3.95 kills per game. Senior Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon adds 3.15 kills per game, and junior Becky Sarauer averages 3.00 kills per game.
"They’re a veteran team," Shondell said. "I like everything I see about them.
"I think they’re probably the most unheralded top-10 team in the country."
Colorado State won the Mountain West Conference championship and has won six straight matches going into the tournament.
"We’re playing very well right now," Colorado State coach Tom Hilbert said. "We’re healthy and the players are feeling good. We’re peaking at the right time."
Purdue is 0-1 against Colorado State all time, with the lone match being played in 1987 at Fort Collins, Colo.
Playing a team in the top 10 is nothing new for the Boilers. Purdue has played five teams that are in the top 25. Purdue is 1-7 in those matches.
"We’ve played teams with as much talent as Colorado State throughout the year," Shondell said. "When we played them on the first night of the weekend, we’ve played them very, very well."
The Boilers, who have not won an NCAA tournament match since 1987, said the pressure to perform will be on the Rams.
"We don’t have anything to lose," junior Renata Dargan said. "We came in the beginning of the year, when we played Georgia Tech and Missouri — they’re ranked higher than us. We went in with nothing to lose and we played great."
Senior Kim McConaha said the team is focused on the match.
"I feel like we’re focused and excited to play as we’ve been," McConaha said. "We’ve been playing really well the past couple of weekends."
If the Boilers win, they will either play No. 2 Hawaii (28-0) or Colorado (14-13) in the second round on Friday.
Dargan said the key is not to get intimidated by the Rams and the tournament atmosphere.
"It’s just another match," Dargan said. "We have to play relaxed and play our own game."
Shondell said the victory was accomplished with Purdue entering the tournament.
"I think these guys love playing volleyball," Shondell said. "I think they’re very, very happy.
"They know they’ve done something special."
The match starts at 9 p.m. and will be broadcast on WLAS 1410 AM
*Bold areas for (R)uffda! to take notice.
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Post by Gorf on Dec 2, 2004 1:34:55 GMT -5
BiK, while I do think that CSU is a very good team (I haven't seen them play often enough to make a statement as to whehter they're a valid top 10 team or not) what do you expect the coach of their opponent for an upcoming match to say?
"I've had a chance to see some tape of their matches and I think they're worse than any team in our conference and there is no way in *bleep* they're worthy of being a top 10 team!"
That would be some nice fodder for working up an opponent.
Have you ever heard of Dave Shoji making a negative statements about an opposing team right before the Wahine were about to play that team?
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Post by pineapple on Dec 2, 2004 1:43:12 GMT -5
I just don't understand everybody's claim that CSU hasn't merited a Top 16 seed or isn't a top 10 team. Penn State women's volleyball coach Russ Rose said: "I think that the committee just had to put numbers next to names to put in the bracket," "We could have easily been [No.] 7 and Washington [No.] 2.…” He also said” "I figure that with the amount of money that's involved with the BCS, if they can't get that worked out that's dealing with hundreds of millions of dollars, there's no reason in the world to think that a group of women on the NCAA volleyball committee would be able to iron out the Division I Championships in an efficient, clear manner. I think they massage the bracket a little bit to put teams where they wanted to put teams.”<br> I agree with Rose. The committee appears to massage things a bit for its conveniences. Its spokeperson said that it did Hawaii, the #1 team in the country at the time, a favor by putting it in an easy 1st and 2nd round. Yes, if you go by seedings which the committee determined, Hawaii has non-seeded teams in those rounds. But we are not fools- Colorado St. is ranked #9 in the country in the AVCA poll, the official poll. Seems as though the committee is using Hawaii or Colorado St as a pawn to knock the other off early.
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Dec 2, 2004 2:48:15 GMT -5
"I've had a chance to see some tape of their matches and I think they're worse than any team in our conference and there is no way in *bleep* they're worthy of being a top 10 team!" Been talking to (R)uffda! lately? CSU's going to kick the Boilermakers right out of the tourney.
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Post by Gorf on Dec 2, 2004 7:06:12 GMT -5
[quote author= BiK link=board=general&thread=1101879055&start=34#2 date=1101973695] Been talking to (R)uffda! lately? CSU's going to kick the Boilermakers right out of the tourney. [/quote] More obfuscation from you BiK.
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Dec 2, 2004 10:56:27 GMT -5
More obfuscation from you BiK. I thought it was pretty clear. Your last post about CSU sounded like something (R)uffda! would write.
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Dec 2, 2004 12:12:18 GMT -5
Women focus on first round, look forward to tough competition
Rocky Mountain Collegian By Stephanie Lindberg December 02, 2004
This is when it matters. With regular season over, now every win is a pass to the next round and a loss means a sudden end to the season.
The first round of NCAA volleyball tournament starts today in Fort Collins with a potent line up, including the only undefeated team in the nation, Hawaii.
No. 2 Hawaii (28-0), will play Colorado (14-13) at 5 p.m. in Moby Arena. At 7 p.m., CSU (26-3) will battle Purdue (16-14). The winners of the matches will advance to the second round and play on Friday at 7 p.m.
Though questions concerning possibly playing Hawai'i in the second round were raised, CSU head coach Tom Hilbert remained focused on Purdue, a team he thinks will be a difficult opponent.
"I think we need to have our focus now and that's on Purdue," Hilbert said. "If we look past that we're making a big mistake. (Purdue is) going to shock people with their athletic ability. They will not beat themselves."
Purdue head coach David Shondell is also taking it one game at a time.
"We have to do what we have been doing all year long and take one opponent at a time," said Shondell in a press release. "We have to continue to play the way we did to get into the tournament."
While some might be worried about possibly having to face an undefeated team like Hawaii, Hilbert said he was excited.
"I see it as really a great opportunity," Hilbert said. "This draw doesn't bother me at all. I literally don't care. We're going to have to beat very good teams. We have to beat someone down the road so why not do it at home?"
Tied for sixth in the Big Ten Conference, Purdue received an at-large bid into the tournament. Both Purdue and CSU faced Georgia Tech and Minnesota this season, CSU went 1-1 and Purdue was 1-2.
Senior middle blocker Kim McConaha leads the Boilermakers with 4.05 kills and 1.17 blocks per game while junior outside hitter Leah Wischmeier averages 4.01 kills per game. As a team, Purdue is hitting .256 with 16.85 kills per game and 2.28 blocks.
"It looks like they're a team with a great deal of balance," Hilbert said. "(McConaha) is obviously a player you're going to have to focus on."
On the Rams' side of the net, three starters are hitting over .300 and three are hitting at least three kills per game. Senior middle blocker Bri Frech leads the team in blocks with 1.29 per game followed by fellow senior blocker Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon with 1.28 per game. Frech also leads the team in service aces with .40. Senior setter Melissa Courtney needs just three service aces to become the school leader in the category.
The key in practice this week has been defense.
"We've been working on defense a lot and blocking," said junior right-side hitter Dre Downs. "We have to remember to just play volleyball. It's two good teams playing."
After a long season fatigue can be an issue, but Hilbert thinks this team is ready.
"We're playing very well right now," Hilbert said. "We're peaking at the right time. I think the players feel fresh right now."
Some of the players agreed.
"Physically, now that we're not lifting every day, we're a lot fresher," said senior outside hitter Becky Sarauer.
While Purdue looks to play spoiler against CSU, Colorado will try to knock off Hawaii.
The Buffs finished sixth in the Big 12 Conference and have one major injury that could affect their chances. Junior outside hitter Maragda Santillana was averaging 4.17 kills per game but has missed the last nine matches due to a shoulder injury. Junior right-side hitter Allie Griffin leads the team with 4.27 kills per game. Sophomore middle blocker Lara Bossow has a team best 1.04 blocks per game.
The Hawaii Rainbow Wahine are led by sophomore outside hitter Alicia Arnott with 4.14 kills per game while junior middle blocker Victoria Prince has a team best .421 hitting percentage and 1.62 blocks per game. Hawaii also has a key injury. Junior libero Ashley Watanabe will be out with a hand injury. Watanabe was averaging 4.22 digs per game.
"(CU) could make an upset," Hilbert said. "There are no teams in our region that are unbeatable."
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Dec 2, 2004 12:14:57 GMT -5
Rams ready for NCAAs CSU meets Purdue in first-round game at Moby Arena
By KELLY LYELL KellyLyell@coloradoan.com
Colorado State University's volleyball team has set a goal of advancing deeper into the NCAA Tournament than any other team in school history. But never before have the Rams faced such a difficult path early. The ninth-ranked Rams (26-3) aren't discouraged, despite the presence of the nation's only unbeaten team, second-ranked Hawaii (28-0) in the four-team subregional that begins today at Moby Arena.
"I think that we're pretty confidence," CSU setter Melissa Courtney said Wednesday. "If we play our game, we feel like we can be successful this weekend. We're looking forward to it. I just think this team's excited and ready to go."
Before the Rams can worry about a possible second-round matchup Friday night with Hawaii, seeded No. 3 nationally in the 64-team NCAA Tournament, they have to get past Purdue (16-14) tonight. And, CSU coach Tom Hilbert insists, that's not a given.
"We have to focus on Purdue," Hilbert said. "They're a great team out of the best conference in the country."
Purdue finished in a tie for sixth place in the Big Ten Conference. That's not too shabby, considering the conference has three teams ranked among the nation's top seven this week (No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Minnesota and No. 7 Ohio State) and two of the top four seeds in the NCAA Tournament (No. 2 Penn State and No. 4 Minnesota).
"Even though we finished seventh in the Big Ten, it's not like we're scrubs," Purdue senior left-side hitter Kim McConaha said. "Day in and day out, we practice against the best athletes in the country, and we just see great teams and great players day in and day out in the Big Ten."
Hawaii also is trying hard not to look too far into the future. The Rainbow Wahine faces the University of Colorado at 5 p.m. today in its first-round match. And, like Purdue, CU is coming out of one of the strongest conferences in the nation. The Big 12 matched the Big Ten with seven NCAA teams apiece, and the Buffs have the added advantage of playing only 45 miles from home in an arena where they won first-round NCAA matches in 2000 and '01.
"I'm not surprised Colorado's here," said Dave Shoji, Hawaii's coach for the past 30 years who has his team in the NCAA Tournament for the 23rd time in 24 years. "I'm just surprised with their record. Watching their film, they're really solid. We're going to have to play well to beat them."
Players said Hawaii also will have to get over the feeling that it got cheated by the NCAA Selection Committee, which sent the third-seeded Rainbow Wahine on the road for first- and second-round matches while letting No. 1 seed Nebraska and No. 2 seed Penn State open at home and giving No. 4 seed Minnesota a chance to advance to a regional next weekend on its home court. The winner of Friday's second-round match at Moby moves on to a regional next weekend in Green Bay, Wis.
Hawaii also dropped from No. 1 to No. 2 in this week's USA Today/College Sports TV coaches poll after struggling somewhat in a five-game win last week at Utah State and a four-game victory at Utah.
"We felt like we were disrespected," junior middle blocker/right-side hitter Victoria Prince said."We felt especially bad for our fans because our fans are the best in the country."
Hawaii has led the nation in attendance for the past 10 seasons and averaged 6,940 fans a match this year. CSU ranked 10th nationally in attendance, with an average of 1,829 fans for its matches at Moby, where CSU is 10-0 in NCAA matches.
"We got rewarded by getting a host site, and we got penalized by having a top seed in our four-team subregional," Hilbert said.
Given the choice, Hilbert said he prefers the homecourt edge over having a national seed, as the Rams did a year ago when they were seeded 12th and sent to Maryland for first- and second-round matches.
"I see it as a really great opportunity," he said. "I think playing great competition in our venue is what excites our team and gets our team to play at its highest level. We're going to have to beat somebody very good in order to get where we want to go this year. It might as well be early, and it might as well be in our own place."
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Post by Gorf on Dec 2, 2004 13:55:09 GMT -5
[quote author= BiK link=board=general&thread=1101879055&start=36#2 date=1102002987] I thought it was pretty clear. Your last post about CSU sounded like something (R)uffda! would write. [/quote] Still more obfuscation or perhaps BiKfuscation. You randomly throw in a reference to (R)uffda! rather than answer questions posed to you.
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Post by 2c on Dec 2, 2004 22:59:03 GMT -5
Yeah, OK.... they byte.
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Post by D'oh J. Simpson on Dec 2, 2004 23:55:14 GMT -5
[quote author= BiK link=board=general&thread=1101879055&start=34#2 date=1101973695] Been talking to (R)uffda! lately? CSU's going to kick the Boilermakers right out of the tourney. [/quote] D'oh!!
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