Big Ten Fall 2021

[AmeriCanVBfan]

Thanks for your take on Maryland.
Dowler will be the starting setter and don't be surprised if Milan Gomillion makes her way into the lineup as the Libero.
Their middles are better than average so if they can pass they may do better than expected.

[Kingsley]

Aug 10, 2021 10:41:44 GMT -5 bruinsgold said:

Kingsley -- I only count 8 Purdue matches. Do you have the number to the home office? I need to get this fixed 🤔

No Purdue @ Wisconsin Nov. 12, or Nebraska @ Purdue Nov. 27? No televised matches on Nov. 27 at all? That ain't right.

[bprtbone]

TV Appearance Count (check my math!):

Minnesota	15
Nebraska	14
Wisconsin	12
Ohio State	9
Penn State	9
Purdue	9
Illinois	6
Michigan	4
Indiana	3
Michigan State	3
Rutgers	3
Iowa	2
Maryland	2
Northwestern	2

[Kingsley]

    Penn State Nittany Lions

Spring 2021 Overall Record: 10-6

Conference Record: 9-5 (6th)

NCAA Tournament Placement: Regional Semifinals (L, 1-3 vs. Texas)

Final AVCA Ranking: 12



Head Coach: Russ Rose (43rd season at Penn State)

Record at Penn State: 1309-218



Returning Starters:

Maddy Bilinovic - SO, 5'7 DS

Gabby Blossom - SR, 5'9 S

Annie Cate Fitzpatrick - SO, 5'11 OH

Jenna Hampton - SR, 5'7

Kaitlyn Hord - SR, 6'4 MB

Anastasiya Kudryashova - R-JR, 6'4 OH

Jonni Parker - SR, 6'0 RS



Departures (* denotes starter):

Lauren Clark - JR, 6'0 OH (Transfer to Florida Gulf Coast)

Hannah Flowers - 6'3 RS

Serena Gray* - SR, 6'2 MB (Transfer to Pittsburgh)

Sam McCool - R-FR, 5'9 DS (Transfer to ?)

Macall Peed - JR, 5-7 DS/L (Transfer to UC Santa Barbara)



Incoming Players:

Katie Clark - SR, 6'3 MB (Transfer from TCU)

Cassie Kuerschen - FR, 5'8 DS/L

Quinn Menger - FR, 5'11 S

Rachel Muisenga - FR, 6'1 S

Lexi Skripek - FR, 5'5 DS/L

Anjelina Starck - FR, 6'2 OH/S/RS

Erika Williams - FR, 6'0 MB

Adanna Rollins - GRAD, 6'0 OH (Grad transfer from Minnesota)

Erika Pritchard - GRAD, 6'3 OH (Grad transfer from Maryland)


Spring 2021 Recap:

It certainly wasn't an auspicious start to the Spring 2021 season for Penn State. Michigan went COVID AWOL, meaning the Nittany Lions would have to wait an extra week for the season to start. When Penn State finally took the court at home against Illinois, they did it without their starting setter and libero. Even still, two wins over the Illini got the year off on the right foot eventually.

The competition got stiffer, though, and the Nittany Lions dropped a pair of matches at Minnesota despite the return of Gabby Blossom and Jenna Hampton. Penn State appeared poised to get back on track against the Buckeyes, but Ohio State pulled off a reverse sweep to relegate their rivals to a 2-3 record.

After a rebound series against Indiana and a canceled Maryland series, Penn State again faced a tough stretch. They were swept at home by Ohio State and mustered a split against Purdue. The Nittany Lions wrapped up the regular with four sweeps against Rutgers and Michigan State before COVID-19 wiped out their matches against Wisconsin and Nebraska.

That doesn't necessarily sound like a season that's up to Penn State standards, but the Nittany Lions were still given the 13 seed in the NCAA Tournament. It wasn't controversial at all. Then Penn State got a second-round matchup against NC A&T after Rice bowed out due to COVID. It was very popular.

Penn State finished the season 10-6 after falling in the regional semifinals to Texas, the eventual national runner-up.



The Lineup:

I think we all know what lineup we're getting here, but there's going to be some debate on how good they'll be.

The Nittany Lions made waves in the offseason with the addition of two intra-conference outside hitter transfers in one night. Senior Adanna Rollins and super senior Erika Pritchard will surely have the inside track into the starting lineup, displacing returning starters AC Fitzpatrick and Anastasiya Kudryashova. The big key is whether Rollins and Pritchard can improve their serve receive in a new environment. Both have had some struggles over the years, but I can't help feeling that Coach Rose will make something work.

If there's a spot in the lineup with the most "open" competition, it's at the middle blocker spot left vacant after the transfer of Serena Gray (Pitt). The Nittany Lions will likely go with either sophomore Allie Holland, who played in a handful of sets last season with Gray out, or senior Katie Clark, a very recent transfer pickup from TCU. The only other question regarding the middles is whether they'd consider moving Kaitlyn Hord to M1. I don't think that's really necessary.

You all know the rest of this senior-laden lineup. Blossom is back at setter, Jonni Parker will keep playing six rotations, and Jenna Hampton's got the libero jersey. If one of the left sides needs a DS at some point, Maddy Bilinovic got plenty of experience as a true freshman in the spring. Fitzpatrick could also step into that kind of role.



The Schedule:

I love Penn State's schedule. We need to step back and appreciate how great it will be to wake up on opening day and watch Penn State play Georgia Tech at 10:00 a.m. Eastern. Successive matches against St. John's and host UCF will be a good test, too.

The Nittany Lions then return home to face Iowa State, Oregon State, and an LSU team that we're all praying will finally be good. Of course, Oregon and Stanford are back on the schedule, too.

Here's the conference breakdown for the Nittany Lions:

Home + Away	Home	Away

The Verdict:

It's no secret that Penn State's production from the left side has not been up to the team's normal standards over the past couple of years. Perhaps the biggest determining factor to the Nittany Lions' success this fall is whether Pritchard and Rollins can restore order. Again, it probably depends on whether Penn State can stitch together some decent passing with this lineup, or whether Blossom can save everyone's bacon.

There could be a decent amount of pressure on Penn State to make this the year that they produce something. We know this is a one-and-done for Pritchard. Who knows how many of Penn State's bajillion seniors feel like sticking around for another season?

For obvious reasons (or perhaps one singular reason), this isn't a favorable year for the Nittany Lions to compete for a conference title. If the team comes together nicely, though, a return to the regional finals is a realistic bar to set. Anything more would be a slam dunk.

[Kingsley]

For tomorrow's preview, the RNG machine has decided:

[vergyltantor]

Aug 10, 2021 12:55:26 GMT -5 bprtbone said:

TV Appearance Count (check my math!):

Minnesota	15
Nebraska	14
Wisconsin	12
Ohio State	9
Penn State	9
Purdue	8
Illinois	6
Michigan	4
Indiana	3
Michigan State	3
Rutgers	3
Iowa	2
Maryland	2
Northwestern	2

Purdue has 9

Line 16: Sept. 24 (Fri.) Ohio State at Purdue BTN 7 p.m.
Line 25: Oct. 6 (Wed.) Purdue at Illinois BTN 9 p.m.
Line 31: Oct. 15 (Fri.) Purdue at Ohio State BTN 6 p.m.
Line 33: Oct. 17 (Sun.) Penn State at Purdue ESPN2 2 p.m.
Line 35: Oct. 20 (Wed.) Michigan State at Purdue BTN 8 p.m.
Line 39: Oct. 23 (Sat.) Purdue at Nebraska BTN TBD
Line 45: Oct. 31 (Sun.) Wisconsin at Purdue ESPNU Noon
Line 49: Nov. 14 (Sun.) Purdue at Minnesota BTN 3 p.m.
Line 50: Nov. 19 (Fri.) Michigan at Purdue BTN 7 p.m.

bprtbone If you want to edit your post, P. M. me, and I'll delete this post.

[robtearle]

Aug 10, 2021 12:55:26 GMT -5 bprtbone said:

TV Appearance Count (check my math!):

Minnesota	15
Nebraska	14
Wisconsin	12
Ohio State	9
Penn State	9
Purdue	8
Illinois	6
Michigan	4
Indiana	3
Michigan State	3
Rutgers	3
Iowa	2
Maryland	2
Northwestern	2

Wisconsin has 14.

[robtearle]

Aug 10, 2021 21:41:40 GMT -5 vergyltantor said:

Aug 10, 2021 21:37:29 GMT -5 robtearle said:

Wisconsin has 14.

I think 12 is correct. If you did a word search, it might have counted these:

Aug. 27 (Fri.) Minnesota vs. Baylor (@wisconsin) ESPNU 9:30 p.m.

Aug. 28 (Sat.) Minnesota vs. TCU (@wisconsin)BTN 9:30 p.m.

Yup. My mistake.

[Brutus Buckeye]

[Kingsley]

    Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Spring 2021 Overall Record: 6-14

Conference Record: 6-14 (9th)

NCAA Tournament Placement: N/A (Last tournament appearance: 1982 -- First Round)

Final AVCA Ranking: NR



Head Coach: Caitlin Schweihofer (2nd season at Rutgers)

Record at Rutgers: 6-14



Returning Starters:

Inna Balyko - SR, 6'0 S

Madyson Chitty - SO, 5'5 DS/L

Kamila Cieslik - SR+, 5'11 OH

Tina Grkovic - SO, 6'2 MB

Beka Kojadinovic - SR+, 6'1 RS

Anastasiia Maksimova - SR, 6'1 OH

Shea McNamara - R-SR, 6'2 MB



Departures (* denotes starter):

Yana Kamshilina - 6'1 OH

Mary Kate Painter* - 5'4 DS/L



Incoming Players:

Samantha Graver - GRAD, 5'10 OH (Grad transfer from La Salle)

Alissa Kinkella - FR, 6'4 OH

Cara Newell - FR, 5'10 DS/L

Jaden Rice - FR, 6'0 OH

Rachel Tam - JR, 5'4 DS/L (Transfer from Virginia Tech)

Megan Vernon - GRAD, 6'1 MB (Transfer from Kansas State)


Spring 2021 Recap:

I'll be the first to admit that I didn't expect to see much from Rutgers in 2020, or Spring 2021, or whenever the season was going to be played. You can check the receipts on that.

What Rutgers did in Coach Schweihofer's first year was magical: become a venerated cult hero en route to the program's best season as members of the Big Ten Conference.

The campaign didn't start out so hot, with the Scarlet Knights falling in back-to-back sweeps at Northwestern. Things got more interesting, though, when Rutgers picked up a big home win against the Hoosiers. Successive matchups against Wisconsin and Nebraska would not go as well, but Rutgers still helped cement their legendary status with a set victory over the Cornhuskers.

A series split with the Hawkeyes gave the Scarlet Knights two conference wins, tying their best win total as a Big Ten school. Rutgers then came within one point of picking up a ranked win against Ohio State, but ultimately fell 16-14 in a five-set thriller.

Setbacks against Penn State and Purdue would not stop the Scarlet Knights from making a late-season push. Staring down matchups against Maryland and Michigan State, Rutgers mustered a FOUR(!)-match winning streak to finish the year with six victories. It was the program's most conference wins in a single season since 2005.


The Lineup:

Rutgers returns nearly everyone from that fateful squad. Despite this, I would expect Schweihofer to experiment with some different lineups early in the fall season, especially with the non-conference schedule providing some great opportunities to do so.

The two spots where I'd look for Rutgers to explore some lineup permutations are at middle blocker and outside hitter. Regarding the middles, Kansas State grad transfer Megan Vernon is an intriguing addition to the roster. She would have to displace either Shea McNamara or Tina Grkovic from the starting lineup, but I expect Vernon to get a fair shot.

The Scarlet Knights also return two starters on the left side in senior Anastasiia Maksimova and super senior Kamila Cieslik. Both provided some important six-rotation production last season, but there are also plenty of eager new faces behind them. Schweihofer brings in an old ally this year: La Salle grad transfer Samantha Graver. This outside hitter would obviously face stiffer competition than she did during her stint with the Explorers, but Graver will still get a chance at the starting lineup.

If any of the pin hitters need a DS, there's an open competition at that spot. Mary Kate Painter departs after occasionally playing back row for Cieslik in the spring. Virginia Tech transfer Rachel Tam might be a good option there. True freshman Cara Newell also joins the group of backcourt players.

The rest of the returning starters are probably safer bets to stay on the court. Senior Inna Balyko will continue her reign as one of the conference's premier setters. Super senior Beka Kojadinovic is likely looked in on the right side, and sophomore Madyson Chitty should hold on to the libero jersey.


The Schedule:

Unsurprisingly, Rutgers's non-conference schedule is devoid of any real heavy hitters. Their toughest challenge will likely come on opening night in Fort Myers against Florida Gulf Coast. Big Ten Network will travel to the RAC for a showdown with NC State. That match will carry a lot of weight.

Other than that, there are a few free wins out there for Rutgers before they embark on conference play. In-state connections aside, the fact that a Big Ten team is playing NJIT gives me serious vertigo.

Here's the conference lineup for the Scarlet Knights:

Home + Away	Home	Away

The Verdict:

Rutgers is tasked with proving that last spring's results were not just a flash in the pan.

Some of the more bullish folks on this forum are calling for another mid-tier conference finish from Rutgers this fall. I'm cautious. The Scarlet Knights will likely need some improved efficiency from its left sides to replicate or surpass last season's breakthrough. Perhaps more importantly, a few of the teams that Rutgers leapfrogged in last year's conference standings will be improved (and hopefully won't get COVID).

The reason for optimism, of course, is that Balyko is still running the show and is the program's franchise player. After delivering the team's first-ever all-B1G performance, she will have a lot on her shoulders again.

If you believe in defining success in wins and losses, you can count at least five victories in non-conference play. Rutgers will probably pick up a couple more than that. Conference double-dips against Indiana and Maryland are tantalizing opportunities.

While I'm hesitant to thrust the Scarlet Knights too far up the conference leaderboard, this team has a great chance to pick up double-digit wins in a single season for the first time since 2012.

[Kingsley]

For tomorrow's preview, the RNG machine has decided:

[Kingsley]

Aug 11, 2021 14:06:08 GMT -5 Kingsley said:

For tomorrow's preview, the RNG machine has decided:

This team is giving me nightmares.

[Kingsley]

    Northwestern Wildcats

Spring 2021 Overall Record: 4-10

Conference Record: 4-10 (10th)

NCAA Tournament Placement: N/A (Last tournament appearance: 2010 -- Second Round)

Final AVCA Ranking: NR



Head Coach: Shane Davis (6th season at Northwestern)

Record at Northwestern: 58-84



Returning Starters:

Desiree Becker - JR, 6'2 MB

Abryanna Cannon - R-JR, 6'2 OH

Charlotte Cronister - JR, 5'7 DS/L

Megan Miller - SR, 5'6 L

Temi Thomas-Ailara - JR, 6'2 OH



Departures (* denotes starter):

Nia Robinson* - 6'2 OH (Grad transfer to North Carolina)

Alana Walker* - 6'3 MB (Grad transfer to Virginia)

Amy Wang - 5'6 DS/L

Ivey Whalen - 6'3 MB

Danyelle Williams - 6'1 RS (Grad transfer to Tulane)



Incoming Players:

Ariel Amaya - FR, 6'0 OH/RS

Leilani Dodson - SO, 6'1 MB (Transfer from BYU)

Bella LeSage - FR, 5'9 DS/L

Ellee Stinson - FR, 5'4 DS/L



Spring 2021 Recap:

There's a lot to unpack here.

Northwestern's spring season started out somewhat innocently with a pair of solid sweeps over Rutgers. The following week's series against Nebraska, though, got canned as soon as Kingsley pulled into the Devaney Center parking lot. Shane Davis owes me gas money.

COVID issues halted the Northwestern program for the next couple of weeks before they were cleared for a road trip to Purdue. The Wildcats were predictably overmatched in that series and returned home for a bout with Iowa. Northwestern fell in the first matchup with the Hawkeyes after one of the wackiest five-set battles of the entire year. The home team promptly bounced back and notched a five-set victory of their own.

Now, we hop on the rollercoaster. Michigan State was dealing with a COVID-19 shutdown by this point, so that series got cut. Then, Northwestern's next four matchups against Wisconsin and Indiana got canceled for...something? The school said it was COVID, Alana Walker said it wasn't COVID, I was still looking for my gas money, and others wanted to know what was going on at Northwestern. In any case, Northwestern had to forfeit two matches to each of these two teams. Four free L's. Northwestern's website has not accepted these L's, but we know better.

The Wildcats returned to the floor at home against Minnesota, where Northwestern fell on back-to-back nights. Suddenly, Northwestern was traveling to Maryland for the season finale. Of course, as the universe intended, the Wildcats and Terps split five-set matches to end the year.


The Lineup:

I've watched an unspeakable amount of Northwestern volleyball over the past 24 hours. Here's a brief synopsis of what their lineups looked like in the spring:

Kiara McNulty began the year as the starting setter. Danyelle Williams played L1, with Abryanna Cannon at L2, Temi Thomas-Ailara at OPP, Desiree Becker and Alana Walker at M1 and M2, respectively, and Megan Miller the libero. Charlotte Cronister was a DS for the L1.

Insert COVID break, and go to the Purdue series. Nia Robinson replaces Williams at L1. The rest holds firm.

To Iowa. Alexa Rousseau has replaced McNulty as the starting setter.

Insert forfeit break and move to the Minnesota series. Some of Northwestern's starters disappear. Becker never sees the floor again after the forfeitures. Walker moves to M1, and Tatyana Hardwick plays the rest of the year as the M2. Hannah Lesiak has also appeared in the starting lineup as the primary DS in place of Cronister. Lesiak also gets some occasional front row duties in place of Robinson at L1. Cronister only finds the floor again in the season's final match as a serving sub for Thomas-Ailara.

Enough. I'm sorry. Here's what you can expect for the fall based on all that. Keep Cannon at one of the outside hitter spots. Rousseau should have a firm grip on the starting setter spot by now. Miller is still the libero.

Robinson and Walker have departed. Joining the fray is BYU transfer middle blocker Leilani Dodson. You can go ahead and put her at M1. Set it and forget it. The M2 spot should be a battle between Becker and Hardwick.

You basically need one pin to step up. It might be a six-rotation role for Lesiak on the left with Thomas-Ailara staying at opposite. That's what I'm leaning toward.


The Schedule:

You'd hope that Northwestern figures things out early because they won't have gimme matches right out of the gate. A road series against South Dakota, Northern Colorado, and Colorado State will be a major test. Other challenges on the non-conference slate include Arizona, Missouri, UCSB, and Wyoming. The Wildcats will not play on their home floor until Sept. 17!

Here's the conference lineup for Northwestern:

Home + Away	Home	Away

The Verdict:

A bit of lineup continuity might go a long way for this team. Not just lineup continuity, perhaps, but the ability to keep practicing and playing matches for more than just a couple weeks at a time.

The Wildcats have a bit too much talent to confidently peg them at the very bottom of the conference. Thomas-Ailara is always a threat to go off, and Cannon is solid on the left. Dodson should provide a spark in the middle, provided Northwestern can produce the ball control necessary to get her some swings. It won't be easy.

Northwestern is going to be the Big Ten's pendulum team. Sometimes they'll look fairly good, and other times they'll look doubleplus ungood. That pendulum might swing within a single match. The Wildcats need to find some answers to improve their passing and efficiency. In the end, it will take a brand new level of consistency for Northwestern if they want to finish anywhere beyond the 8th-10th range in conference.

[Kingsley]

For tomorrow's preview, the RNG machine has decided:

[badgerbreath]

Great job on these Kingsley!