#18 Washington @ UCLA | Sept 25 Sun | 3PM PT | ESPNU
Sept 26, 2022 19:56:57 GMT -5
ay2013, dawgnerd, and 3 more like this
Post by alwayslearning on Sept 26, 2022 19:56:57 GMT -5
I took a bike ride in the glorious early fall weather yesterday and didn't catch the recorded replay until this afternoon. This has been an auspicious first week of Pac 12 play for the Huskies, certainly better than last year's 0-2 start.
UCLA has the pieces to be a very, very good team. I could see them being a dangerous tournament team if they can gel over the next couple months. So much firepower. A rusty Charitie Luper still hit over .400. They looked the part in the first set yesterday, hitting .647 with Luper and McCall supplying kill after kill. The Huskies actually played quite well too until serve receive let them down after being down 19-20.
So what stood out in sets 2-4? First, offensive efficiency. Sideout percentage varied from 70 to 80 percent. Hoffman has been playing really elite volleyball, making all her usual smart shots but bringing tremendous power this year. She also seems more fit than in the past, getting stronger as the match wears on. Three errors on 47 swings is pretty darn good. Bush is looking very comfortable on the left and is rapidly developing into a hitter who can get points with a wide range of shots, especially tools. In light of her outstanding efficiency (.357), I only wish that she would get set a little more. Grote was outstanding and Endsley hit a solid .250. (FWIW, Endsley's "performance and attitude" did not "stink"; she played well, with a couple aces, and showed the same normal expressions of emotion as always.) Orchestrating it all was EMP, who clearly outshone the former ACC setter of the year, McKissock (to be fair, McKissock is still learning the ropes at UCLA).
Second, UW started serving a little better, eventually accumulating 7 aces vs 10 service errors. We'll take those numbers. Serve receive also shored up. And overall defense was better, both in terms of blocking (8-3 advantage with Summers leading the way) and digging (about equal to UCLA).
Third, UCLA simply wore down. The Bruins' hitting percentage came back to earth, too many serves were missed, and they were OOS way more than in the first two sets. UW's confidence kept growing while UCLA looked like a beaten team in the third and fourth sets.
Overall, this was a great win for UW and there was a lot of high level volleyball on both sides.
While the offense has hit high gear, UW's defense remains a work in progress. Crenshaw's injury is allowing us to look at Morin, Houghton, Mikkelsen, and Wilson in DS roles. Each has had flashes of brilliance, whether digging or serving. I'm not sure Crenshaw will be clearly better when she becomes available again, but no one has shown the type of consistency that would clearly displace her either. Unless Morin, Mikkelsen, or Wilson can demonstrate they deserve a more full-time DS role, my guess is that Cook will favor the upperclass players Crenshaw and Houghton.
Boring? Yeah, it's tough watching one of the country's best setters play great D, make good decisions, and set one of the best outsides and an All-American middle. I'm certainly bored watching the accelerating development of Bush and Endsley. Maybe the team doesn't celebrate enough or display enough emotion. Compared to some of the JMac teams of yore, they are positively bubbling with emotion. Of course it could be just a sign of maturity.
UCLA has the pieces to be a very, very good team. I could see them being a dangerous tournament team if they can gel over the next couple months. So much firepower. A rusty Charitie Luper still hit over .400. They looked the part in the first set yesterday, hitting .647 with Luper and McCall supplying kill after kill. The Huskies actually played quite well too until serve receive let them down after being down 19-20.
So what stood out in sets 2-4? First, offensive efficiency. Sideout percentage varied from 70 to 80 percent. Hoffman has been playing really elite volleyball, making all her usual smart shots but bringing tremendous power this year. She also seems more fit than in the past, getting stronger as the match wears on. Three errors on 47 swings is pretty darn good. Bush is looking very comfortable on the left and is rapidly developing into a hitter who can get points with a wide range of shots, especially tools. In light of her outstanding efficiency (.357), I only wish that she would get set a little more. Grote was outstanding and Endsley hit a solid .250. (FWIW, Endsley's "performance and attitude" did not "stink"; she played well, with a couple aces, and showed the same normal expressions of emotion as always.) Orchestrating it all was EMP, who clearly outshone the former ACC setter of the year, McKissock (to be fair, McKissock is still learning the ropes at UCLA).
Second, UW started serving a little better, eventually accumulating 7 aces vs 10 service errors. We'll take those numbers. Serve receive also shored up. And overall defense was better, both in terms of blocking (8-3 advantage with Summers leading the way) and digging (about equal to UCLA).
Third, UCLA simply wore down. The Bruins' hitting percentage came back to earth, too many serves were missed, and they were OOS way more than in the first two sets. UW's confidence kept growing while UCLA looked like a beaten team in the third and fourth sets.
Overall, this was a great win for UW and there was a lot of high level volleyball on both sides.
While the offense has hit high gear, UW's defense remains a work in progress. Crenshaw's injury is allowing us to look at Morin, Houghton, Mikkelsen, and Wilson in DS roles. Each has had flashes of brilliance, whether digging or serving. I'm not sure Crenshaw will be clearly better when she becomes available again, but no one has shown the type of consistency that would clearly displace her either. Unless Morin, Mikkelsen, or Wilson can demonstrate they deserve a more full-time DS role, my guess is that Cook will favor the upperclass players Crenshaw and Houghton.
Boring? Yeah, it's tough watching one of the country's best setters play great D, make good decisions, and set one of the best outsides and an All-American middle. I'm certainly bored watching the accelerating development of Bush and Endsley. Maybe the team doesn't celebrate enough or display enough emotion. Compared to some of the JMac teams of yore, they are positively bubbling with emotion. Of course it could be just a sign of maturity.
