|
Post by redbeard2008 on Sept 1, 2024 16:37:51 GMT -5
Weird seeing the name Huard in this context. Wilson and Bush subbed in for Haury and Fletcher. Looking at the record of play, it doesn't seem like they are running a 6-2, but rather that they are just experimenting with lineup combinations. Is that correct? The Montana St match was all 6-2, with Haury setting Fletcher and Wilson setting Bush at OPP.
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Sept 1, 2024 20:14:46 GMT -5
Disappointing to hear that first contact is still a struggle. Seems like the 6-2 is the best way to keep the strengths of Bush-Endsley-Fletcher-Barton in the front row to always have 2 outlet hitters. Makes me think that any passing potential on the bench doesn’t outweigh the offensive upside of the aforementioned group of 4 hitters. Any thoughts on the skills of the Haury-Wilson setting duo? With a 6-2, passing can be an issue, because using a 2nd DS runs the risk of running out of subs. When Endsley is in the front row, the passers are Endsley-Bays-Barton. When Barton is in the front row, they are Heard-Bays-Barton. They could "hide" Endsley and go with a 2-person serve-receive, but that would put more stress on Barton's passing. The thinking probably is to keep Endsley in serve-receive in hope that the reps will improve her passing. Haury has shown a good connection with Barton (2/3) and Fletcher (3/3), while Wilson's has been good with Endsley (2/3), but shakey with Bush (3/3). Note: Since Wilson didn't set Bush last year, the hope is their connection will improve going forward. Barton: 3.43k/s, .259 Fletcher: 3.00k/s, .222 Endsley: 3.43k/s, .360 Bush: 1.71k/s, .206 Wessels hitting has struggled, although her blocking has been stellar. Hunt is hitting very well, but needs more sets. Hunt: 1.43k/s, .350, 1.00b/s Wessels: 1.00k/s, .125, 1.57b/s
|
|
|
Post by Huskyfan on Sept 1, 2024 20:28:53 GMT -5
Wessels hitting has struggled, although her blocking has been stellar. Hunt is hitting very well, but needs more sets. Hunt: 1.43k/s, .350, 1.00b/s Wessels: 1.00k/s, .125, 1.57b/s In the Montana State match (4 sets): Hunt: 3/9 with 2E (0.111) 5BA Wessels: 0/6 with 2E (-0.333) 5BA In the Middle Tennessee State match (3 sets): Hunt: 7/11 with 1E (0.545) 2BA Wessels: 7/10 with 3E (0.400) 5BA Both struggled hitting in the first match and both did much better in the second match. They both will hopefully get more sets in future matches.
|
|
|
Post by fromonhigh on Sept 3, 2024 13:50:08 GMT -5
I hate, hate, hate the 6-2 offense. For me the benefit of having the extra hitter in the front row is far less important than having the flow of your setter broken after three rotations. If blocking is key at a given point in a match then use a double-sub.
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Sept 3, 2024 15:21:27 GMT -5
Yeah, if every team had a top-flight 5-1 setter, there would be no need to run a 6-2. Granted, the sixth hitter/blocker has to be a "plus" (hitting and blocking), not a "minus". Top-flight 5-1 setters are rare birds.
|
|
|
Post by ay2013 on Sept 5, 2024 18:04:31 GMT -5
Urgh, Montana State lost in 5 to Denver.
|
|
|
Post by vbman100 on Sept 6, 2024 7:32:44 GMT -5
Ugh, the (whatever conference Montana State is in, the Great Wide Open conference? idk) needs to stop taking so many losses!!!!!!!!!
|
|
|
Post by ay2013 on Sept 11, 2024 1:20:19 GMT -5
GO HUSKIES! 5-0 baby..... I hope Barton returns soon.
|
|
|
Post by JJVb on Sept 11, 2024 1:35:59 GMT -5
GO HUSKIES! 5-0 baby..... I hope Barton returns soon. And very capable of beating both WSU and UC Davis this coming weekend. UC Davis can't be underestimated though as they did beat Kansas State.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Sept 11, 2024 20:40:47 GMT -5
I've now had a chance to watch the replays of some of the Montana State match, most of the Georgia match, and all of the Colorado match. I've also looked at some early season stats, both team and individual. So I'll venture some very preliminary thoughts and raise some questions. Please feel free to disagree.
First, a 5-0 start is nothing to sneeze at with decent (but very close) wins against Georgia on a neutral court and Colorado on their home court. I like the way the team is playing together and I like the body language and grit in the two five-setters. I've also watched video of matches involving Texas, Wisconsin, Pitt, Louisville, and Stanford, and these teams are very clearly on a different level. This Husky team is definitely not an Elite 8 type team. Could they make a Sweet 16? One can dream.
So far, I would say the strengths of the team are 1) blocking; 2) efficient hitting; and 3) good setting. Floor defense appears to be improved over last year. Serving could and should improve -- we are losing the serve/serve receive battle way too often. Which brings me to serve receive, probably the most glaring weakness on the team. Getting aced 19 times by Georgia is embarrassing. That has to improve, and not by a small margin, if the Huskies want to achieve their goals in conference play.
I am really excited about the new players on the team, starting with the freshmen Haury and Hunt. Haury is already our best setter, which is saying something because Wilson is good. Haury has a high volleyball IQ, plays excellent defense, takes charge on the court, and sets a very hittable ball (and with pace when required). I love that she is willing to set our middles early and often, sometimes from 6-8 feet off the net. Which brings me to Hunt. Hunt is a dynamic middle and, I would say, already possesses the biggest arm on the team. Her connection with Haury has improved already and is going to be a major strength of the team this year and in years to come. She is a force at the net, blocking more balls (so far) than Wessels, who is a very good blocker. I can't stress enough how unusual it is to see a freshmen middle come in and show this type of blocking prowess. We'll see how she does against more elite competition, but Georgia's middle, Sophie Fischer, actually does qualify as elite competition.
Kiune Fletcher is a another newcomer and very nice addition. She brings needed athleticism and quickness at the net. If she can stop spraying some of her hits around, she could be a really efficient weapon on the right side. Heard is also a nice addition in the back row. Right now she has the best serve receive percentage on the team.
This team has a lot more depth on the pins than recent teams. When Barton could not play against Georgia, Wilmes stepped in with a monster offensive game. I suspect that Barton will be the better option if she is healthy going forward (she did not appear to have a serious injury from what I could see over the weekend). I think we still lack a true hammer on the outside, but the combination of Barton/Wilmes and Endsley on the left side, and Fletcher and Bush on the right side, has tended to be relatively low error, if not overwhelmingly powerful offense.
We are already seeing a lot more offense from our middles compared to last year, admittedly a very low bar. As noted, Hunt is a real weapon and I loved that she got 20 sets in the Georgia match (though Wessels only got 3).
Leslie's decision to run a 6-2 offense appears to be a good one so far. Both setters are playing at a pretty high level and we do not appear to be getting stuck in bad rotations.
Blocking has been awesome so far and it will be interesting to see how the blocking fares against some of the stiffer competition in the B1G. Twenty blocks against Colorado is remarkable and doesn't account for the many blocks that didn't hit the floor but forced Colorado into out of system plays. That show of blocking force can demoralize other teams and was key to the reverse sweep. In addition to the excellent blocking of Hunt and Wessels, Bush and Fletcher have been very good and even Endsley and Wilmes/Barton have gotten in on the action.
There is still substantial room for improvement with floor D and digging. Bays can get better at both digging and bump sets. The whole team can get better at dink coverage. Leslie seems committed to making the team better defensively.
Serving is typically a Husky strength and was probably our greatest strength just last year. This year looks pretty meh so far. Wilson has a pretty good serve along with Wilmes and Haury. Barton might be decent (haven't seen enough of her) but that's about it so far. We are going to need to put more pressure on the Purdues, Wisconsins, and Penn States of the world or their in-system play is going to make for rough going.
How can UW improve on serve receive? Right now no one (with the possible exception of Heard) is doing a good job. It's really early, but no one other than Heard has a reception percentage above 90%. That means that Bays, Barton, Wilmes, and Endsley are all falling below last year's percentages. For me, this is the key going forward. I pine for the days when Tia Scambray, Courtney Schwan, and Shayne McPherson were all truly elite receivers. If UW cannot solidify this aspect of the game, they are going to get killed by the upper half of the B1G. Leslie and company have their work cut out.
Looking forward to the rest of the non-con season and should be able to see the Huskies in person twice this weekend.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Sept 11, 2024 22:09:20 GMT -5
I forgot to mention one revealing stat: Washington is hitting .265 as a team; its opponents are hitting .124.
Total blocks on the season are also lopsided: UW has 60; the opposition 29.
|
|
|
Post by montlakemouse on Sept 13, 2024 0:08:06 GMT -5
I forgot to mention one revealing stat: Washington is hitting .265 as a team; its opponents are hitting .124. Total blocks on the season are also lopsided: UW has 60; the opposition 29. Great summary. Agreed! This team has the point scoring ability (kills, blocks, and I think service pressure will improve) to hang with most teams. However, errors are way too high. Mostly serve and receive. A few thoughts based on your longer post of observations: -Haury and Hunt give a lot of hope for this year and the future. Great recruits! -Leslie is smart to go with the 6-2 based on the strengths of the team and it appears to be working, but if they do switch to a 5-1 who gets the start at setter? -Is better passing a reason to try Heard at L? -Would starting Barton and Wilmes at both leftside positions help by taking Endsley out of the passing rotation? But then do you move Endsley to the right? Or which of Fletcher/Bush doesn’t play?? …hmmm… -much better blocking this year as a team. Wilmes made some noticeable improvements! Wessels with fewer block errors with a year to adjust to the college game. Adding Hunt and Fletcher and the return of Bush helps! -lIf there was one rotation they had some challenges siding out it appeared to be after Wessels serves just prior to return of Fletcher/Haury (Hunt, Endsley, Bush front row; Bays, Barton, Wilson in back)?? -Fun to see good court chemistry and grit early in the season. This team looks like it will stick together and find a way to win, or at least make you beat them. Excited to see what they can accomplish this year. Go Dawgs!
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Sept 13, 2024 11:10:57 GMT -5
A few thoughts based on your questions, montlakemouse: -Leslie is smart to go with the 6-2 based on the strengths of the team and it appears to be working, but if they do switch to a 5-1 who gets the start at setter? By starting Haury, Leslie has already shown her colors. I don't think there is any urgency to experiment with a 5-1 based on current results. One reason our block has been so good is that the setter is never blocking. -Is better passing a reason to try Heard at L? This is perhaps a more urgent question. Leslie is probably reluctant to make a change but there is no question Bays must improve. I expect we will see regression to the mean with Bays on serve receive (meaning she should improve to at least historical averages). -Would starting Barton and Wilmes at both leftside positions help by taking Endsley out of the passing rotation? But then do you move Endsley to the right? Or which of Fletcher/Bush doesn’t play?? …hmmm… Heard is coming in for Endsley as a sub and when Endsley is in serve receive she only tends to take very short serves, so she's only taking a fraction of the serves that others are taking. It is certainly true that she has not done very well when that happens, but I'm more worried about our primary receivers -- that would be Bays, Barton/Wilmes, and Heard. I think Endsley has done a credible job so far as a hitter; since she can rarely hit over a block, she needs to use her craftiness to win points. But if Endsley is not playing well on a given night, then you can always sub in Wilmes (all this assuming Barton gets back to full health). -If there was one rotation they had some challenges siding out it appeared to be after Wessels serves just prior to return of Fletcher/Haury (Hunt, Endsley, Bush front row; Bays, Barton, Wilson in back)?? I would agree this is one of the weaker rotations. And Wessels' serve has been erratic (maybe sub for her on serve/back row). One idea is to run back row sets to Barton (as far as I can tell, there have been very few back row attacks to anyone and I'm sure the fact that Barton missed the last two games is one reason for that). I think Barton probably has the athleticism to make this a good option.
|
|
|
Post by ay2013 on Sept 13, 2024 12:34:28 GMT -5
URGH.....MTSU dropped the 5th set against Utah Tech. These are just daggers for our SOS.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Sept 13, 2024 13:56:32 GMT -5
Not to mention Colorado losing to Northern Colorado. It's beginning to look like our non-con schedule is not as strong as we might have thought.
|
|