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Post by noblesol on Mar 11, 2024 22:30:33 GMT -5
I think they are legit. They just haven’t played this level of competition. I watched every set they played in the Outrigger, and was seated near their cheering section. For their 1st match with Irvine it was a back and forth battle for most of the match. But Irvine had another gear at the end that GCU didn't. And it came as kind of a shock to their fans and players. The team dressed and watched from the stands as Hawaii demolished Lewis in the first set of the next match before they left for their hotel. The task of what lay ahead for them against Hawaii had to be pretty clear. Next day against Hawaii in the first set GCU fell behind quickly and looked like Hawaii might leave them in single digits at one point, but they did battle back... too little too late. Their next two sets they were competitive but Hawaii always felt in control. Afterwards their players and fans had a look of resignation and some fatigue. Against Lewis they looked fatigued and not together, their fans weren't happy, their coaches weren't happy, the starters weren't getting it done, and worse for them was how Lewis was putting together a clinic for them on how to keep playing keep coaching and keep it together and balls to the wall until the end. And the Lewis bench and fans were having a blast. Finally Werle started benching starters and gave his bench a chance, and that was the pivot point for them. Their bench contributed big time with fresh energy and attitude, and the Lewis' starters got caught with some mid-match fatigue and melancholy of their own in the third set and lost momentum. Werle brought Hickman back off the bench for the final two sets and GCU completed the reverse sweep. I think GCU will stay a force to deal with going forward, definitely not fraudulent, absolutely competitive, but they didn't look like a top three type team at Outrigger. More a team in that #4 - #8 range that's capable of playing at a higher level for a stretch before they revert to their mean. Going forward they need to stay healthy and together. But it's been kind of a trend for GCU to fatigue down the stretch the past few seasons, so they'll need their bench to keep producing for them. Against Lewis, their bench was strong enough, but against UCLA and maybe a couple of other MPSF teams, I have my doubts. |
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Post by ROCK VB on Mar 11, 2024 22:44:24 GMT -5
^ well said, noble sol
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Post by noblesol on Mar 11, 2024 22:53:33 GMT -5
Rock, I checked out your stream cast and was highly impressed. Class all the way, and the effort that went into it...wow. You're a Gem! |
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Post by ROCK VB on Mar 11, 2024 23:00:35 GMT -5
Rock, I checked out your stream cast and was highly impressed. Class all the way, and the effort that went into it...wow. You're a Gem! Glad you enjoyed it! I’ll be doing the next 4 Lewis home games on VBTV if you want a little more of what I’m cooking up. |
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Post by VolleyFanFL on Mar 12, 2024 8:28:44 GMT -5
I think they are legit. They just haven’t played this level of competition. I watched every set they played in the Outrigger, and was seated near their cheering section. For their 1st match with Irvine it was a back and forth battle for most of the match. But Irvine had another gear at the end that GCU didn't. And it came as kind of a shock to their fans and players. The team dressed and watched from the stands as Hawaii demolished Lewis in the first set of the next match before they left for their hotel. The task of what lay ahead for them against Hawaii had to be pretty clear. Next day against Hawaii in the first set GCU fell behind quickly and looked like Hawaii might leave them in single digits at one point, but they did battle back... too little too late. Their next two sets they were competitive but Hawaii always felt in control. Afterwards their players and fans had a look of resignation and some fatigue. Against Lewis they looked fatigued and not together, their fans weren't happy, their coaches weren't happy, the starters weren't getting it done, and worse for them was how Lewis was putting together a clinic for them on how to keep playing keep coaching and keep it together and balls to the wall until the end. And the Lewis bench and fans were having a blast. Finally Werle started benching starters and gave his bench a chance, and that was the pivot point for them. Their bench contributed big time with fresh energy and attitude, and the Lewis' starters got caught with some mid-match fatigue and melancholy of their own in the third set and lost momentum. Werle brought Hickman back off the bench for the final two sets and GCU completed the reverse sweep. I think GCU will stay a force to deal with going forward, definitely not fraudulent, absolutely competitive, but they didn't look like a top three type team at Outrigger. More a team in that #4 - #8 range that's capable of playing at a higher level for a stretch before they revert to their mean. Going forward they need to stay healthy and together. But it's been kind of a trend for GCU to fatigue down the stretch the past few seasons, so they'll need their bench to keep producing for them. Against Lewis, their bench was strong enough, but against UCLA and maybe a couple of other MPSF teams, I have my doubts. I think the key sub in the GCU vs Lewis match was Jordan Lucas as OH. He's a high energy player and brought the energy back into the match on the GCU side. |
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Post by gofaster88 on Mar 12, 2024 9:13:02 GMT -5
Look at GCUs stats and you can see why they get tired and fade away the second half of the season. Werle has a very short bench and hardly plays anyone beyond his 7 starters (21 rostered) even in blow outs. The bench basically gets in as serving subs for a rotation, that's it.
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Post by soljah808 on Mar 12, 2024 9:23:32 GMT -5
Look at GCUs stats and you can see why they get tired and fade away the second half of the season. Werle has a very short bench and hardly plays anyone beyond his 7 starters (21 rostered) even in blow outs. The bench basically gets in as serving subs for a rotation, that's it. Could be the reason when he took out Gianni, and Roger's during the Lewis match....the bench guys brought about fresher legs and more energy which helped them ultimately prevail. |
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Post by staticb on Mar 12, 2024 12:17:52 GMT -5
It's not like GCU was the pre-season #1 and asked to be voted there. They were rewarded when other teams screwed up.
They took care of business until they couldn't.
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