Volleyball Update

As I Tweeted recently to my legions of Twitter followers, “Nothing could be finer than three wins in Carolina!” Colorado State University Volleyball this weekend won a tournament in Chapel Hill. The Rams lost just a single set in the event, sweeping previously undefeated Marshall, beating Tennessee 3-1, and sweeping host North Carolina. CSU played very well, especially since this was the first road trip for a bunch of young players. The Rams did lose at Duke to begin the trip, a few days earlier, but showed they quickly figured out how to stay composed and competitive on the road. This will be a valuable lesson for the rest of the season. Danielle Minch was named MVP of the North Carolina Tournament after racking up an impressive kill total in each match, so congratulations to her and to the entire team.

I’m writing this now so I’ll have something to look back on in the weeks and months ahead. I could be wrong with my prediction, but I think the Rams have a good shot at winning the Mountain West Conference and returning to the NCAA Tournament for the 14th consecutive season. Yes, the Rams are breaking in a bunch of young players, who are new at their roles, but they are settling in and, after finding success at home, now also started to win away from the friendly confines of Moby Arena, as mentioned above.

CSU is fortunate that all the traditional powers in MWC Volleyball are also in rebuilding mode. Utah, like CSU, lost to graduation some of the best players in their program’s history. The new players have struggled, losing to teams Utah normally beats. BYU lost good players, and their coach in only in her 2nd season, so they’ve struggled too. New Mexico graduated one of the best hitters in the country. And I’m not sure what is up with UNLV, but they have played poorly so far this season.

CSU seems to have reloaded and forged ahead sooner than their rivals, the teams that will be their primary opponents in the weeks ahead. From all I have seen or read so far, I expect the Rams to lose a few matches along the way, but to emerge in late November at the head of the pack in a league where the automatic bid to the NCAAs is up for grabs. Go Rams!

See Ram Volleyball for more about the team.

Edited to add a link to a nice article about Minch

Almost Volleyball Season!

Colorado State University Volleyball begins its 2009 season in a few days. I'll have to miss Friday night's match against Pepperdine, but I plan to be in Fort Collins Saturday and Sunday for the matches against Oregon State and Cal Poly.

I don't know what to expect this season. The Rams graduated three of their best players ever: Ashley Fornstrom, Jaime Strauss, and Mekana Barnes. Fornstrom was the setter all four of her seasons, and will be the toughest act to follow. Sophomore Evan Sanders played sparingly last season as Fornstrom's backup. There may well be a learning curve for her early this season. Several new players are competing for playing time, and it can take a few weeks for players to gel in their on the court performance. So the start of the season may be rougher than I and the rest of Ram fandom hope.

On the positive side, CSU has probably its best overall height ever. Tall and talented young women have arrived on campus, and reported are already giving the established players runs for their money in practice. The Rams could be a formidable team by the end of the season. At this point, I'll hope for the best while repeating the mantra "Go Rams!"

To read more about the team, check out their blog at Ram Volleyball Blog.