Weekend Wrap-Up (9/9/18)

We now have three undefeated teams in the West Region through week 2. Without cheating, and believe me I’ll know because my Latvian hackers have accessed your computer camera, name one that’s not Colorado College.  If you got it right then I predict you are supporter of McMurry or Lewis & Clark. As we know, not all schedules are created equally but ask any coach whether they would want to be undefeated after two weeks and the vast majority will respond in the affirmative. On the other side of the standings page is JWU (Denver) who is the only team in the West Region without a win as they begin their first season in DIII.

Let’s get some book keeping done before we begin the wrap-up. We had a late arriving wrap-up last week due to family commitments and travel. As I start writing this in the morning, my hope is that you are reading this by the afternoon. My rankings came out Monday and I had Colorado College on top and I didn’t see anything to change that thought this week. I updated the Watch List and archived the 2017 Watch List. I will attempt to have this updated for the week either before this post goes up or late tonight. The AVCA Top 25 came out Tuesday and they have Calvin as the top team. They also had 6 teams in the Top 25 and 5 receiving votes. Expect some changes to the West Region teams this week. Players of the Week comes out Wednesday and I also posted the Tournament Links. We have only four tournaments coming up this weekend but the vast number of teams in the West will begin conference play. I posted a Musings article on Thursday with my first attempt at a Podcast. The Podcast had some access issues that I hopefully have corrected (as of today). It’s much too long and I’m unsure of future attempts at this. One thought is having a short 2 minute blurb on teams through the year. I’m still kicking around something come selection time, too. Finally, we had the weekend matches and that leads us to the wrap-up.

We start with the ASC East and the leader in the clubhouse right now is Belhaven!?! Belhaven (7-1) had a 3-1 week but they have played only one DIII school and that was a 5-set loss to Dallas. I will say that my biggest laugh came from watching the end of set 4 in this match as the Belhaven coach (Justin Dee) leapt in the air at the same time his outside received the ball. He then did a spread eagle in the air as the outside hit the ball and landed as the ball hit the floor scoring the final point in the set. He then collapsed to the floor in celebration. I’m sure this breaks some coaching decorum rules but I enjoyed it and I’m sure his team did, too. Belhaven starts ASC play this week where they will draw much tougher competition. UT-Tyler (6-1) is the ugly stepsister of the West Region because they are leaving us for a move to DII. This means no DIII tournaments but they can still be ranked and their matches still count as DIII matches. They followed up their impressive week 1 effort with sweeps over TLU and Schreiner but it was the match against #4 CMS that impressed again this week. The Patriots went up 2-1 before losing set 4 and then losing 15-13 in the fifth set. UTT actually outhit the defending champions for the match and only had 1 attacking error in the fifth set but CMS pulled it out. Kaitlyn Budisalovich finished the match with 15 kills and 15.5 points to lead the team. She has a really smooth swing and can just pound the ball. UTT has always been able to hit but were held back on the defensive side and by too many errors. That’s not the case so far this season as they are one of the top teams in the West Region. UT-Dallas (4-2) almost had a horrid weekend as they dropped a pair of 4-setters to #4 CMS and La Verne mixed in with a sweep of TLU. The La Verne loss was really puzzling to me but they just couldn’t stop the Leopards and the UTD outsides had an off match. The weekend was saved with a 5-set victory over #5 Trinity behind Alex Nolan who received some playing time and finished with 17.5 points. The Comets will play ETBU this week but will then travel to Claremont for matches against #11 Cal Lutheran, #4 CMS (rematch) and #8 Emory. ETBU (6-4) played 6 matches this week going 5-1 (losing to an NAIA team). None of the wins were really challenging as they were all sweeps (Centenary seems to have put up the most fight). Sydney Lopez continues to lead the Tigers in hitting and now has 123.5 points on the season. LeTourneau (3-4) was able to go 3-1 on the week as they beat two other ASC teams in non-conference play. Their loss was to McMurry (also an ASC team) and they will begin ASC play (for real) this week. Louisiana College (1-5) played at the Millsaps Invitational and came away with their first win (against NAIA Rust College). It looks like another tough season for the Wildcats as they are in their second year of existence.

McMurry (8-0) starts us off in the ASC West as they had their second undefeated week. The level of competition was not as strong as their first week and I don’t know if we’ll have a really good read on this team until they play the top teams in the ASC later in the season. Currently, Jasmine Jones is the hitting star for the War Hawks with 89 points. Hardin-Simmons (7-1) headed out west and finished with a 3-1 weekend. They had to rally to beat Pomona-Pitzer and then were swept by Cal Lutheran on Friday before beating Redlands and Willamette on Saturday. I would have liked to see a closer match against Cal Lutheran and this will be another team that we’ll need to see play against the top teams in the ASC in order to get a good read. UMHB (5-1) was oh so close to a perfect weekend with a couple of quality wins that would have helped secure a high ranking in the West Region. In the end they went 3-1 with wins over Clarkson, Pomona-Pitzer and #11 Cal Lutheran. The Cru had gone up 2-0 on Whittier only to lose a tight third set before Whittier wins the match in 5. Overall, a very good week but that Whittier loss could end up hurting. Corinne Novak continues to pound the ball for the Cru averaging 3.26 kills/set. Concordia (4-4) had one of the more surprising results for the week with their sweep over La Verne while hitting 0.304 behind 15 kills from Marissa Stinson. They ended up losing a tough 5-setter to TLU and were swept by Trinity for their two losses. Concordia had losses to Dallas and Austin College the first week so it’s hard to know exactly what to expect game-by-game with the Tornados. Sul Ross State (1-3) played their first matches of the year this week. Their win came against NAIA Paul Quinn behind the efforts of freshman Annika Canaba who also had 14 kills against Austin College. Canaba didn’t play their final two matches, which has me a little worried she went out injured. Sul Ross definitely needs her on the court to have any success. Howard Payne (1-4) also started their season this week and also got their only win against NAIA Paul Quinn. The Yellow Jackets were able to take a game off of Linfield but their other losses weren’t close. More improvement will be needed here for a team that I thought might challenge for an ASC Tournament playoff spot.

Overall, UT-Dallas seems like there is more improvement to be found within their team and it probably starts with more consistency from the outsides. They are playing one of the toughest schedules in DIII so some losses are going to happen but this is also a team that I think can win the West Regional if they put it together. It appears that Cal Lutheran victory will be huge for UMHB as the Regals look to be for real this year and always get love from the voters. The Whittier loss probably means UMHB will still go unranked in the AVCA where as they probably would have been around #20 with a win. It doesn’t make a lot of sense but UMHB just has never been given credit for their performance and that was evident by their NCAA Tournament snub from last year. In my mind, UMHB has secured their place in the Top 8 of the West Region and still have a few matches that can help down the road. I’ll end with McMurry who have won what matches were in front of them but come November may not have a strong enough schedule to get an NCAA bid. They really need to beat UT-Dallas and split with UMHB in conference play.

There were 6 undefeated teams in the NWC last week but all of the teams stepped up in competition, which leaves us with just one still unbeaten. Now, never in a million years would I have guessed it was Lewis & Clark (7-0). With another undefeated week, the Pioneers have equaled their win total from the last 2 years combined in the first 2 weeks of this season!  Get to know Kortney Meyer who has scored double-digit points in every match she has played and probably needs even more swings than what she’s been given. I wrote this in the Match Day report but there probably isn’t a player more valuable to their team than Meyer. Despite their impressive start, it’s an uphill road for the Pioneers as I don’t think they can win a conference that has Pacific Lutheran in it, but could they do enough to get second and get consideration by the West RAC? It’s a long shot, but they’ve done nothing to hurt their chances. Pacific Lutheran (7-1) went to Colorado College and like every team before them for the last few years limped out of there with a loss. It wasn’t just a loss as they were swept and were never close in any of the three sets. You can say that Colorado College stacked the deck by having the Lutes play back-to-back at altitude but nobody told you to go play at Colorado College. (Public Service – No team in their right mind should ever go willingly to Colorado College for a tournament unless they want to lose.) The Lutes were doomed the minute they couldn’t sweep Minnesota-Morris in the preceding match. With all of that said Pacific Lutheran is in a great position to win the NWC or, failing that, garner an NCAA at-large bid. They just can’t get tripped up too much in conference. George Fox (6-2) also went to Colorado College for their bloodletting but did manage to beat Minnesota-Morris in 4-sets. They also took a loss to NAIA Briar Cliff during the weekend. I really think with their schedule they are forced to win the NWC in order to make the NCAA Tournament. The NWC clearly ignored my public service message as Pacific (6-3) also flew out to Colorado College and actually took a game off the Tigers. A 5-set loss to NAIA Briar Cliff had to be disappointing but they did end up beating Minnesota-Morris. Pacific is probably in the same spot as George Fox as they have a bad loss to UW-Stout already on their record. I will say I got to watch a bit of Pacific and I just came away even more impressed with setter Ellie Parker. She really sets a consistent ball, which was really evident from the camera angle we had on the stream. Whitworth (6-3) went to a different viper pit in Emory for a rare five match schedule over the weekend. Losses to Berry, Emory and Otterbein probably weren’t unexpected but they did pick up a nice win against Transylvania and that is probably their best win to date. Outside Jessica Schmautz had another nice week fresh off her player of the week honors in the NWC and leads the team with 133 total points. Linfield (5-3) headed over to Austin College for an easier tournament but still came away with three losses and only one win against Howard Payne. Unless things improve, the Wildcats are headed to the bottom of the NWC standings. Whitman (4-4) headed down south where they’re still running today…Sorry…got an Eagles song stuck in my head. Whitman did go to the Cal Lutheran Tournament and did sweep UC Santa Cruz but didn’t have much luck other than that. Losses to Whittier and Chapman were to be expected but a 5-set loss to Redlands was a little surprising. This may have more to do with the Redlands than Whitman but that is still a match I’m sure the coach had circled for a win. Puget Sound (3-5) went 2-2 on the weekend with a win over Pomona-Pitzer and a surprising 5-set victory over Whittier. I don’t think the Whittier win will be enough for any future at-large consideration due to their losses to Chapman and Cal Lutheran. I’m curious regarding Melanie Siacotos as she’s only played three matches but did well against Millikin and Cal Lutheran. The Loggers have a lot of youth and they are probably still trying to figure things out. Willamette (3-5) had to be disappointed dropping all four matches this weekend especially to UC Santa Cruz and Redlands. If things don’t improve they will be battling Linfield at the bottom of the conference race.

Overall, the Northwestern Conference play starts this week for all of these teams. None of the schools will leave the northwest until the NCAA Tournament starts and the question is how many of these schools have a shot at a bid. Obviously, someone is going to win the conference but I really only see Pacific Lutheran with a chance at an at-large bid. The conference really does a disservice with their schedule as there really needs to be an opportunity for the top teams to play a third weekend out-of-conference. Right now, the only chance for a Pacific or a Lewis & Clark or a Whitworth for an at-large would be to sweep Pac Lutheran but that means losing 3 matches to other teams (otherwise they would win the conference). I just don’t see that scenario playing out well with the West RAC or the NCAA selection committee. I know I often come across as being down on the NWC but it’s more about seeing their teams not put in a position to be successful. I love Pacific Lutheran this season. I also backed Pacific early. Whitworth is showing me more than I thought at the beginning of the year. Lewis & Clark is probably the story of the West Region right now. What if one or more of these teams had another week to prove themselves? The West Region is the toughest region in all of DIII volleyball…let’s make it even tougher! *steps off soapbox and notices, with a single tear sliding over his cheek, that everyone has already left *

Off to the SCAC where we have to ask Colorado College (8-0) if they really feel good about how they treated Pacific Lutheran with that schedule? Never mind that I would have done the same thing, but I am, at my core, a really evil person. Seriously, Colorado College is still just rolling along and this is all without outside Jordan Mullen who is still out injured. Fun fact, Coach Swan’s daughter (Laney) plays for the Tigers and had a really nice match against Minnesota-Morris. I can’t imagine anything more difficult and satisfying than to coach your own daughter at the collegiate level. I imagine it’s no walk in the park for Laney, either. Trinity (7-2) hosted another top-notch tournament over the weekend after taking down Schreiner earlier in the week in the first SCAC match of the year. Victories over La Verne and Concordia are certainly nice but two 5-set losses to #4 CMS and UT-Dallas have to hurt. I’m sure the coaching staff is struggling with how they lost to UTD while having more kills, a better hitting percentage, more digs and more points. Still this is a team, based on results so far, that has an NCAA bid all but written in pen. Austin College (5-3) went 2-2 over the weekend but the tournament was at home and the losses were to ETBU and McMurry. These are teams that in a normal year the ‘Roos would have taken down but they have so many new faces. Sophomore Mayson Kennon is on pace for another great year and 400+ points is not out of the question. Dallas (4-3) had a good weekend going 3-1 but the only DIII team they faced was Belhaven. By a fluke of scheduling, Dallas will not start SCAC play this week but will play the next 6 matches against non-DIII teams. TLU (3-4) had a rough weekend but their losses were to UT-Tyler, UT-Dallas and #4 CMS (who they took a game from). A 5-set win over Concordia ended the weekend on a high note. SCAC play starts this week and the Southwestern match may tell us who will finish 3^rd in the conference. Centenary (3-6) rebounded off a poor week 1 with three wins. Their big win was against Hendrix who had previously beaten them and then later Hendrix beat them again. That’s right; Hendrix and Centenary have played three times this year already. Before SCAC play this weekend, Centenary will play DI Grambling, which may be the only DI versus DIII match-up of the year (the two teams will play again later in the year). Southwestern (1-4) really need to win a Tuesday match against Chapman but the end result wasn’t that close with the Panthers sweeping the Pirates. To cap off an already poor season for the Pirates, their Saturday match was cancelled as it appeared there were no referees. An away match against Schreiner and neutral court matches with TLU and Trinity should give us an idea of where the Pirates are in the SCAC race. Schreiner (1-7) played some very tough teams this weekend and were swept each time. It’s going to be a long season for the Mountaineers but I actually think they are better than I first thought and there is talent here to build upon. JWU-Denver (0-8) has the pleasure to piggyback on with Colorado College for scheduling purposes, but this can also be a curse because their opponents are going to be tough. It continues this weekend with another tournament at Colorado College and their first SCAC match ever when they play the hosts.

Overall, the SCAC is a two horse race right now with Colorado College and Trinity. It’s looking bleak for a third team to come out of the conference for an at-large bid. With the addition of JWU (Denver), the SCAC schedule is all new this year, which means another weekend dedicated to conference play and more mid-week matches for some schools. Colorado College is just good and I don’t know what else to write about them. Trinity had a stumble this weekend, especially with UT-Dallas, but they have the schedule to recover. Plus UT-Dallas is really good and I don’t think they’ve got it all figured out, yet. The race for third will be interesting between Austin College, TLU and (I hope) Southwestern. Dallas and Centenary will be fighting all year for the 6^th SCAC playoff spot.

The SCIAC has Chapman (8-1) leading the group after going 5-0 this week. They had an easy time of it against #21 Southwestern, swept Willamette and Whitman and then finished off UC Santa Cruz and Puget Sound. Chapman moves on to SCIAC play this week against a surprising Redlands team and then Caltech. Assuming they take care of Redlands, we won’t know more about Chapman until their Whittier match-up. My two favorite freshmen in Jessi Lumsden and Sophie Srivastava currently lead the team in points and are hitting 0.300. Another player down for CMS (7-1) in Margot Mafra Spencer and yet the Athenas play some of the top teams in Texas and go 4-0 on the weekend. This team is basically Amanda Walker, Melanie Moore and Phoebe Madsen and don’t look now but Walker (140.5 points) has an early case for player of the year. CMS will play in the East-West Challenge this weekend and they could really use some health as they draw Emory, UT-Dallas and WUSTL. Cal Lutheran (6-2) was just cruising until Saturday when they dropped two 5-setters to UMHB and then Clarkson. Amanda Roberts had a 26 point effort against UMHB but then was dropped to the bench until the 5^th set of the Clarkson match. I’m hoping this was just preventative than another injury hitting one of the West Regions better players. The Regals will start SCIAC play on Wednesday against La Verne before playing in the East-West Challenge drawing WUSTL, UT-Dallas and Juniata. Redlands (6-2) had another surprising 3-1 weekend in them as they beat Whitman, UC Santa Cruz and Willamette. These are teams that would have given the Redlands trouble last season. A loss to Hardin-Simmons completed the weekend and a show there is still room to improve for the Bulldogs. La Verne (4-4) split their matches again this past weekend playing in Texas. They are so up and down I really don’t know what the Leopards have this season. A loss to Trinity is understandable but then getting swept by Concordia raises a lot of red flags. It also shoots off a ton of warning flares and frankly gets the pilots on the PA saying assume crash positions. La Verne then ends the weekend by taking down UT-Dallas in 4-sets. I just don’t know. Occidental (2-3) played the role of the snot-nosed kid down the street that no one wants to play with as they ended up just playing one match against a non-DIII team (a win). Another team I have no clue about right now is Whittier (3-5). They can’t be getting swept by Clarkson and they certainly shouldn’t lose a match against Puget Sound if they are as good as I thought they were. Then they go out and beat UMHB in 5-sets. Something isn’t right with the Poets right now but with SCIAC play starting they need to figure it out fast. Also, I’m putting Whittier in “time-out” because they are not updating their scores, linking to their box scores or updating their statistics fast enough for my liking right now. If you want to outsource some of that work, let me know. Caltech (2-5) had the best 0-4 weekend ever. Every time I looked in or checked the Live Stats I came away thinking they were going to win. When I checked back later they had lost. Two matches in 5-sets and two in 4-sets. Someone there needs to do a research grant on whether I’m just good luck for the team. Pomona-Pitzer (2-6) had Hardin-Simmons down but let them slip out and take a 5-set victory from the Sagehens. Pomona then went on to get swept in the next three matches. It looks like the team is without Isabel Kelly and is relying on a number of freshmen. Not a good mix for right now but if they can get Kelly back and the freshmen grow then a team to watch out for later in the year.

Overall, a mixed bag. CMS just keeps surprising me as they pull out wins. I think their luck could turn for the worse without some help this weekend. The Regals hit a road bump but have a strong schedule in front of them to recover. The Amanda Roberts situation needs monitoring. I think Chapman has a strong team that will only get stronger. Their schedule isn’t too tough for the next week or so as they continue to grow together. Redlands look to be a mid-pack team in the SCIAC instead of being at the bottom. They are young and will continue to get better. Whittier is in “time-out” so I can’t talk about them.

Being an independent, UC Santa Cruz needs to get wins where they can but they keep getting tripped up. I had an outside hope they could figure it out sooner and have a shot at a Pool B bid but time is running out. Mills College got their first win of the year against West Coast Baptist and will play at the UC Santa Cruz tournament this weekend. They just need to continue to grow and get better.