Club spikers team ready for nationals
If any member of the Utah State men’s volleyball club team were asked to sum up their season so far, they would do so with one word, frustrating.
With just three returning starters from last season, the Aggies have found it difficult to stay consistent. And now, with the team ready to head to the national tournament this weekend in Kansas City, Mo., it needs consistency more than ever.
Sophomore and Co-captain Brett Olson said although the new teammates have meshed socially with the veteran players off the court, it has taken all season to come together on the court.
“We have gotten a lot better,” Olson said. “Some of the guys did not have a lot of experience, so it’s been a matter of just practicing and playing in tournaments.”
Experience is exactly what the Aggies will gain at nationals, with three straight days of volleyball starting on Thursday.
Olson, a middle blocker, and fellow teammates including junior Matt Wood, are confident of making it to Saturday’s championship game.
Their confidence comes from the team’s potential, Wood said. Inconsistency has been a factor all season because of the team’s inexperience, but he has seen the players’ capability and knows they can win.
“We’ve played the best and we’ve beat the best,” Wood said. “But we’ve also lost to the worst because we’re up and down a lot.”
The team’s formula for success is simple but a bit unconventional. Wood, who plays outside hitter, said that when the team is tense and serious, they lose. However, when the players are loose and play as if they do not really care about the game’s outcome, they win.
Another aspect to the team’s potential is athletic ability. As a result, many on the team feel that it’s just a matter of time before they pull things together and start beating teams.
“We have more athleticism on this team than most people do,” Wood said.
Sharing Wood’s optimism is coach and former Aggie club player, Jason Stout.
Stout has been involved with the organization over the past few years, including playing on two of the most successful club teams at USU in 2000 and 2003, both of which qualified high for nationals. He said that the team’s record this year is not a good indication of the talent that the players possess.
“This is the most athletic team that I’ve seen at this school,” Stout said. “I would match up their athleticism with any Division II team in the country.”
The team went without a coach for most of the season – until about a month ago when Stout took over.
He has made several last minute changes with players and lineups but the team feels he has been a good addition to the club to help mediate and organize. Stout believes that he has helped fill a void and has begun to point the players in the right direction.
“I came in at the last minute and these guys have just been so thirsty for knowledge,” he said.
Stout is earning a master’s degree in coaching, while volunteering for six hours a week as the club’s coach. He plans to continue coaching after graduation and said a particular goal continues to haunt him.
“I’m driven by the goal of winning a national championship,” Stout said. “And these guys have a great chance of doing that.”
-dnoack@cc.usu.edu
Members of the men´s volleyball team practice to get ready for nationals this weekend. (Photo by Michael Sharp)