Aggies gear up for conference play
After a difficult early-season schedule, the Utah State volleyball team enters Mountain West play ready to battle with the top teams in the conference.
“We feel that we’ve gained a lot of confidence,” said junior outside hitter Kaylie Kamalu. “All the tournaments we’ve played and the experience we’ve gained has prepared us for the season. We feel good.”
The Aggies participated in four different tournaments before conference play, with three of them being on the road.
“We traveled to Texas, we traveled to different places in Southern California,” said head coach Grayson DuBose. “We spent three weeks of the preseason on the road. I think we’re comfortable with that and I think playing who we did can’t help but prepare us [for conference play].”
The Southern California tournament included a game against USC, the number three team in the nation.
“We set ourselves up to have good success because we have played a tough preseason schedule,” DuBose said. “We didn’t play a lot of cupcakes, we didn’t play a lot of easy teams that we could just go out and win. We challenged ourselves a little bit.”
USU schedule doesn’t get much easier in the MW. Colorado State is ranked 19th in the nation and Wyoming currently sits just outside the Top-25 of the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
“We just have to not worry about what they’re going to do and focus on what we’re going to do,” Kamalu said.
After the two road games, the Aggies return to Logan for a stretch of four home games in 10 days. The advantage of playing a few games in a row at home can help the team for the rest of the season, DuBose said.
“We have great fans and I think our student section is the best student section I’ve seen of any place that I’ve been,” DuBose said. “They get in there in the Hurd box heckling and talking to the kids and doing that kind of stuff. I think it’s a great home court advantage.”
With no seniors on the roster and a number of freshmen in the rotation, USU has stumbled to a 4-10 overall record this season. In spite of the struggles, though, the team has improved, DuBose said.
“I think we’ve gotten better at learning how to compete, learning when to make good shots and when to take chances,” DuBose said.
With the difficult non-conference schedule behind them, the Aggies have high expectations for themselves heading into conference play.
“We want to compete at the top end of the conference,” DuBose said. “We think we can get there if we continue to do things the right way.”
Step by step development has been a focus for the young Aggies this season.
“We’ve gotten experience, which is what we needed, and we feel like we are getting better,” DuBose said. “Every time you step on the floor you get a little better than the last time you stepped on the floor.”
As is often common with a young team, the coaching staff has emphasized practices as an opportunity for the team to grow.
“[Former USU basketball] Coach [Stew] Morrill always talked about ‘practice habits’,” DuBose said. “You’re going to practice many more times than you’re actually going to play matches. We create an environment where we can compete and learn how to grow and learn how to be a little better than the day before.”
The players have noticed the team making strides, said junior libero Hannah Gleason.
“We’ve gotten really good with all of our passing,” Gleason said. “We’re not the biggest team so we’ve been working really hard on a having a fast offense and killing the ball.”
The Aggies could receive a boost for conference play as junior setter Erica Moscoso has resumed practicing with the team. Moscoso was injured in the Sept. 1 game against Utah and has not played since.
Also of note, Utah State’s victory against Eastern Kentucky on Saturday was DuBose’s 150th victory with the team.
The next home game for USU will be Oct. 1 against Fresno State.
—thomas.sorenson@aggiemail.usu.edu
twitter: @tomcat340