Road trip to California awaits Ag volleyball
Preparation and patience.
Those are two things Utah State Head Volleyball Coach Grayson DuBose has been doing a lot of lately.
DuBose is the head of a young squad that will travel to Northridge, Calif., Saturday to compete in the Fremont Loan and Investment Invitational, hosted by the Cal State Northridge Matadors. USU will take on the Oregon Ducks of the Pac-10 at noon, and then the Matadors at 8 p.m.
Though the Ducks and Matadors have a combined 2005 record of 16-41 (whereas the Aggies finished 21-13 and a visit to the NCAA tournament), DuBose was quick to point out these two games will not be easy.
Only three starters from last season’s Aggie team (Beth Hodge, Amanda Nielson and Kelsi Peterson) are back, and there are seven new faces on the team.
Not to mention that this is DuBose’s first season as a head coach.
“For us, every team is gonna be a good team,” he said. “[We’re] getting better. There’s always room for improvement. [The players are] improving. They’re picking up the systems fast – faster than I thought they would. That’s kind of nice.”
The Aggies (2-1) are coming off a second-place performance in last weekend’s Hilton Albuquerque Classic.
Unlike their situation going into those three games, this time the Aggies at least have an opportunity to view film on their opponents.
The Ducks (2-0) return five starters and six letterwinners from their 2005 team.
“It’s always fun to play a Pac-10 team,” said USU outside hitter Amanda Nielson, who recieved this week’s Athlete of the Week honor. “That’s gonna be good for us.”
DuBose agreed, adding that Oregon’s record in previous seasons doesn’t do them justice to how talented they really are.
“They haven’t done very well, traditionally, in the Pac-10, but the back Pac-10 is probably the toughest conference in the country,” DuBose said. “They will be very well coached and very well prepared.”
Gorana Maricic, and outside hitter for the Ducks, stands at 6 feet 3 inches tall. Kristen Bitter, an Oregon middle blocker, stands at 6 feet 4 inches.
The tallest player for USU is redshirt freshman middle blocker Melissa Larson, who is 6 feet 3 inches.
The Matadors (3-1) have eight players that stand above the 6-foot mark, including three that are 6 feet 3 inches.
“‘We’re implementing a lot of new things,” Aggie outside hitter Beth Hodge said. “Everything is different from last year. New coaching, new style, new everything.We have film to watch, but honestly, it doesn’t really matter. It’s all about your side and if you play really well. If you win, you win.”
USU’s first home match of the season will come Tuesday at 7 p.m. against the intra-state rival Weber State.