Kent State University
Rutgers University
Volleyball Sets Sights On Return to Postseason in 2013
8/30/2013 12:50:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Kent State's volleyball program looks to make strides in 2013, which marks the second season under head coach Don Gromala. The Golden Flashes open the season at the Indiana Invitational this weekend (Aug. 30-31).
SEASON OUTLOOK
This season, Gromala hopes to establish a foundation for the future of Kent State volleyball. Most of the impact players from a year ago are back, as the Flashes return 10 letterwinners. That group includes five starters in addition to the libero position.
"Last year was kind of a feeling out season for the players and our staff," Gromala said. "After a year under their belts, we are starting to look more like a unit and move the way we want them to in our system. You can tell they're more comfortable out there. They don't have to think about it, and it's more of a habit."
The Flashes went 6-22 last season, including a 3-13 mark in Mid-American Conference matches. Going through a season filled with change really helped the team come together. With almost the entire roster returning to the court, few teams in the conference will be as close as the Golden Flashes this season.
"One of our biggest strengths is how well we work together as a group," added Gromala. "None of the girls have an individual attitude. Everybody understands that working as a group is what makes us best."
Last season, the squad dropped 16 sets in which they scored at least 23 points on the season. Finding a way to win those close sets will be key in achieving the desired results this season.
"Our goal is to get back to the MAC Tournament," Gromala said.
Kent State has missed the MAC Tournament each of the past two seasons, last making it in 2010. Only the top eight teams in the conference standings qualify for the conference tournament, which is hosted in Geneva, Ohio at SPIRE Institute.
SENIOR CAPTAINS
The two seniors on the roster, libero Hannah Herc and setter Aleksandra Nowak, will be looked upon to provide leadership and serve as team captains for the second consecutive year. They are the only Golden Flashes with MAC Tournament experience.
"We have great leadership returning with Hannah and Ola," Gromala commented. "They've really taken the group under their wing and gotten them to buy into giving 110-percent is all that matters."
Nowak enters her final season with 2,264 assists, which ranks fifth on the school's all-time list, and will look to become the fourth player ever to lead the Flashes in assists in four consecutive seasons. Her 1.76 digs per set were second on the team a year ago.
Herc, the most experienced member of this year's team having played in 292 sets during her time at Kent State, will look to anchor an improved back line. Last season, she posted 4.11 digs per set, which is the fifth-best single-season mark in Kent State history. She ranked ninth in the MAC with 4.53 digs per set in conference matches. Currently seventh on the program's career list for digs per set (2.77), Herc is just 192 from reaching the 1,000-dig milestone.
RETURNERS
The Flashes return all of their hitters from last season. Leading that group is junior Tinuke Aderemi-Ibitola, who posted 3.06 kills per set during the 2012 campaign. She tallied double-digit kills 23 times a year ago, including eight of the final nine matches. Kelly Hutchison and Morgan Semmelhack were second and third, respectively, for the Flashes in kills as freshmen a year ago. Hutchison averaged 2.06 kills per set, while Semmelhack saw an increased role over the final month of the season and finished at 1.73 kills per set. Junior Lauren Engleman is also back after averaging 1.53 kills per set a season ago.
Junior Jenny Buczek possesses a diverse skill set that has allowed her to play many roles during her first two seasons at Kent State. She seemed to find her niche late last season and shared setting duties with Nowak over the final 12 games. Buczek averaged 4.35 assists and 2.53 digs per set in those matches. She led the Flashes four times in each of those categories and had a team-best five double-doubles on the season.
While the Flashes lost two of their middles, they do return one of the conference's tallest players in 6-6 Liz Reikow. The junior was the team's second leading blocker a year ago with 81 (18 solo, 63 assists). Reikow also averaged nearly one kill per set and had the best hitting percentage among returning players. Sophomore Bridget Wilhelm is also back after seeing action in 11 sets last season.
In addition to Herc, junior Kaylee Koller and sophomore Sarah Mills and Alexis Rains return in the back row of the defense. Mills led the trio with 82 digs last season. An increased role is expected from the group, as all three enter their second season with the program.
NEWCOMERS
Freshmen Bianca Cifaldi, Payton Moore, Madeline Moxley, and Drew Norberg form the coaching staff's first recruiting class at Kent State. The quartet is expected to make an immediate impact by adding depth at every position and helping create a competitive atmosphere in practices. Gromala has been pleased with what he has seen from the group throughout camp.
"If you watch our team play, I don't think you can pick out who the freshmen are," he said.
SCHEDULE
Kent State opens the season this weekend (Aug. 30-31) with three matches at the Indiana Invitational. In total, the Flashes will travel to three tournaments where they will play multiple opponents with additional trips to Cal State Fullerton and Marshall.
On Sept. 20-21, the squad will welcome Binghamton, Eastern Illinois, and Illinois-Chicago to the M.A.C. Center for the Golden Flashes Classic.
The Flashes host Dabrowa Górnicza, a club team from Poland, in an exhibition on Monday, Sept. 2. The non-conference schedule also includes a trip to Youngstown State on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
"We're scheduled to play MAC level opponents every weekend," Gromala said. "We're playing some Big Ten teams, which is great for us, but we're really getting prepared for the start of the MAC season."
Kent State begins MAC play with road matches against Akron and Buffalo (Sept. 27-28). The opener with the rival Zips also marks this year's first contest in the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge.
WEEKEND MATCHUPS
The Golden Flashes open with Rutgers on Friday at 5 p.m. The Scarlet Knights return five letterwinners from last season's 18-12 squad and were picked to finish ninth in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll. In the only previous matchup between the schools, Rutgers came away with a 2-0 victory over the Golden Flashes in 1982.
They return to the court early Saturday morning for a 9:30 a.m. contest against Robert Morris. The Colonials return six letterwinners from last season's 17-17 squad and were picked to finish second in the Northeast Conference preseason poll. The Flashes hold a 12-2 advantage in the all-time series with a five-set victory in Kent in the most recent meeting during the 2011 season.
The opening weekend will conclude against host Indiana at 7 p.m. on Saturday. The Hoosiers return nine letterwinners from last season's 12-20 squad. Kent State is 1-2 all-time against Indiana. The Flashes came a way with a thrilling five-set victory in the last matchup, which came at this same tournament back in 2004.
