Volleyball Looks to Continue Win Streak Against Davidson
10/13/2008 4:21:00 AM | Volleyball
STATESBORO, Ga. --- The Eagles take a season-high three-match winning streak into their home mid-week Southern Conference encounter with Davidson.
First serve Tuesday is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Georgia Southern returns home for the first time since Sept. 28 after four straight on the road. The team is aiming for their first four-match win streak since the start of the 2006 season.
“I think we're improving daily in all phases,” said head coach Chad Callihan. “With the new coaching staff we're just beginning to get acclimated. We're picking out things here and there that we need to improve on, but we're working on all phases and building some confidence. As long as we can continue to grow that confidence it's going to feed our competitiveness and our demeanor on the court.”
GSU opened their SoCon schedule Sept. 24 at Davidson and left with a 3-0 victory. But after a loss to league-leader Samford, the Wildcats have won five of their last six outings.
“You can throw out the first match,” said Callihan. “I think we caught Davidson on a good evening and we played well and I'm not sure Davidson played to their full potential. They've certainly been playing well and I'm sure we'll see a different group. They're a balanced team offensively and have a lot of options. Our defense is going to have to be strong and hopefully we can do a good job of serving. We did a pretty good job of that last time. But I expect to see a different Davidson team on the floor.”
Four freshmen have been key components in the team's recent winning ways. Over the last three matches, Bethany Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.), Lauren Claybaugh (Danville, Calif.), Parker Small (Charleston, N.C.) and Hayli Ketner (Spartanburg, S.C.) are GSU's top kill producers and three of the top four in digs. Sanford is averaging 4.27 kills in her last 11 sets and Small has a team-best .377 hitting percentage.
“I've always been a coach that doesn't like to rely too heavily on freshmen,” said Callihan. “It's nice to bring them in and let them get acclimated, but these kids have come in and we've asked them to do some things right away and they've met that challenge head on. There are things about the college game that they've struggled with -- the speed and some other things have been difficult to get used to -- but they keep working hard every day and have fantastic attitudes and have been a pleasure to coach. I'm really pleased with their progress to date.”
First serve Tuesday is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Georgia Southern returns home for the first time since Sept. 28 after four straight on the road. The team is aiming for their first four-match win streak since the start of the 2006 season.
“I think we're improving daily in all phases,” said head coach Chad Callihan. “With the new coaching staff we're just beginning to get acclimated. We're picking out things here and there that we need to improve on, but we're working on all phases and building some confidence. As long as we can continue to grow that confidence it's going to feed our competitiveness and our demeanor on the court.”
GSU opened their SoCon schedule Sept. 24 at Davidson and left with a 3-0 victory. But after a loss to league-leader Samford, the Wildcats have won five of their last six outings.
“You can throw out the first match,” said Callihan. “I think we caught Davidson on a good evening and we played well and I'm not sure Davidson played to their full potential. They've certainly been playing well and I'm sure we'll see a different group. They're a balanced team offensively and have a lot of options. Our defense is going to have to be strong and hopefully we can do a good job of serving. We did a pretty good job of that last time. But I expect to see a different Davidson team on the floor.”
Four freshmen have been key components in the team's recent winning ways. Over the last three matches, Bethany Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.), Lauren Claybaugh (Danville, Calif.), Parker Small (Charleston, N.C.) and Hayli Ketner (Spartanburg, S.C.) are GSU's top kill producers and three of the top four in digs. Sanford is averaging 4.27 kills in her last 11 sets and Small has a team-best .377 hitting percentage.
“I've always been a coach that doesn't like to rely too heavily on freshmen,” said Callihan. “It's nice to bring them in and let them get acclimated, but these kids have come in and we've asked them to do some things right away and they've met that challenge head on. There are things about the college game that they've struggled with -- the speed and some other things have been difficult to get used to -- but they keep working hard every day and have fantastic attitudes and have been a pleasure to coach. I'm really pleased with their progress to date.”
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