Aug. 29, 2001
WACO, Texas - A winning percentage of .576. A total of 57 wins overall and 28 in conference play. A trip to the NCAA Tournament. A victory over long-time rival Texas. A two-time NCAA assists champion. Numerous school records.
The Baylor volleyball senior class of 2001 has accomplished as much as, if not more than, any class before it. However, the quintet that is the backbone of this fall's team is not at all close to being satisfied.
Dana Chuha (S, 5-11, Yorba Linda, Calif.), Tatiana Kenon (RS, 5-10, San Antonio, Texas), Sunny Nicholas (MB, 6-0, Fullerton, Calif.) Kimmy Scott (DS, 5-11, Laguna Beach, Calif.) and Carol Selman (MB, 6-2, Pflugerville, Texas) give head coach Brian Hosfeld his largest senior class in six seasons at the helm of Baylor program. And it is that experience, along with a group of talent-rich underclassmen, upon which Hosfeld will rely this season.
The senior class has 1,288 games of experience under its belt. But not all the experience comes from the senior class. Sophomores Stevie Nicholas (OH, 5-10, Fullerton, Calif.) and Tisha Schwartz (MB, 6-3, Amarillo, Texas) combined to appear in 182 games last season. Nicholas played in every game and Schwartz played in all but five matches.
"I think their expectations are high," Hosfeld said of the seniors. "There will be a sense of urgency, knowing that they've only got a few months left."
Hosfeld said that urgency should be plenty of motivation.
"You can think of that as an advantage: the younger people sometimes don't realize how quickly things go and take things for granted," he said. "Usually, with an older team, you are pretty pointed in terms of being aware of that. They've prepared pretty hard over the summer, and I think they'll be ready."
But the 2001 Bears are not just deep in experience, they are also deep in experiences. On one hand, all five seniors were a part of the 1999 squad that advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. On the other hand, eight players return from last season's disappointing 16-15 campaign, in which Baylor dropped a trio of five-game matches. And if the 2001 edition of Baylor volleyball is to get to where it wants to go, both experiences must be remembered.
Beyond experience and experiences, Hosfeld is looking for this team to show maturity. Going into last season, Hosfeld expected to see a young but experience team show maturity. In the end, the Bears were not as mature as he had hoped.
"And I can't really put a finger on it as to why," Hosfeld said. "Maybe it was just the combination of players we had out there in the positions they were in."
On top of the five-member senior class and a pair of sophomores who proved their worth as freshmen, a host of newcomers will vie for playing time this season. That process of blending together will continue as the Bears look to return to the form that put the program on the map.
"It all fits into the process of maturity and understanding that a lot of opportunities are going to present themselves," Hosfeld said. "It's all about how you deal with those opportunities."
Setter
Entering the 2001 season, Chuha stands well within striking distance of Cory Sivertson's school record of 4,846 career assists. The two-time defending NCAA assists per game champion has amassed 3,495 assists during her three seasons wearing the Green and Gold. Over the past two seasons, she has totaled 2,931 assists -- the most in a two-year span in school history.
Last season, Chuha's 15.03 assist per game average made her the first person in NCAA history to lead the nation in assists twice. And her 1,623 assists topped the previous Baylor mark for assists in a season by nearly 300.
"She's still learning to lead this team," said Hosfeld, who still expects to see more offensive production out of Chuha. "It's about feeling more comfortable with doing more things and taking more responsibility."
Even with the desire to see Chuha put down more kills and block more balls, Hosfeld is confident in his setter.
"I think she's one of the better setters around," Hosfeld said. "What is the responsibility of the setter's position? It's to manufacture offense and create opportunities and get your hitters open. She still is getting the ball to where our hitters are able to put it away. That, to me, is a good setter."
But just when the phrase "death, taxes and Chuha" seems appropriate, the senior should get some competition at the setter position. Sophomore Laura Daniela Lloreda (OH/S, 5-11, Veracruz, Mexico) and freshman Jillian Mazzarella (S, 5-9, Bonita, Calif.) should both push for time.
The athletic and versatile Lloreda brings a wealth of international experience to Waco. A member of the Mexican senior national team, competed with the Mexican senior national team, Lloreda has competed in three world championships and against the United States, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico at the NORCECA Championships.
"She's got so much international experience," Hosfeld said. "She will likely be the most seasoned player on our team."
Mazzarella enjoyed a well-decorated career at Bonita Vista High School in the San Diego, Calif., area. A 2000 all-state selection, Mazzarella led the Barons to a perfect record as a senior. Bonita Vista finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally by vball.com. She will likely serve as Chuha's understudy, and that experience will be invaluable according to Hosfeld.
"It's a pretty good advantage for her," he said. "To be able to see how it's done, to see the end product and know and trust that the things that will be taught to her will help her achieve that level of success."
So nothing is set in stone at the setter position, even with the liberty of having someone of Chuha's experience returning.
"We're going to serve it up with the best team possible," Hosfeld said. "And if the best team consists of Jillian setting in a position, or Daniela setting in a position and Chuha passing in one position, we could come up with some kind of offensive scheme that no one has ever scene before."
Outside Hitter
Similar to the setter position, options abound for the Bears at outside hitter with one experienced and proven athlete at the forefront.
Stevie Nicholas put together the finest freshman campaign in school history last fall, and the Bears expect no drop off in her level of offensive production. In all, she tied or broke six school records and established 15 additional freshman school marks a year ago. Among those school records, her 5.68 kills per game led the Big 12 Conference and ranked seventh nationally. Stevie Nicholas also finished second on the squad and ninth in the conference with 3.28 digs per game.
"She had a good year attacking the ball," Hosfeld said. "She carried the load that two seniors were carrying the year before. For somebody to come in and shoulder that kind of load, she did it. Unfortunately, we were never able to develop through the rest of the team somebody else on the outside from whom we could expect those kinds of numbers."
This season, Baylor could find that "somebody else" to be a pair of "somebody elses." Junior Lisa Smith (OH, 5-10, Houston, Texas) and Lloreda should all get a fair share of swings on the outside.
Smith transferred to Baylor from Blinn County College at the beginning of the spring semester and had the luxury of joining the team for spring workouts and competition. She was a Junior College all-American last fall.
"Lisa, because she came in December, has a step on everybody in terms of getting to the court," Hosfeld said. "She brings a tremendous amount of athleticism, and I think she's going to be able to contribute a lot on the left. During the spring, we had a pretty good combination going with her and Stevie."
Hosfeld said he hopes Lloreda will be able to bring a sense of composure to the court, given her international experience.
"I'm expecting that she's going to be able to bring some maturity to the court, and just to have a relaxed attitude out there," he said.
Rightside Hitter
Baylor returns an experienced starter at every position on the court. At rightside hitter, that person is Kenon, who will likely break into the school's top 10 list for career kills by mid-season. She enters the year ranked 14th on the BU list with 724 in three seasons.
Last year, Kenon was second on the team with 3.02 kills per game. However, while her kills per game average climbed by 0.31 last season, her attacking percentage dropped nearly 50 points from her sophomore campaign.
Kenon, though, had possibly the best spring of any Bear.
"Fortunately for her, Tatiana has been taking care of business during the past six months," Hosfeld said.
And that should pay dividends as she'll likely feel the heat from freshman Kathya Pretre (OH, 5-11, Corgemont, Switzerland).
Another athletic and versatile player, Pretre brings more international experience to the Baylor fold. She played for the VBC Biel/Bienne team in Switzerland before coming to Baylor.
"Again, she brings that international experience that is such a plus," Hosfeld said. "She should bring a maturity level that will be close to that of our seniors. She will be able to fit in either on the right side or on the left and give us some depth and compete for a spot."
Middle Blocker
No position on the Baylor roster has been decimated with injuries like the middle blocker spot. Although both have continued to play through pain, Sunny Nicholas and Selman have both been hampered with wrist and back injuries, respectively, for the past two seasons. Hosfeld said having both of them healthy for the 2001 campaign is vital.
"Sunny had surgery over the holidays to take care of the pain she's been playing with for the past two seasons," Hosfeld said. "She's pain free, we've taken care of the pain. Now it's just a strength issue of being able to go out and swing at the level at which she is used to swinging. But she's in good shape. Carol, likewise, is in good shape and healthy."
Sunny Nicholas was tops among starters last year with a .274 attacking percentage, however, that mark was down 46 points from her sophomore season. Also dropping was her kills per game average, going from 3.12 to 2.77. Meanwhile, though, she maintained her blocking average and increased her digs average.
Selman will look to take advantage of her opportunities in this, her final season at Baylor. Healthy, she could contribute in a big way along the front line. Last season, she averaged 0.77 blocks per game in limited action.
"Over the past few years, Carol has really developed a good sense for the court and where she needs to be," Hosfeld said. "Keeping her healthy we'll be important for us."
Meanwhile, Schwartz showed signs in the second half of the 2000 season that she's ready to claim the middle blocker position for her own. She led all Baylor players with a 0.93 blocks per game average, tallying 69 in 74 games of action with eight solo efforts. Schwartz also led the Bears and ranked 11th in the Big 12 with a .330 attacking percentage, putting down 2.00 kills per game.
"We thought from the beginning that she was going to be good defensively," Hosfeld said. "She started to step it up offensively by the end of the year, and she continued that into the spring. That should give us some balance in attacking. It will take some of the load off Stevie, but it will also open up the offense a little more."
Freshman Dayna Henry (MB, 6-3, Beaumont, Texas) will also join the fold in the middle. She brings a wealth of success and athleticism with her from Ozen High School, where she led her district in blocks both as a junior and as a senior.
"Dayna is a good athlete that is going to come in and challenge that middle position," Hosfeld said. "Just like any freshman, the sooner she adjusts to the speed of the collegiate game, the sooner she'll see some playing time."
Defensive Specialist
Yet again, Baylor returns a seasoned veteran at a position. This time, it is in the person of Scott, a fifth-year senior. She had knee surgery over the break to clear up some nagging injuries, and Hosfeld expects to see her in top form.
"We're looking for her to have her best year at controlling the ball for us," Hosfeld said. "She's got a good mind for the game and can exploit a lot of teams' weaknesses both on the service line and defensively."
Scott averaged 2.14 digs per game a year ago and tied for second on the team with 20 service aces.
Also returning at the defensive specialist position is Sarah Braga, who saw very limited action last season.
"Braga has gotten herself into great shape," Hosfeld said. "It's obvious that she played over the summer. Technically, she's looking better. It looks as if she has a good mindset about what she needs to do to get even better."
Adding more depth to the position will be freshman Kara Kennedy (DS, 5-9, New Braunfels, Texas).
"Kara is a solid ball-control player," Hosfeld said. "She will be working hard to create a place for herself on the court. She's got a great competitive spirit. It will probably just be a matter of time."
Rules Changes
Collegiate volleyball will have a new look in 2001 matches will be played under the international scoring format. Matches will remain best of five, but all games will be rally scoring -- games one through four played to 30, win by two, game five played to 15, win by two.
"I think it helps us," Hosfeld said. "You look at our history and what we've been good at, it's scoring in transition. There's also going to be a premium for siding out to stay in the game, and it's the defense that's going to score the points for you. On the flip side of that, if you don't side out well you are going to have to play defense in order to stay in the game."
Hosfeld said volleyball will look different at times, but that for the most part it will still be the same game.
"There will be some times when people maybe aren't as aggressive," he said. "It will look more like tennis where instead of making an unforced effort, a team might take a more passive approach and keep a ball in play to rally until they work up and hit the winner."
Another new wrinkle will be the service. A ball served that hits the net and still makes it over will be live.
"I'm sure it will present a lot of new scenarios where as coaches we will have to adjust throughout the year," Hosfeld said.
