Month: October 2022

And we would have if we had played just a little better. We lost in 4 sets, 20-25, 20-25, 25-16, 23-25, a total score of 88-91, so pretty close. Then again, we weren’t looking for a moral victory.

As expected, our main weakness was serve-receive, especially in Sets 1 & 2. If you watch a match at Madison on BTN, you have to put up with Grace Loberg doing the color. I don’t want to be too hard on Loberg, she’s only 10 mths removed from playing for the Badgers, so naturally she’s a little biased. But she raves and raves about how smart the Badger hitters, mostly her last-year’s teammates, are.

In reality, the Gophers hitters are clearly better than the Badger hitters. Sara Franklin is terrific, but Landfair is better. Julia Orzol  is a good volleyball player, but she wouldn’t start for the Gophers. And last Spring, during the exposition season, I predicted that Minnesota’s 6-7 Freshman Middle Booth would dominate Wisconsin’s 6-9  Sophomore Middle Smrek – as she did tonight. Naya Gros started and played okay in Set 1, and was replaced by Arica Davis. And Davis dominated.

Our hitters weren’t effective enough in Sets 1 & 2 because our serve-receiving was pathetic, leaving Shaffmaster at most one option, leading consistently to double-blocks. In Set 3, and late in Set 4, the Gopher passing was significantly better, giving Shaffmaster at least two options, sometimes four, leading to no double-blocks, leading to significantly more effective hitting.

The most frequent culprit of the poor passing was Landfair. Opponents have been serving at Landfair all season. I thought she received quite well Wednesday night against Michigan State, but Wisconsin serves harder than MSU. I wish I could tell you what adjustments the Gophers made that led to better receiving in Set 3, but dependent on BTN’s camera work, I don’t know.

Even in the loss, Booth had a great match. I had her with 7 kills & 7 blocks.. But that’s just the blocks for points; Booth must have had 30 “partial-blocks,” repeatedly sending Badger attacks back into the badger’s court – where they were dug up. There were times that the Badger hitters looked liked they were hitting into an impenetrable wall like you might while warming up. The 5-11 Davis is not nearly the blocker Booth is, but she hit great, picking up 8 kills in 3 sets.

WHERE FROM HERE?

At 8 & 4, 3 losses more than the 3 teams tied for first, the Gophers are out of contention for the Big Ten Title. Wisconsin will probably be #2 when the ratings come out on Monday, and the Gophers losing to them 88-91 at Madison suggests that the Gophs could have a plausible chance at a Final Four IF they could get better at serve-receive. But while 5 of their next 8 matches, at home against Michigan, Maryland and Indiana, and on the road against Illinois & Maryland, should be winnable. The other 3, on the road at Penn State, Ohio State and Nebraska, are going to be tough. The Gophers will probably need to win 6 of the 8 to get a Top 16 seed, without which reaching the Final Four will be difficult.

Our Gophers took down overmatched Michigan State in straight sets, 25-20, 25-14, 25-11. I always say that volleyball is a game of momentum, and tonight was a good example. MSU fought hard through most of Set 1, never trailing until the set was tied at 17. But then the Gophers ran 5 to take a 24-19 lead before exchanging side-outs for the win. In Set 2, MSU took an early lead at 3-7, and then the roof fell in, the air went out of the balloon, the Twins went to the bullpen, whatever – and the Gophers won 20 of the next 23 points. Set 3 was tied 7-7, and then the Gophs scored the next 9 points.

Much of this with Landfair serving. Taylor doesn’t get a ton of aces, but I think her serving has become pretty strong. And though targeted all night long as usual, I had her with zero receiving errors – to go with 13 kills in less than 3 sets; Julie Hanson came in late and got a kill for match point. Another strong match for Landfair.

And Wenaas bounced back from her off-night (as a hitter) vs Purdue, with 6 kills and 4 blocks, and a 5-pt service run in Set 2, playing with the intensity of an athlete that didn’t want to get benched again. Lauren Crowl, who subbed in for Wenaas so effectively against Purdue, did not get into the match.

Carter Booth was back in the line-up (still no explanation of her absence from the last two matches), and she was productive in the middle, with 8 kills & 4 blocks. Naya Gros contributed 2 & 2, and mid-Set 3, with MSU showing minimal fight, Arica Davis came in for Gros and  added 2 & 1. Ellie Husemann, who early in the season looked like our #1 Middle, seems to have dropped to #4 on the depth chart. But, collectively, the Gopher Middles racked up 12 kills & 7 blocks in 3 sets – there were times last year we would have died for those numbers.

C.C.McGraw was great at usual, and I thought the whole team dug well, especially covering our hitters (i.e., digging up balls the Spartans blocked).

One reason the Spartans have lost 10 of their 11 Big Ten Matches is the physical stature of their line-up. Tonight’s starting 6 (excluding Libero & D.S.) average 6 ft & 1/3 inches – vs the Gopher starting 6 (with Booth back in the line-up) at 6 ft 3 1/3 inches. I’ve played enough volleyball to know that the taller team doesn’t always win, but the Spartans being 3 inches shorter at every position didn’t help their cause.

Our Gophers started the Big Ten season by losing 2 of their first 3 matches, but now they have won 7 of the last 8 to run their conference record to 8 & 3. With Nebraska suffering their first loss this evening at Wisconsin in straight sets, the Gophers are only 2 sets out of first place as they head into the second half of the Big Ten season, beginning with a rematch with the Badgers on Sat (5:30 on BTN). Madison is a tough place to win, as the Huskers found out this evening, but the Gophers swept the Badgers at the Pav back in Sept, and we’re playing better now. If we could beat the Badgers on their court, we would be right back in contention for the Big Ten title!

Many of us were devastated, ten days ago, by the announcement that Coach McCutcheon would be leaving his position as Head Coach of our Gophers. And also frustrated by the secrecy about the reasons and McCutcheon’s plans. But yesterday, we learned the answer to the second question: McCutcheon will be taking a newly created position, as the Gophers “Assistant Athletic Director / Sport Development Coach.” (Quite a mouthful.) Note that the word “sport” is singular. What sport? Duh, Men’s volleyball.*

More importantly, perhaps, what does this mean for our beloved Gopher Women’s Volleyball Team?

1. It eliminates the possibility that McCutcheon will be “taking the team with him,” entirely possible under current transfer rules, to UCLA or anywhere else.
2. It reduces the prospects of losing our best current players (to the transfer portal), and our near-future recruits. Losing players to the portal is a fact of life these days, and we might still lose some, but yesterday’s news make a mass exodus less likely.
3. The key will be to quickly lock in a new coach, one that will inspire confidence in both current and recruited players.
4. Along with the announcement of McCutcheon’s “promotion,” was the announcement of the “Search Committee” for the new coach:

Julie Manning, Deputy AD/SWA (Committee Chair)
Tricia Budke, Director of HR/Chief of Staff
JT Bruett, Director of Lindahl Academic Center
Stephanie Davis, Associate AD / Event Management
Susan Goldstein, Associate Professor Carlson School of Management
Katie Harms, Living Spaces Specialist, Podcaster & U of M Benefactor
Melissa Maines, General Manager of Women’s Basketball
Tim McCleary, Sr. Associate AD/Business Operations / CFO
Peyton Owens III, St. Associate AD/Leadership & Inclusion

5. No disrespect intended for anyone on this list, but I assume, and hope, that, given yesterday’s news, that McCutcheon has his successor picked out already.

6. McCutcheon is known as “a class act,” and I assume the successor he has in mind will be “a class act.”

7. Hopefully, McCutcheon will be able to convince current and recruited players to stay here.

Many of us were devastated, ten days ago, by the announcement that Coach McCutcheon would be leaving his position as Head Coach of our Gophers. And frustrated by the secrecy about the reasons and his plans. But yesterday, we learned the answer to the second question: McCutcheon will be taking a newly created position, as the Gophers “Assistant Athletic Director / Sport Development Coach.” (Quite a mouthful.) Note that the word “sport” is singular. What sport? Duh, Men’s volleyball.*

More importantly, perhaps, what does this mean for our beloved Gopher Women’s Volleyball Team?

1. It eliminates the possibility that McCutcheon will be “taking the team with him,” entirely possible under current transfer rules, to UCLA or anywhere else.
2. It reduces the prospects of losing our best current players (to the transfer portal), and our near-future recruits. Losing players to the portal is a fact of life these days, and we might still lose some, but yesterday’s news make a mass exodus less likely.
3. The key will be to quickly lock in a new coach that will inspire confidence in both current and recruited players.
4. Along with the announcement of McCutcheon’s “promotion,” was the announcement of the “Search Committee” for the new coach:

Julie Manning, Deputy AD/SWA (Committee Chair)
Tricia Budke, Director of HR/Chief of Staff
JT Bruett, Director of Lindahl Academic Center
Stephanie Davis, Associate AD / Event Management
Susan Goldstein, Associate Professor Carlson School of Management
Katie Harms, Living Spaces Specialist, Podcaster & U of M Benefactor
Melissa Maines, General Manager of Women’s Basketball
Tim McCleary, Sr. Associate AD/Business Operations / CFO
Peyton Owens III, St. Associate AD/Leadership & Inclusion

• No disrespect intended for anyone on this list, but I assume, and hope, that, given yesterday’s news, that McCutcheon has his successor picked out already.
• McCutcheon is known as “a class act,” and I assume the successor he has in mind will be “a class act.”
• Hopefully, McCutcheon will be able to convince current and recruited players to stay here.

Reader B.W. writes: “Are you using Wooker versus Wucherer for a reason?”

JOHN: Yes, don’t know how good a reason, but yes. McKenna and her sister Miranda, a grad-transfer serving as the Gophers #3 Setter, spell their last name “Wucherer,” but they pronounce it “Wooker.” And I find it easier to maintain consistency between my oral and written communications.”   

Reader R.M. writes: “Thanks John, I like reading your perspective on the games, and was especially looking forward to this one.

I was surprised that Hugh put in players that we seldom see in such a critical game. But Wenaas was definitely not herself last night (I hope she is back on her game soon, I love watching her) and Crowl held her own, as did Davis. Landfair, McGraw and Shaffmaster were amazing. It always amazes me when a player can bring their best to every game. We all have days when we don’t feel well, didn’t sleep (especially during midterms and finals), get sick, etc. It’s remarkable that they can be as consistent as they are. 

Hopefully last night’s game was a one-off for Wenaas and Husemann,  and it gave some other players good playing experience — we need them for backup. They did quite an impressive job, which bodes well for future matches!”

Reader R.A. writes: “McKenna Wooker, playing mostly front-row, got 16 kills and hit .452, and she attacks every swing when others are tentative.  I would like to see her play the full 6-rotations vs MSU to see what she does; I groan every time she is removed. Landfair may have gotten 21 kills, but this was playing 6 rotations, and her 21 kills were offset by 9 attack errors (she hit 194), 2 service errors and 2 receiving errors. Wooker still makes freshman mistakes, but the best corrective for that is playing time.  Crowl, Gros and Davis all were admirable when they took over for Wenaas, Husemann and the missing Booth.”

JOHN: I assume that the number 1 recruit in the country has skills that go beyond hitting, and that Freshman Wooker is a good passer and an at least adequate server. Earlier in the season, I too was lobbying for her to play 6 rotations.

Then there was the recent match where McGraw got six-packed and had to sit out, shifting Kilkelly to Libero, and leaving Wooker to play all 6 rotations for a set. It was ugly! This doesn’t change my mind about Wooker becoming an effective 6 rotation player – but she is a freshman; McCutcheon didn’t play Wenaas or Landfair 6 rotations when they were freshmen either.

Other readers besides R.A. have been critical of sophomore Landfair. Her hitting % isn’t great and she has (officially*) shanked 18 serve receives. But

• Landfair ranks 12^th nationally in kills per set, .07 behind Purdue’s Eva Hudson, and .08 ahead of Texas’s Logan Eggleston. Only one of the 10 hitters above these three, Southern Cal’s Skyler Fields, plays in a power conference. So it is fair to say that these 4, Fields, Hudson, Landfair and Eggleston have been the most productive four hitters in D1 volleyball.
• Statistically, Landfair‘s serve receiving is right there with Kilkelly, whose primary job is serve-receive. (Interestingly, McGraw, who is responsible for at least one-third of the court on every Gopher serve-receive, ranks 4^th on the team in serve-receive opportunities — because opposing teams are afraid of her. Increasingly. for good reason, opposing teams are also afraid of Wenaas. So everybody picks on Landfair and Kilkelly.)
• Another reason McCutcheon plays Landfair in the back row is that, so far this season, Landfair has been our only back-row hitting threat.

* The official Gopher stats only count serve-receive-errors on balls shanked out of bounds; they don’t track “bad” serve-receives. So Landfair and Kilkelly hurt us worse than the official stats reveal.

MCCUTCHEON RUMOR OVERHEARD AT THE PAV:

Rumor: McCutcheon will be taking a job with USA Volleyball focused on promoting Boys/Mens volleyball.

For the 2^nd straight match (since Coach McCutcheon dropped his bombshell, let’s hope these two things are unrelated) freshman Middle Carter Booth was a literal no-show, nowhere to be seen. Senior Middle Ellie Husemann, who had dropped from top Middle on the Gopher depth chart to third-best Middle stepped in – and was unproductive, with 1 kill and 1 block through the first 2 sets – a virtual no-show. And usually reliable Jenna Wenaas, who I have proclaimed the best all-around player on the team, was another virtual no-show – as a hitter, with 3 kills and 5 hitting errors through the first 2 sets. (Wenaas played well, as usual, in the back row.)

And yet our Gophers beat the Boilermakers in 4 sets, 27-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-19.

A late comeback in Set 1 the key to the match. Infuriatingly, the Gophs trailed by 4 to 7 points all the way through Sets 1 and 2, before mounting furious late rallies. In Set 1, we trailed by 7 mid-set, by 17-22 and 21-24 – and I had visions of a repeat Purdue sweep. But 2 Landfair kills, a block by Naya Gros and 3 Boilermaker errors allowed the Gophs to win the first set. In Set 2, we trailed 5-10, 14-19, and 15-22 before another furious rally cut the lead to 23-24. Too little, too late, but it seemed to provide momentum into Set 3.

Husemann and Wenaas had both contributed to the Gophs falling behind in Sets 1 & 2. Generally, during his tenure as Gopher Coach, McCutcheon has show great loyalty to his first string players. But late in Set 2, he subbed Arcia Davis in for Husemann, and Lauren Crowl in for Wenaas at Opposite. It wasn’t obvious to me that Davis or Crowl were responsible for the late rally – but McCutcheon stuck with each in Set 3.

In Set 3, it was the Gophers who took early leads, by as much as 9 points, and at 18-11 – before the Boilermakers stormed back to within 23-21. But the Gophs held on.  Set 4 was tight most of the way, with the Gophs leading 10-8 and 15-14. But then the Gophs won 10 of the next 15 points.

And Davis and Crowl contributed significantly. Crowl ended up with 7 kills and 2 blocks, and Davis had 3 kills and 3 blocks, in both cases exceeding their previous season totals in just 2 sets. Another factor that made a big difference, at least in my mind, was that Shaffmaster started attacking. I have previously stated my goal of having her attack 2 balls per set, but she had zero attacks during Sets 1 & 2. Then she started swinging and got 3 kills on 5 swings over Sets 3 & 4. The 7 kills from Crowl, 3 from Davis and 3 from Shaffmaster, plus 8 from Naya Gros (spread across 4 sets) were enough to take the weight off of our left-side hitters Landfair and Wooker, who had 21 & 16, respectively.

In some sense, the match was a contest between Landfair and Purdue’s outstanding freshman Eva Hudson. Their personal kill contest see-sawed back and forth all night, ending up tied at 21 (both had several back-row kills as part of their totals). No Boilermaker got close to Wooker’s 16.

The natural favorite shot of most left-side hitters is the long-diagonal, but the Boilermakers were taking that away from Landfair most of the night. So Landfair switched to “sharp cuts” (balls hitting just inside the far sideline around the 10 ft line); she must have had 5 or 6 of those, and “line-shot” (balls hit straight down the near sideline) she must have had 3 or 4 of those.

No dinks for Landfair tonight – or any other Gopher. We tried dinks often, but I don’t think we scored on any. Meanwhile (I wasn’t counting them), it felt like the Boilermakers scored at least a dozen dinks against the Gophs. (An all-too familiar story.) But the Gophs outhit the Boilermakers overall, .263 to .160. The blocking ended up even, at 12 a piece. The Boilermakers had a slight advantage in serving, but neither aces or missed serves played a big factor. As expected, the Boilermakers targeted Landfair every chance they had, a total of 31 times. And Kilkelly second most at 20 times. No one who has read the scouting report wants to serve at McGraw or Wenaas if they can help it.

With the win, the Gophers, now 7 & 3 in the BigTen, push past the Boilermakers, now 6 & 4 into 4^th place. Someone on BTN recently sized up the BigTen as the Big Three (Nebraska at 10 & 0, Ohio State at 9 & 1, Wisconsin at 8 & 1) and 8 other teams fighting for NCAA bids. But if you imagine for a moment that it’s really the Big Four, including the Gophers, and look at the Big Four’s records against each other, the Gophers are 1 & 1, with a win over Wisconsin and a loss to Ohio State, the Buckeyes are also 1 & 1, with a win over Minnesota and a loss to Nebraska, and the Badgers are 0 & 1, the loss to the Gophs. The Huskers are 1 & 0, having beaten the Buckeyes –at Lincoln. But the big girls haven’t played each other much.

Unfortunately, the Gophers shot themselves in the foot by losing to Northwestern – at the Pav, no less! (I still haven’t figured out how that happened.) We finish the season with a grueling, back-to-back road-trip to Columbus and Lincoln. (Did the schedule-makers have a grudge against our Gophers?) It would be fun to fantasize about the Gophers finishing strong, but unless the Husker lose some matches between now and then, Nebraska could clinch the title before we get to Lincoln.

NEXT UP  for the Gophers: Michigan State (not very good) at the Pav on Wed (7:00, BTN+), then at Madison on Saturday. Rumor is, there might be some Halloween parties on State Street.

Two readers were quick to respond to recent posts; neither to my brilliant analysis of the Iowa match, but to Maureen’s speculation that McCutcheon or an immediate family member might have a serious health problem.

G.H. writes: “Let’s hope Maureen is wrong about a serious medical problem.  He is good guy and I’d hate to see that. BTW, the recent Strib article reminds us that Mike Hebert built a strong program, with almost as much success as Hugh, until he got Parkinson’s, which he eventually died from.” 

R.A. writes: “After your comment about health, I now HOPE Coach is going to UCLA, your reasonable speculation.  If he goes anywhere, I expect him to take McKenna Wooker, Carter Booth, maybe Julia Hanson, and Taylor Landfair if she becomes less tentative by season-end (she goes in fits and starts), depending on their willingness to transfer. But it’s LA and UCLA, so who wouldn’t. Also, all the Seliger sisters, in succession.  That would give him next season to coach them to be ready for Big10 by 2024. They played a fairly complete match vs. Iowa tonight.”

JOHN: There is little doubt that G.H. and R.A. are better human beings than I. In my view, McCutcheon taking the same job at UCLA or somewhere like that and stripping us of our best players would be the 3^rd worst explanation; the serious health problem would be the 2nd worst explanation, and becoming the Badgers Coach would be the worst thing possible.

In straight sets, 25-22, 25- 15, 25-11, out-blocking Iowa 14 to 3. Seven blocks in 3 sets would be strong blocking, 14 is amazing. The Gopher website has Landfair with 8 of them, but I had her with 4, and Gros with 5. I had Landfair with 13 kills, including 8 left-side power kills, 3 back-row power kills, 2 short-dinks and 1 “long-dink” i.e., a push to the deep left corner. I had Wenaas with 8 kills, including power-shots from both pins and at least 3 off-speed shots, not exactly dinks, but finesse shots that catch the opponents off guard.

And speaking of versatility, I had Naya Gros with 5 kills, including 2 slides, 2 quicks, and 1 overpass to go with her 5 blocks. Booth did not make the trip to Iowa (not sure why), but Husemann performed well, with 3 blocks and 2 kills. For the 2^nd time recently, Landfair served a ton of points, this time behind a front-row of Wooker, Husemann and Shaffmaster. I thought the Gophers dug well all night. They did have trouble with a few of Iowa’s very short serves.

I still haven’t gotten past the shock of McCutcheon’s revealed departure. (He’ll leave 17 & 0 against Iowa.) Interesting that he has gotten more ink in the Strib in the last two days than in the last two years when he was merely a great coach. Also interesting that McCutcheon is keeping his intentions secret so as “to keep the focus on the team,” but the mystery is keeping the focus on McCutcheon.

(Maureen has a theory, as good as any theory I have, that McCutcheon or an immediate family member has a serious health problem.)

As I write this, I am watching Nebraska dominate Purdue at Purdue – the Huskers must be really good.

NEXT UP: Purdue at the Pav, Saturday, 8:00, BTN.

Several readers have explained to me that McCutcheon is a “Kiwi,” not an Aussie. Like there’s a difference?

Thinking about it overnight (stewing about it would be a more accurate description), I narrowed the possibilities (in my mind) to one of two. Pure speculation, of course, but it seems to me that either McCutcheon is taking an administrative/leadership position with USA Volleyball, or he will be coaching D1 Women’s volleyball next fall – for someone else. I’d be surprised to learn that he is tired of coaching, but maybe he has a grander vision for promoting the sport of volleyball. But if it’s the latter, then where?

His penchant for lining up the toughest pre-season schedules possible tells us he isn’t likely looking for a softer conference. So if he coaches somewhere else, it will likely be in the Big Ten. But where? Which jobs that McCutcheon might want are opening?  My guess: UCLA.

UCLA & Southern Cal are joining the Big Ten for the 2024 Season (and there are hints of further expansion to come). More likely UCLA because the Spartans have a 3^rd-yr coach and an increasingly competitive team, but the Bruins are are having a terrible year. Moving at the end of this season would give McCutcheon time to get the Bruins ready for the Big Ten. The Bruins (like the Spartans) have a proud women’s volleyball tradition, with 3 National Championships in the 1980s & 90s. If I was the UCLA A.D., I’d be shopping for a marquee coach to recover that past glory.

Why would McCutcheon want the UCLA job?

• He’s an Aussie; maybe he hates cold weather?
• Maybe UCLA (or somebody) made him an offer he can’t refuse?
• Maybe he wasn’t happy with his recent contract extension with the Gophers. Despite his success, he doesn’t make that much, nowhere near what P.J. Fleck, Ben Johnson, or even Lindsey Whelan make. Maybe McCutcheon  doesn’t think that A.D. Mark Coyle gives him the respect he deserves?

Why wouldn’t McCutcheon want the UCLA job?

• It wouldn’t make recruiting any easier.  There was a time when all the best college prospects came from California, but not anymore. McCutcheon landed the #1 recruit in the country in 2 of the last 3 years, one from Illinois and one from Wisconsin.
• A salary twice what the Gophers pay him would be a wash, because the cost of living in L.A. is twice that of the Twin Cities, and UCLA is not in a neighborhood you’d want to raise kids in.
• I continue to believe that his current core-group of players (Landfair, Wenaas, Shaffmaster, Wooker, Booth) have (or had) the potential to win a National Championship, if not this year then next year or the year after. Who walks away from that?

WORST CASE SCENARIO

Let’s say McCutcheon jumps to UCLA, or somewhere like that. Under the current Transfer Portal Rules – he could take Landfair, Wenaas, Shaffmaster, Wooker, and Booth with him. (Reader R.A. comments on this below) And he could take our upcoming recruits besides! The story in this morning’s Strib reveals that McCutcheon called Mother Swenson to give her the news prior to the press release.

READER R.A. writes: It will be a victory if less than half the returning starters don’t enter the portal.  Players have all talked about McCutcheon as reason they came here.

JOHN: “Losing McCutcheon would be bad enough. I don’t even want to think about losing our current stars and incoming recruits.”

In other news, READER J.S. provides additional info re the family names in the Swenson household, and READER R.N. fills us in on Laura Kasey.

J.S.: “The sister of SSS’s mom was murdered in West Lakeland by an abusive boyfriend. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2006/09/24/domestic

The sister’s husband had died a few years early, they had four kids. After the sister was killed then the families were blended together. Our daughter was playing volleyball with one of the Lee kids at Oakland Jr High School when the estranged boyfriend showed up. There was a scene, he left and then showed up at the house in the middle of the night. The mother/sister was shot and killed along with a friend who was staying to help keep watch. The children hid in the house and one of them was able to call 911 and to get the younger ones out. 

Here’s an article with more detail on the actual crime. https://www.republicaneagle.com/news/update-murder-charges-against-river-falls-man-in-west-lakeland-double-murder/article_686ca5b9-6c0e-537b-bc51-988694b35030.html

The two sisters were close and the blended family has something like 7 kids. One of those reality TV shows built them a house a year or two after the killing. Few families deserved it more.

I think you can see the quality of the parenting of both sisters and their husbands. To excel as they have and be as close as they are is something not often seen in the face of so much tragedy. Everyone in the family is a hero right down to the youngest kids. 

I would think of them every time I saw Samantha play. Hopefully we get that opportunity again with her siblings – so much good both on and off the court and it’s an inspirational reminder in every set of how good people can rise above tragedy and succeed in spite of it all. “

JOHN: Thanks, J.S.

R.N.: “John, a close Gopher volleyball friend of mine, P. M., discovered where Laura Kasey landed following her departure from the Gophers. Kasey is now involved with Shine Athletics based in Ft. Myers, FL. I think P.M. found this on Facebook.”

JOHN: Not familiar with this “Facebook?” of which you speak. And I doubt that there are any athletics in Ft. Myers since the hurricane. But thanks, R.N. & P.M.