Author: jktrpp

According to the Strib, the matches tomorrow vs Baylor, and Saturday vs TCU, will both be carried on ESPN +. The plus means a streaming service. I had BTN+ last year, but I’ve never had ESPN +. With the assistance of both daughters, both far more tech-savy than I, and a $10 monthly subscription, I managed to get onto ESPN + now, where I am watching the first round of some golf tournament. Will I be able to get onto it tomorrow, when I need to, by myself? We’ll see.

A story in this morning’s Strib details the challenges faced, this season, by four 2021 prep Championship Teams: Wayzata Volleyball, Lakeville South Football, Minnetonka Tennis and Stillwater Girl’s Soccer. Wayzata Volleyball is the lead story (over Lakeville Football; you wouldn’t have seen that 10 years ago). Wayzata faces an uphill challenge (according to the Strib), because they graduated 4 of the 5 top hitters from last year’s team. But guess who they have returning? The Swenson Sisters. I have no idea who will fill the shoes of the graduated Trojan hitters, or what other prep teams might be loaded this fall. But I’m guessing the ’22 Trojans, led by the Gopher-Bound Swenson Sisters will do okay.

The Strib didn’t cover it, and as yet there is no coverage (besides announcing it would take place) on the Gopher VB Website, but yesterday, the Gophers held an open-to-the public, intra-squad scrimmage at the PAV. The Goph’s non-conference season starts Friday in Ft. Worth; these early games don’t count toward their Big Ten record, but they will count very much toward the national rankings which influence seeding for the NCAA Tournament, so wins and losses are important. That leaves the intra-squad scrimmage the best opportunity for would-be starters, who want to real starters, to show the fans what they can do.

I got there with the help of Wife Maureen, Daughter Phoebe and a borrowed wheel chair. But uncertain that I would be able to attend, I reached out to GOPHERVBALLROCKS readers for help with the coverage, and reader R.A. volunteered. So let’s start with RA’s take:

Knees:  Very happy that neither CC McGraw nor Jenna Wenaas sported knee braces again.  Only Naya Gros had one on her left leg.  Let’s hope for good health.

Impressed:  Julia Hanson had easily the best elevation on her kill shots.  I noticed this during warmups and she continued to impress.  Jenna Wenaas  was the only other player to impress me with elevation.  Carter Booth had some nice kills and blocks, but without getting high off the court.  Technique.

Melani Shaffmaster surprised me with the drop on her serves.  The first of the match looked like it went straight down (not possible, physics) for an ace, as did a couple others.  Ironically, her only service error was a ball that dropped too early into the net.  Oops!

Noteworthy:  Jenna Wenaas tossed the ball so high on serves, she actually had to wait twice before she started her leap.  She got one strong ace, though it didn’t seem to make an appreciable difference most of the time.

Pleased:  Carter Booth made some strong plays on kills and blocks, though she wasn’t regularly a factor.  Hard to know if she could have done better with more sets and passes.

Melani Shaffmaster’s set to Taylor Landfair, a nonfactor early, became very effective halfway thru second set.  Taylor was able to place her shots to open court better.

Mixed:  Taylor didn’t do much the first half of the match, plus had trouble in the back row — listless? — but both improved after that.

Lauren Crowl had a couple nice kills on accurate placements, but lacked power on most of her shots.  She dinked and dunked more often.

Concerns:  Rachel Kilkelly struggled with receives and passes in the back row, then became adequate.  She won’t get much lineup pressure from Skylar Gray, who was weak on receive/pass, plus being out of position.

Befuddled:  All three setters seemed to pass balls too low to the net.  Melani and Taylor klicked at the end and Miranda Wucherer was better than Elise McGhie, though neither looked like a backup this first outing of the season.

Didn’t Play:  Chloe Ng and McKenna Wucherer wasn’t there.

JOHN’s TAKE:

Thanks, R.A.

My regular seats are in row 14, which I like a lot – fairly close to the court but with a slightly elevated view. Yesterday, in my borrowed wheel chair, I was court-side. The big difference: the size of our impressive Gopher athletes! I’m not small; I was 6-5 when I played water polo for the Gophers (6-3 these days), but I am not accustomed to being close to young women as tall or taller than I am.

My BIGGEST SURPRISE was the absence of Freshman Outside Hitter McKenna Wucherer, the nation’s #1 recruit. As R.A. notes, she was not in attendance. Immediately, my thoughts went uh-oh, will she not be playing for the Gophers?  Has she transferred? Dropped out of school? Become seriously injured? But after taking a deep breath, I doubt it’s anything that serious. If she had a minor injury, she would have been there in street clothes. Best Guess: She tested positive for covid, and will be back soon. IF ANYONE KNOWS, OR HEARS ANYTHING, PLEASE SHARE IT WITH GOPHERVBALLROCKS.

My impression, from watching McKenna play with the Gophs during the Spring-Exhibition Season, is that McKenna is every bit the talent one would expect from the nation’s #1 recruit – i.e., she’s Landfair & Wenaas, almost-can’t-miss, good. I’m not sure where she fits into this already-loaded line-up, but despite her absence yesterday, I suspect she will be contributing this ’22 GOPHER squad. Likely sooner than later.

A second incoming freshman even more-certain to make an impact is 6-7 Carter Booth. I had Booth with at least 7 kills in 3 sets, including at least 2 off of quick-sets. Sure, it was only an inter-squad scrimmage, but Booth has the size, and I think the potential, to be the best Gopher-Middle ever, even better than Regan Pittman or the Tapp Sisters! You’re gonna love this girl.

And as noted by R.A., Prior Lake’s Julia Hanson is a third, talented, incoming freshman worthy of attention. She looks small standing next to Landfair, but she’s 6-3, she’s got hops, she’s got finess, and she was the #1 player in Minnesota’s class of ’22. As I said about McKenna Wucherer, I’m not sure where Hanson fits into this line-up, but she’s a player.

And while we’re talking freshmen, we can’t forget red-shirt freshman Lauren Crowl. Crowl, the only lefty on the squad, is a natural for right-side hitter, and will certainly get the opportunity to contribute. Last night she demonstrated a broad tool-kit including multiple power-kills, short and long dinks, one nifty kill from the left-side, an ace, and at least one block. Crowl is not going to make us forget Steph Samedy anytime soon, but I think she’ll be okay. (And if she isn’t, there are other options.)

SO WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE US?

Setter/Libero/DS: Melanie Shaffmaster, CC McGraw, and Rachael Kilkelly are returning as our setter, libero, and DS, respectively. Baring injury, these 3 should be at least as good as last year, and with another year of experience, a little better. How much better is critical, especially for Shaffmaster. If Shaffmaster is only a little better, this is likely another Sweet Sixteen Team. But if Shaffmaster is a lot better, this is likely a Final Four Team.

And if that happens, it will be because Shaffmaster has pushed herself; she will not be pushed by backup transfers Elsie McGhie (from Kansas) or Miranda Wucherer (from Northern Kentucky). If Shaffmaster gets injured, expect to see the Gophers go to a 6-2, with McGhie and Wucherer  sharing the setting.

Middles: Middles were the ’21 Gophers main weakness, and it didn’t help that it was the Badgers main strength. But Dana Rettke doesn’t play for the Badgers anymore. The Badgers Anna Smrek is back, and she’s good, but the Gophers Carter Booth is going to be better. They’re both 6-7, and Smrek has a year’s experience over Booth, but I am already convinced that Booth is the superior athlete and will eventually dominate Smrek. (Maybe as soon as Sept 25 at the Pav.)

The Gophers will play 2 Middles. It is likely that Booth and red-shirt senior Ellie Husemann will be the starters. But Grad-transfer Naya Gros (Michigan State) and Sophomore transfer Arica Davis (Ohio State) are both talented Middles with Big Ten experience, ready and able to step in if Booth or Husemann struggle. Gros showed me more last night than Davis did.

Outside Hitters: The Gophers will play 3 Outside Hitters, 2 on the left-side and one on the right-side. Currently, they have 2 proven stars, Landfair & Wenaas, and 3 potential stars, McKenna Wucherer (missing last night), Lauren Crowl (a natural right-side hitter), and Julia Hanson. An embarrassment of riches. Assuming they are healthy, Landfair & Wenaas will be in the line-up every night; meaning only one of the other 3 are going to play.

Landfair & Wenaas have been left-side hitters, and Crowl is a natural right-side hitter, so that seems the obvious choice. But Wucherer and Hanson are really good. Surprisingly, Wenaas shows up on the roster as “Outside/Opposite” (i.e., right-side), the only such reference on the roster, so apparently somebody sees Wenaas playing right-side.

Even more surprising, to me at least, was the second set last night, when Landfair played right-side – and dominated. I had her with 7 right-side  kills in the 2^nd set. Seven kills! In one set! That’s dominance that Steph Samedy would be proud of. Maybe Landfair will end up at right-side.

Crowl won’t be competing with Wenaas or Landfair for playing time; she will compete with Wucherer and Hanson. If either of those two can prove to Coach McCutcheon that they can play left-side so well that they have to be in the line-up, it will be at the expense of Crowl, with Wucherer or Hanson moving to right-side. Or maybe it will be Crowl who proves she belongs in the line-up. Either way, we’re going to have great outside hitting.

The Gophers have a grueling non-conference schedule, and then the tough-match-every-night Big Ten. But if Shaffmaster can stay healthy, and if Booth can quickly adjust to the demands of play at this level, this is going to e a very good team!

We are a mere 3 weeks (plus a couple of days) from the start of the season. On Saturday, Aug 20, our currently 7^th ranked Gophers are holding an open-to-the public, intra-squad scrimmage at the PAV (I think it will be free). I will likely not be able to attend due to my (hopefully) temporary disability*; it would be great if a GOPHER V-BALL ROCKS READER would attend and write it up for us.

• My story about this, not really a volleyball story, is available under the “JOHN WHO?” tab.

And 6 days later, the Gophs open their non-conference season at the Big 12 Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, where they will play # 10 Ranked Baylor on Aug 26^th, TCU on the 27^th,, and #5 ranked Texas, in Austin, on the 31^st. (As of now, it does not appear that any of these matches will be televised.)

Then the Gophs will be back at the PAV for matches against:

• #15 ranked Florida on Sept 4;
• #24 ranked Oregon on Sept 9;
• #21 ranked Stanford on Sept 10;
• Pepperdine on Sept 15; and
• #23 ranked Washington St. on Sept 17.

And then the Big 10 Season starting at #6 ranked Purdue on Sept 23, and back home to host #1 ranked Wisconsin at the Pav on Sept 25. (I think this is the match where we kick some Sconnie butt.)

That’s right, 8 of our first 10 opponents are ranked in the top 25, nationally, 4 in the top 10! We should learn a lot about this team between Aug 26 and Sept 25. I think you’re going to love this team.

Reader M.C. notes that prospective junior setter (for Wayzata) Stella Swenson, the 2021 Gatorade Player of the Year, one of the top national recruits in the class of 2024, and the sister of Samantha Selliger-Swenson, has announced her verbal commitment to play for the Gophers. I reported last fall that Stella was, though only a sophomore at the time, was the obvious stand-out performer at the 2021 State H.S. Tournament.

Related thoughts: * There is no reference to the above on the Official Gopher website — because it is a verbal commitment. (I don’t think Stella can legally sign a written commitment until the conclusion of her junior year, i.e., next November.) * Stella has a twin sister (I am not remembering her name) who was a very good 6′-3” left-side hitter for the State Champion Trojans. I am curious if she will also become a Gopher. * Under normal circumstances, current Gopher Setter Melanie Shaffmaster would have 2 years of eligibility remaining, i.e., 2022 & 2023, creating an opportunity for Stella to “walk-in” to the starting role as a freshman — as Samantha did. BUT, due to COVID, Shaffmaster actually has 3 years of eligibility remaining, and could easily still be setting for the Gophs in 2024. I will be interested to see how that plays out.

As part of the Strib’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX, they selected the 50 greatest Minnesota H.S. girl athletes – based solely on their H.S. accomplishments. (Lindsey Whalen, for example, does not make the list.)

In addition to obvious choices like Janet Karvonen, Paige Bueckers and Natalie Darwitz, the list includes 5 volleyball players: Annie Adamczak (who, in 1981-2 led Moose Lake to State Championships in volleyball, basketball and softball), Sydney Hilley (a major reason for the Badgers recent success), Kennedi Orr, our beloved Samantha Seliger-Swenson, and 2010-2013 Gopher star Ashley Wittman.

I couldn’t argue with any of these names, but I could add some: definitely Chaska’s Amanda Rome, and probably Fosston’s Kelly Roysland (better known for basketball) and Eden Prairie’s Sarah Willhite.

Reader D.S. notes that former Gopher Adanna Rollins, who left the Gophs for Penn State, has now left Penn State to play her final year for Kentucky.

John: Rollins is a decent player, but I don’t think we’ll miss her this year, with the overload of talent at Left-Side. But let’s wish her success at Kentucky.

Reader G.H. looks forward to an interesting pre-season,  and congratulations Coach McCutcheon for lining up all the quality teams to play at the PAV. Enhanced ticket revenue for sure.

Reader R.A brings my attention to the fact that the Gophs recently added another transfer setter, Miranda Wucherer, a graduate transfer from Northern Kentucky (one season of collegiate eligibility remaining). Wucherer made the All-Horizon League First Team as a junior in 2020-21, ranking fifth in the nation in triple doubles (kills, assists, digs).

If the name sounds familiar, that’s because Miranda is the older sister of incoming Gophers freshman Mckenna Wucherer (the number 1 recruit in the country). R.A. wonders why? Is Miranda coming for the academics? She’s here to compete with Shaffmaster for starting setter?  Are we going to a 6-2? My guess is she wants to play with her sister. I also suspect she will compete with Elise McGhee, our junior-setter-transfer from Kansas, for the role of back-up setter.

NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

As has been consistently true in the McCutcheon Era, the Gophers will be playing a rugged pre-BigTen schedule: This rugged schedule can result in a lower early-season, national rating than a cream-puff schedule might, but it helps prepare the Gophs to compete in the toughest conference in the country. And reflects a commitment to being competitive at the national level.

Four wins and four losses in these 8 matches would indicate that the 2022 Gophers are a strong team. Six & two would suggest they might be a Final Four Team.

AUG 26    BAYLOR  (at TCU)

AUG 27    TCU   (at TCU)

AUG 31   TEXAS  (at Texas)

SEP 4    FLORIDA @ The PAV

SEP 9    OREGON @ The PAV

SEP 10   STANFORD @ The PAV

SEP 15   PEPPERDINE @ The PAV

SEP 17    WASHINGTON STATE @ The PAV

Game times and television networks are still to be determined. Information on tickets will be available at a later date.

Today’s (5/22) Strib features a lengthy, front-page, Jeff Day article about our favorite team, mostly about Coach McCutcheon’s focus on the mental aspect of the game.

Anyone who follows any sport knows that mental strength and mental attitude are hugely important to success, especially at higher levels. A high school athlete might be able to dominate on sheer physical superiority; but eventually, successful athletes find themselves competing against athletes just as big and just as athletic as they are, at which point mental strength and attitude become critical.

I recently posted my thoughts re the differences between Varsity and “Club” Sports, mentioning that Varsity Coaches are paid a lot more, and that Varsity Athletes are generally on scholarship. But I glossed over the implications for coaching the “mental game.”

I’ve long known the importance of the mental aspect of sports, but when I was coaching the Gopher Men’s and Women’s Club Water Polo Teams, I rarely had time to address it. I had a full-time job outside of WPolo; coaching was a “side-hustle” at best (really, just a “hobby”) and the athletes were truly students-first. I “had” (i.e., worked with) my athletes about 6 hours a week (in season); so individual and team skill-development were pretty much my sole focus. Even conditioning was left largely to the students, and except for confidence-building, the occasional pep-talk, or some sort of crisis, I had little time to address the “mental game.”

(I wasn’t a big pep-talker, I probably should have done more of it, but I gave a few. One example was when my City Of Lakes (Mpls) 16-U VBallers lost the first set to a suburban team I thought we should beat. Between sets, I pointed out, to my diverse, somewhat ragged team, that not only was everyone of our opponents blonde, they had matching ponytails and even matching hair-ties. “Are we,” I demanded, “going to lose to a team with matching hair-ties?” We did not.)

Obviously, there is a lot more to helping athletes with mental preparation than the occasional Win-One-For-The-Gipper speech. And Gopher Varsity Coach McCutcheon has his athletes 20 hours a week, including during a lengthy off-season. Strib-writer Day does a nice job of capturing McCutcheon’s approach to the “mental game,” which is clearly an important element of his success, including related quotes from some of the incoming freshmen.

As much as I am thrilled by any and all VBall coverage by our local media, it doesn’t seem as though Day, a “junior” reporter, actually knows much about VBall. And I doubt we would have seen today’s story if the Wild or the Wolves were still alive in the playoffs – but that’s how journalism works.

(I don’t think I’ve shared the story of how I got involved in Water Polo: During the summer before I started college, I worked with this guy already at the U, who offered to show me around, including an introduction to the Sports Editor of the MN Daily. I had brief dreams of interviewing Lou Hudson and Carl Eller, but with zero journalism experience I was assigned to write a story about the Water Polo Team. I had never even heard of Water Polo – so my story had the same mouth-gaping feel as Days’ VBall story in today’s Strib. The Daily, in 1965, had higher standards than the 2022 Strib, so I had to rewrite it 3 times. At which point I decided that playing Water Polo looked more interesting than writing about it.)

GLENN ENTERS PORTAL

Reader D.S. calls our attention to Natalie Glenn entering the transfer portal. I previously described Glenn as a talented athlete, but one who I ranked #5 on the depth chart for one of two left-side hitter positions. So hardly a surprise. We wish Glenn well as she pursues a VBall career somewhere else.

Our Gophers just recently added another transfer, fifth year senior Nava Gros, from Michigan State. A four-year starter for the Spartans taking advantage of her covid-bonus year to play for the Gophs. Gros averaged 1.8 kills and 1.2 blocks per set over a career 386 sets, leading the Spartans in blocks all 4 years, and in kills this past season, finishing fifth in the Big Ten in total blocks, including 11 matches with five-or-more blocks. In 2019, Gros was a member of an all-Big Ten team competing in Japan. Gros will compete with returning starter Ellie Husemann, transfer (from Ohio St.) Arica Davis, and incoming freshman Carter Booth, for playing-time at Middle (I’m betting Booth #1 and Husemann #2 as the leading candidates, but we’ll see.)

BOYS HS VB VOTED DOWN AGAIN

Reader G.N. calls our attention to the fact that, for (at least) the 3^rd year in row, the governing body of the MN State High School League has voted down Boys Volleyball as a sanctioned sport – this time by the narrowest of margins: 31 in favor, 17 against. (32-16 would have been the necessary two-thirds majority.)

My thoughts:

• Minnesota is a VBall hotbed, and, reportedly, 36 other states have sanctioned Boys HS Volleyball – so this is just stupid.
• Regardless of what people say publically, the opposition is based entirely on “Title IX,” the federal rule that requires high schools to provide “equal sports opportunities” for boys and girls. MN has Girls HS Volleyball, of course, but the girls don’t have Football, which is a lot to offset in terms of funding & numbers of participants.
• I continue to consider “Title IX” a good thing. Both my daughters played varsity sports, and granddaughter Leah will be out for the Washburn Volleyball Team in the fall. But even great ideas can have negative implications.
• But it’s not like we don’t have Boys HS Volleyball anyway. The Strib reports there are 55 “Club Teams” currently competing — with a State Tournament and everything. It just isn’t MN State High School League sanctioned. Sanctioning would lead to even more teams, and certainly more media coverage (both good things), and the boys could earn “varsity letters.”
• If you ever read the “John Who?” button on this blog, you know that I coached Boys H.S. Club Water Polo for 10 years, Girls (age-grouped) Volleyball for 10 years, Gopher Mens Club Water Polo for 9 years, and Gopher Womens Club Water Polo for 7 years – including Big Ten Tournaments.

At the collegiate level, there are two significant differences between Varsity and Club Sports: Club Coaches get paid a negligible “stipend” which is a fraction of the salaries paid to Varsity Coaches (but guess what, ”minor-sport coaches like McCutcheon don’t make half of what I was making at my “day-job);” and more importantly, scholarships! Most Gopher Women Volleyball players are on scholarships, none of the Mens Club players get scholarships. But in high school, we’re just talking about a “letter.”