In recent years, our Gophers have typically been a contender for the Big 10 Title, while the Hoosiers have typically been bottom feeders. Yet we went into today’s match in Bloomington with identical 8 & 7 records, and got out-scored, significantly in total points, 104 to 115, by the traditionally hopeless Hoosiers. Fortunately, a volleyball match is determined by sets won, and the Gophs prevailed 13-25, 32-30, 19-25, 25-23, & 15-12.
Today’s big story involved Julia Handson and The Wooker. Wooker started the match, as she always does, and got the Gophers’ first two kills. Then, still early in Set 1, after two hitting errors (dropping her hitting % to zero, with 2 minus 2 on 6 attempts), Coach Cook subbed Hanson in for Wooker. And Hanson started slow, contributing to a lopsided Set 1 loss.
I felt certain that Wooker would be back; maybe in Set 1, probably to start Set 2, surely after the Set 3 loss left the Gophs in hot water. But Wooker never took the floor again. She did not seem injured. It might be because she was under the weather. Or maybe it was because Hanson shook off her slow start to rack up a career-high 19 kills. I don’t know.
I’m so accustomed to seeing Wooker lead the team in kills that I spent the first 3 sets feeling that the Gophers were playing “short-handed.” But with 19 from Hanson (at a .267 clip), another 19 from Grote (at a .350 clip), and 15 from Landfair (.227), we got by – even with minimal offense from Davis, Owoleye, and Shaffmaster (2 a piece). Overall, in terms of hitting, blocking, serving & receiving, Hanson performed pretty much at the level we expect from a healthy Wooker.
Shaffmaster, the Gophers most clutch player (who I have come to appreciate more than some GopherVBallRocks readers), once again stepped up at a critical point, scoring one of her 2 aces at set-point in Set 4. Speaking of serving, Indiana’s advantage in this regard, 10 aces and 13 errors, vs 5 aces and 12 errors for the Gophs, was a major reason for the Hoosiers edge in the total score. And it would have been worse without the magnificent Kylie Murr. Murr finished the match with 1 receiving error, but almost single-handedly kept the Gophers in the match by handling most of the Hoosiers very-aggressive serves. Landfair, who the Hoosiers tried to target, had 6 errors.
The weekend-split keeps the Gopher over .500 in the Big Ten at 9 & 7, and in a 5th place tie with Illinois . The good news is that the Gophs’ last 4 matches are all at home, including:
- Iowa on Nov 17 (7:00 on BTN+);
- Ohio State on Nov 18 (7:00 on BTN);
- Illinois on Nov 24 (5:30, one or the other); and
- #1 Rated Nebraska on Nov 25 (8:00 on BTN).
Unbeaten Nebraska will be a handful (and the Pav will be full of RED). But we beat Iowa & Ohio State in their gyms; we ought to be able to replicate these outcomes at the Pav. We haven’t played Illinois, the team we are tied with. I feel confident that a 3 & 1 finish, running our conference record to 12 & 8, and no worse than 5th place, will earn the Gophs an NCAA invite. A 2 & 2 finish, leaving us 11 & 9, and likely lower than 5th place, would put us on “The Bubble.” And a 1 & 3 finish, leaving us 10 & 10, would surely end the Gophers streak of NCAA invites (and Coach Cook’s similar streak). Who will be our Leftside Hitters?
KEEP THE FAITH!