Lehigh University Athletics
Volleyball ready to embark on first road trip
8/27/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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Lehigh will play against one of the hosts, Robert Morris, to open up the tournament on Friday at 11 a.m. Then, after just a brief rest, the Brown and White will be back in action against Loyola (
The fun continues on Saturday, with matches against Duquesne and Marist at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively. Even with the quick turnarounds and so many matches in two days, Lehigh head coach Jenny Maurer isn’t concerned about her team’s ability to handle the pressure.
“The girls are used to playing club tournaments where they have sometimes four or five matches in a day,” Maurer said. “So this is old news to them. They’re used to this.”
One of the rule changes that will help Maurer’s young team is that sets will only be played to 25 instead of 30, more similar to the style played at the high school level. Since the freshmen will not have to adjust to the length of the matches as much, they can focus on adjusting to the speed and style of the Division-I college level. Maurer is excited to watch them develop now and in the future.
“We had a young team last year and we still have a young team this year,” Maurer said. “And it’s great because we’ll have an opportunity to grow over the next few years together.”
To Maurer, the biggest challenge for her players will be to bounce back from any mistakes they make. Because they lack experience, the Mountain Hawks will make plenty of errors, but she wants them to be able to put the mistakes behind them and look ahead.
Still, the focus will be on limiting those errors this weekend to set a tone for the rest of the year.
“I think the key to success is going to be ball control,” Maurer said. “It’s going to be the team that cuts down on the most errors that’s going to be successful early in the season.”
Here’s a look at how the 2008 Mountain Hawks stack up heading into the start of the season.
Juniors
With no seniors on the roster this year, the Mountain Hawks return a strong group of five juniors, including Mo McReynolds, Maxie McCoy, Kristin Musbach, Kelly O’Keefe and Brittany Thurston, all of whom appeared in over fifty sets in 2007. Among that quintet, Thurston has the most experience with nearly 100 sets played during her time at Lehigh, including 92 last year, where she totaled 190 kills, 591 total attacks, 240 digs, and 21 blocks along the way.
McReynolds registered 195 kills, 715 total attacks, 240 digs and 21 blocks, while O’Keefe finished with 256 assists, 55 total attacks, and 77 digs. Returning on the right side are Musbach and McCoy, who will compete for playing time along with a pair of newcomers and provide the Mountain Hawks with depth.
McReynolds and Thurston will serve as co-captains and will be the leaders of this very young squad.
Sophomores
The setting was split between O’Keefe and sophomore Brittany Dickinson in 2007.
Also returning are sophomores Danielle Pimental, Sarah Christianson and Haley Conklin. As freshmen, Pimental and Conklin saw valuable playing time, but Christianson missed the season due to an injury. Pimental appeared in 91 sets and totaled 43 kills, 174 attacks, and 238 digs. Conklin registered 24 attacks and 70 digs in her 61 sets played.
Freshmen
Seven freshmen round out this year’s roster, including Emily Flanagan, Angelika Kopacz, Jessica Kudirka, Emma Melendez, Brittany Reichwein, Chelsea Sheridan, and Rebecca Slegers. Each of these newcomers has something unique to contribute to the Mountain Hawks, and they already have many accomplishments under their belts.
In high school, Flanagan helped lead
A 5-7 libero from Libertyville, Illinois, Melendez helped lead her high school to its first state tournament appearance in school history, while Reichwein helped lead her club team, Fusion, to a first-place finish at the Northeast Qualifer and was a three-year varsity player.
