North Carolina State University Athletics
2000 NC State Volleyball Outlook
8/17/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
There is no substitute for experience. Coaches can recruit talented players and teach them the fundamental skills of the game, but experience cannot be taught, nor can success. Those qualities are out of a coach's control.
As Kim Hall enters her seventh season as NC State's head volleyball coach, she finds herself with a team that is talented and well-coached in volleyball fundamentals, thanks in part to second-year assistant coch Xiao Feng Li. For the first time, though, Hall also has a team that has both depth and experience, and, even more important, a team that has experienced a measure of success.
Hall's Wolfpack returns 10 letterwinners, five of them starters, from last year's squad, which won the most games by an NC State team in four years. The 1999 Wolfpack posted two wins each over ACC nemeses Georgia Tech and Maryland, pushed several other conference powers to the limit, and finished the season on a high note by winning three of its last four matches, including a first-round victory over Maryland in the ACC Tournament. All things considered, the 1999 season was the Wolfpack's most consistent in years, and makes a great building block for 2000 and beyond.
"The thing that's causing me the most optimism is the fact that most of our players have seen it before and know what to work for," Hall says as she looks ahead to the upcoming season. "They know what they need to do, and they've done it together. This team saw significant success in important areas last year. We beat Georgia Tech twice -- Georgia Tech had just pummelled us in the past -- we beat Maryland for the first time since 1987, and beat them twice. We won the first game of the tournament. Our wins over Duke and Florida State also give us confidence that we are closing the gap and gaining ground. Those wins were all big milestones for us, so we are very encouraged."
Hall will look to a pair of seniors for leadership. Meredith Price and Stephanie Stambaugh have been mainstays in the NC State lineup for the past three seasons. Juniors Alison Kreager and Charece Williams also have been regulars since they were freshmen. The quartet of Price, Stambaugh, Kreager and Williams gives NC State strong upper-class leadership, and sophomore Tara Greene was a standout as a freshman last year, making the All-ACC Rookie team.
There is ample depth behind the returning starters. Junior Nikki Stemler and sophomores Alison Magner, Rebecca Anderson and Katie Kost all have game action under their belts. In addition, Hall has brought in another sound recruiting class, featuring freshmen Caroline Frede, Andrea Duke, Blake Nicholls and Crystal Shannon, plus juco transfer Jackie Stratton. It's a good recruiting class, but for the first time in a while, Hall will have the luxury of bringing her first-year players along at their own pace. There is no crying need to thrust first-year players into the limelight before they are ready, and that also gives Hall reason for optimism.
"This year is a chance for our team to have fun and enjoy it," Hall says. "For the first time, a large portion of our starters are juniors and seniors. In the last five years the higher percentage of my better players and better athletes have all been freshmen and sophomores. Finally, this year we'll have the seniors and juniors carrying the load, and I'm really looking forward to seeing them come into their own and seeing them bringing along the young players. We'll give our freshmen every chance to play and compete, but there's not going to be that dependency on the freshmen and the inexperienced to produce."
OUTSIDE HITTERS
Junior Charece Williams (33 kills, 11 digs vs. Duke) and sophomore Tara Greene (19 kills and 29 digs vs. Duke) lead the Wolfpack's returnees in digs from a year ago. Williams, who led the team with 44 service aces and 529 kills, should be among the top players in the conference. Greene, who improved considerably as last season went along, was among the team leaders in kills and digs.
"Charece Williams has the potential to be one of the strongest outside hitters in the league", Hall says. "It depends on her skill level and how she continues to grow with that. Athletically, she's hard to touch. Tara Greene still has a learning curve. She's still learning a lot about her position, but athletically she can take over a game. She's a great defensive player and just is incredibly athletic."
The Wolfpack will get experienced depth from junior Nikki Stemler and sophomore Rebecca Anderson. Both have extensive playing experience and have seen game action at critical times during matches, making this position a strength for the Pack. Redshirt Blake Nicholls will also train at the outside hitter position.
MIDDLE BLOCKERS
The Wolfpack returns two starters in the middle in senior Stephanie Stambaugh and junior Alison Kreager, who has been a starter for the Pack since Day One. Kreager ranked second on the team with 419 kills, third with 33 service aces, fifth with 276 digs and second with 25 solo blocks. Stambaugh was third in kills (342) and led the club in solo blocks (31).
"Alison Kreager has started every single game since her freshman year," Hall says. "She is the most steady, solid player on our team. Stephanie Stambaugh is the leader, the verbal motivator. Stephanie has to be, by far, the most improved player on our team. She's really looking to have a good year."
Just as with the outside players, the Wolfpack goes two deep in the middle. Sophomore Alison Magner saw valuable playing time last season, and Andrea Duke is a promising true freshman who will be worked into the rotation as her own progress dictates.
SETTER
With the unexpected transfer of Erin Vesey, NC State will have to break in an unproven setter this season. Fortunately, the Wolfpack has a pair of talented newcomers from which to choose.
Jackie Stratton comes to NC State from the Arizona junior college ranks and has some seasoning and maturity, while true freshman Crystal Shannon comes from one of the top prep programs in the country. Those two will battle throughout the preseason for the starting position.
"Crystal Shannon has played at the highest level of club volleyball that there is," Hall says. "The Tampa Prep Club team and the Berkley Prep High School team that she played on are national caliber teams with excellent coaching. Her training and background and maturity level are going to be higher than most freshmen. Jackie Stratton has junior college experience and should provide some maturity and experience to the position. There are offensive formations where you can use them both, but more than likely we'll just have one."
RIGHT SIDE
On the opposite side of the setter, the Pack returns Meredith Price (17 digs vs. North Carolina), a senior leader and returning starter who ranked second on the team with 302 digs, and Katie Kost (8 kills, 4 digs vs. Maryland), an imposing 6-4 sophomore who saw action in 26 matches as a rookie a year ago. Together, they form a formiddable tandem.
"Katie Kost really came on strong at the end of last year," Hall says. "She's going to be hard to stop, and Meredith Price, one of our captains, played in that position all last year and did really well. Those two will be used a lot. Meredith will probably be the starter, but Katie comes in and I look for her to play extensively."
DEFENSIVE SPECIALIST
Kerry Bridenback has graduated, leaving the job open to true freshman Caroline Frede, who comes to NC State with strong credentials from both high school and club volleyball, playing in four national tournaments at the club level.
"Caroline is solid," Hall says. "She will play a crucial role in our offensive and defensive systems this year."
THE SCHEDULE
As is usually the case in most sports, the Atlantic Coast Conference ranks among the nation's elite leagues in collegiate volleyball, giving NC State 16 demanding matches as a starting point to the schedule. In addition, the Wolfpack will play in three early-season tournaments -- the Virginia Tech Invitational in Blacksburg, Va., the NC State Invitational, and the American University Tournament in Washington, D.C. The Pack will take on Southwest Texas State, Appalachian State, Marshall and Virginia Tech in the VPI Tournament. NC State will host Rice, Radford, Campbell and Florida Atlantic in the NC State Invitational. The American University Tournament will be the Wolfpack's most demanding of the early season, with matches scheduled against Purdue, American and George Washington, each a tough volleyball program.
Once the dual-match portion of the schedule arrives in late September, Kentucky, Virginia Tech and East Carolina all will pay calls to Reynolds Coliseum.
