North Carolina State University Athletics
PEELER: Volleyball Looks To Maintain Early Success
9/21/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 21, 2010
RALEIGH, N.C. -
Change has been good for NC State's volleyball program.
Under first-year head coach Bryan Bunn, the Wolfpack (10-2) has already reached double-digit wins for the season, something that has happened only once in the last 10 years under three different head coaches. That total includes preseason tournament victories at the Western Carolina Tournament and the Hilton RTP Invitational.
"Everybody is on the same page," said co-captain Megan Cyr, a junior who transferred to the program from Colorado. "Everybody wants to do the same things: We want to win. We want to change the reputation of this team, to put it back on the map. We want to have a great gym culture.
"It's been really awesome so far."
But the key to the season will be how well the Bunn's squad competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference, where the Wolfpack has won a total of seven matches since 1999. League play opens today at 7 p.m. when it hosts rival North Carolina at Reynolds Coliseum.
"Once we get into the conference, the competition is definitely going to rise," Bunn said. "It's going to get much tougher. But, our main goal right now is to keep getting better every day. We've done that so far."
Bunn has revamped the program, thanks to a large group of newcomers that includes six freshmen, along with two sophomores and two juniors who transferred into the program after Bunn was hired in May.
Despite the long list of newcomers, a handful of returning veterans - including senior Alex Smith and juniors Margaret Salata and Kelly Wood - have helped make the transition smooth and successful. For Smith, that meant a change of position from setter to hitter, a role she has embraced along with more leadership responsibilities.
"One of the things I think we needed was a leader on the court to take everyone under her wing," Smith said. "I really wanted to be that person this year, when all the new players came in, so I could do all those things I wished someone had done for me when I was a freshman.
"It's the little things off the court, like being places on time, knowing where to be and what to do. On the court, letting people know what you see. Telling them `I saw that you were struggling' or `You need to give a little more today.' Just to let them know they need to push themselves and get better every day."
So far, the newcomers have made a huge impact on the Wolfpack's early success. Cyr, a junior setter, leads the teams in assists. Becah Fogle, another transfer from Colorado, leads the team with 137 kills. And UNC Greensboro-transfer Luciana Shafer's 123 digs are second only to Wood's 139.
And, Cyr said, that was their intent when they arrived. She had been recruited by Bunn when he was the associate head coach at Baylor and was eager to join his rebuilding project when he was named head coach at NC State.
"When I came here, I was looking forward to coming to a program that is being rebuilt and I wanted to help contribute to that," Cyr said. "I started out with a program that was already established, but I wanted to build something from the ground up.
"I knew after coming here on a visit and listening to what Coach Bunn wanted to do with his program that this was the place for me."
Bunn certainly deserves much of the credit for the early success, Smith said, simply because of the positive attitude he has instilled into the players. That has bred confidence, along with more wins than previous seasons.
"The main thing he brought to the program is such a positive attitude," Smith said. "He helps us keep our confidence up. When we are in a game and struggling, he keeps telling us to relax, to act like we have been in this situation before, to be confident.
"In building a program, the worst thing you can do is lose your confidence. But it is something you can easily control. He recognizes that. He doesn't beat anyone down. He is really, really positive. I think that will lead the program in the right direction."
Other than confidence, the Wolfpack has also been more aggressive and more consistent. Bunn has been impressed with how his team has control first contact. He wants to see continued improvement on passing and defense, but so far he likes how the team has progressed and matured in a short amount of time.
"What we have been doing this year is not just beating teams, but staying on top of them and never dropping our level of competition, even if we are playing a team that is not as talented," Smith said. "We have stayed consistent throughout the match.
"That's great to see."
For Bunn, getting to 10 victories prior to the start of conference play is not a major accomplishment. But it is a step in the right direction.
"We are not thinking about what the record was in previous years," Bunn said. "It's a new program and people are doing different things. We are looking forward, not behind us. We want to make sure the future is bright.
"We know it is going to be much tougher."
