After a slow start to the season, the women’s volleyball team is rolling and looking to lock up a spot in the playoffs. Their slow start can be attributed to the major shift in the roster, with many upper-year players graduating, but the newer players are filling in admirably and the roster is loaded with potential.
They’ve won four out of their last five games, which is in large part due to a few players stepping up their play. Most notably, right side Jessie Nairn’s recent play earned her the Pita Pit Athlete of the Week for leading the team in points and kills over their weekend trip to Thunder Bay.
Stuffing the stat sheet in all facets of the game, Nairn’s 13 kills in the team’s Jan. 27 win over Lakehead University is a perfect example of what she brings to the rotation.
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The Marauders are back on track as they are riding a string of good games, with their only loss in the past five games coming from the undefeated and first in the division University of Waterloo Warriors.
“Even though we lost against Waterloo, we played a really good game against them,” Nairn said. “And if we play the way we did, we can definitely beat, if not at least play a really good game against, all of the teams coming up in the next couple of weeks.”
Nairn says the team is still in the process of finding its identity after losing so many of its veteran players. However, their development over the course of the season thus far is why they’ve been on a hot streak lately, which should easily transfer to next season.
“After losing a really big graduating class last year, I’d say that our skills aren’t really spread out yet and we haven’t found out what our strengths are, so we’re slowly starting to get to that point,” Nairn said. “Although we’re a really big blocking team and we’re definitely one of the best blocking teams in the league, we’re definitely a big offensive team. Where we struggle is starting the offence, so passing and stuff like that, but when we have that done, it’s when we’re at our best.”.
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It’s been a tough transition going from losing only five regular season games over the past two seasons to having lost six already this season, but Nairn is confident the team can close out the season successfully.
The roster is filled with talent and potential but is lacking experience. With that being said, it hasn’t stopped the team from remaining in playoff contention despite the roster’s youthfulness.
“In the past years, we’ve only lost two or three games. So for my first two years, it was a big deal losing,” Nairn said on the team’s recent struggles. “Learning to lose, and then learning to learn from that, knowing that it’s going to be ok and that we are good enough to win and win the whole league — we just need to have the mentality to get there because we don’t know how to deal with losing yet, but we're getting there.”
Nairn believes the team still has the capability of going far in the postseason and they still have their sights set on a trip to nationals.
“Our goal is definitely still to win, even though our path to get there is looking a little rocky,” Nairn said. “We’ve played really good games against some of the teams that are definitely going to be in the final four this year. For instance, our very first game this season where we were nowhere near as good as we are now, we went to five sets with [the University of] Toronto and they’re looking like a team that will definitely be in the final four.”
The women’s volleyball team has had it’s fair share of struggles so far this season but they are a bright young team, with a roster full of talented players and greatness on the horizon.
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By: Coby Zucker
With the departure of veteran outside hitter Brandon Koppers after capping out his eligibility last season, a void was created in the McMaster men’s volleyball team. Starting the season with a blistering 6-1 record, it’s safe to say the Marauders are managing well enough, thanks in part to the dependable play of third-year setter, David Doty.
Recognition was quick to come to Doty, who received the McMaster Pita Pit Athlete of the Week award following his strong early performances against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues and the highly-ranked University of Windsor Lancers, both in three-set sweeps.
“It wasn’t really something I was expecting,” said Doty. “I think I was more concerned about coming out of Windsor with a win. Going into someone’s gym when they’re sixth- or fifth-ranked in the country, and you have a chance to take them down in their gym, it kind of takes over your mind over your own personal [performance]. I mean, it was nice to have that recognition and I’m very thankful for it, but I think it’s more concerning myself with coming out of Windsor with a big win.”
As the starting setter for the Marauders, Doty is responsible for leading the offence on the court.
“Coach [Dave Preston] and I, we meet twice a week or so,” Doty said. “We go over how we want to run an offence against a team. We have a pretty good idea of how we like to run our offence. I think we have this idea of, if something’s working, just keep going at it. If something’s not working, we adjust and go from there.”
But even the best-laid plans need to be executed. You can toss up a pass, but someone’s got to smack it down. In the early parts of the season, that someone has been outside hitter, Andrew Richards. Second in Ontario University Athletics in hitting percentage at .374, Richards has been a force to be reckoned with over the team’s first seven games. The chemistry between Doty and Richards is hardly new; the two have been playing together over the past six years, both getting their start at Oakridge Secondary School in London, Ontario.
“Over the years it’s gotten easier and easier connecting with him cause we’ve played together that much,” said Doty. “We kind of just know what each other are doing. And he’s a freak human. He’s able to get up, to jump to balls I don’t expect him to, but you know every time he gets up there, he seems to cut the ball off at the highest point possible.”
Doty was quick in pointing the off-the-court leadership of Richards, along with the team’s other fifth-year, Connor Santoni, who is currently sporting a handlebar moustache, matching Doty’s own. Previously acting as a utility player for the team, Santoni has started to see increased playing time in his final season.
“[Richards] and Santoni, the leaders of this team, the two fifth-year guys, they’ve always done a good job of leading us,” Doty said. “They put their blood, sweat and tears into this program, so we appreciate everything they do.”
And needless to say, that effort has been paying off. Despite Doty’s assertion that the competition this year is fiercer than ever, with most teams in striking distance of one another, the Marauders opened the season with two sweeps. The Queen’s University Gaels were able to put a damper on the early momentum after a tough 2-3 loss.
“Well the first two sets against Queen’s, they played outstanding,” said Doty. “They were passing well, they were digging some balls we weren’t really expecting them to be digging up. And we made too many errors, which is why we lost that game.”
Men's Volleyball -- @santoni11 had a career night, as @MACMVB rolled to a fourth straight sweep at the expense of the Guelph Gryphons Saturday. #GoMacGo https://t.co/JCwBflcLEx
— McMaster Athletics (@McMasterSports) November 25, 2018
That game seemed to only be a slight hitch for the Marauders who have since bounced back with four straight three-set sweeps over the Royal Military College of Canada, Trent University, the University of Waterloo, and the University of Guelph. So far, Doty and the rest of the team have been putting together a run that is shaping up to be a fitting send-off for the team’s two fifth-years.
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