Take a little veteran leadership, add some freshman attitude, and you've got the UB volleyball team.
The Bulls hope to build on their momentum from last year, when they won their first road match in the Mid-American Conference, and five MAC matches in total, a program record.
Last year, the team surpassed their kill total from the previous season and also managed to commit fewer errors while simultaneously winning more MAC contests, as well as more overall contests, than they did in previous years.
Not only did those statistics improve, but several players were also recognized with individual honors. Molly Schrantz was named to the All-Tournament team at the Duke tournament, Amy Brown set a new school single season assist record, Katie Weekly finished the season ranked 17th in the nation in NCAA with 29 solo and 159 total blocks, and Nikki Morzenti was selected to the All-MAC Freshman Team.
Though the volleyball Bulls lost their season opener against Syracuse, head coach Sally Kus and her players still believe the team has what it takes to finish higher in the MAC. To achieve that goal, Kus thinks that the team needs to improve on their defense and to play with confidence.
"We want to keep raising our overall level of play," Kus said.
Coach Kus and her assistant coaches, Erin Holahan and Kathleen Michalski, will look to start the season off strong.
The first tournament of the season will be the Western New York Tournament, which features UB, Canisius, Binghamton, Stony Brook, and Texas-Arlington. Coach Kus said she will look to her experienced players to provide the leadership needed for them to be successful right away.
"Our veteran players have to play with confidence, focus on court communication, and push our freshmen to be the best they can be," Kus said.
Look for Brown, Morzenti, Schrantz and Weekly to be the key role players on the team. Freshmen Tammy Jule and Lizaiha Garcia also have the potential to make a big impact on the team's success.
According to Coach Kus, the new players bring a lot of talent to the team.
"Our new players are bringing us options to our lineup and a lot of spunk to the team. Kat Diduck is versatile in all the front row positions and Sarah Streib plays intense all around," Kus said.
The Bulls said they are hoping that "spunk" and experience will help them reach their team goals for the season -- finishing higher in the conference standings this fall, and competing for the MAC championship in November.
