Hoosiers ready to rebound from disappointing 2011 season

Just a year removed from the team’s best season ever, including a Sweet 16 berth, the IU women’s volleyball team failed to follow 2010 with another strong season, finishing with a 9-23 overall record, a 1-19 record in Big Ten play and a 0-12 record in away games.

“We wanted to win so bad,” senior right-side hitter Kelci Marschall said. “We came in and wanted to win every day and got better every day but just couldn’t get it going. It was painful.”

Ashley Benson, IU’s only First Team All-American in program history, graduated after the 2010 season.

Another key loss was junior outside hitter Jordan Haverly, who suffered an ACL injury and was out for the entire year.

Haverly said she felt awful not being able to help her teammates physically during the season.

“You always feel like it’s your fault because you’re sitting there helpless,” Haverly said. “So it was really frustrating, but it was just more incentive to work even harder in rehab.”

After the season, the team resolved to be the hardest-working in the country.

“You can’t hope to win. You have to put in the work to win,” IU Coach Sherry Dunbar said. “I think they can honestly look back and say, ‘We worked as hard as we possibly could, and we dedicated this entire summer to not coming in and putting in a little time, but coming in and busting it every single morning at 6:15.’”

One important change was the addition of a new strength and conditioning coach, Chris Virtue.

Some of Virtue’s new players said they feel the push he gave them has opened their eyes to what hard work is.

“We’ve worked harder than we’ve ever worked,” Haverly said. “We’re more determined than we’ve ever been. We’re just tougher.”

Marschall said going through the experience of training has brought the team closer and sharpened its chemistry.

“We’ve done so much with mental training and mental toughness,” she said. “And
being put through physical tests to improve our mental toughness and working together have made us have way more chemistry.”

Senior setter Whitney Granado is out battling a case of mononucleosis until late
September.

Until Granado’s return, freshman setter Katie Gallagher is taking her place.

“It’s obviously a huge loss when your senior setter who’s been playing for the past three years can’t start with you,” Haverly said. “So to go from somebody you know like the back of your hand to someone brand new is obviously a challenge, but I know Katie can do it.”

Granado is not absent from the team. She comes to practices and coaches her teammates from the sidelines.

“It’s nice to still have Whitney on the sideline talking to us,” Marschall said. “She’s got that leadership personality, and she definitely still helps us and definitely still coaches us.”

Granado, Marschall and Haverly were appointed team captains by their teammates and are expected to be the leaders this season.

“You have to make sure who wants to be captain,” Dunbar said. “I think it’s a huge sacrifice. It’s not a burden, but it’s heavy. You got the team on you, and you have to do everything great.

“You can’t have off days. I’m not saying you’re going to play perfect all the time, but you can’t mentally have off days because you’re leading a program.”

A new rule change allows teams to make 15 substitutions, an increase from 12 in previous years. Dunbar said this will benefit IU greatly.

“Last year, we used 12 subs every single set,” Dunbar said. “It gives us more options when we have four (defensive specialists) that are good, and if we play Marschall all the way around but she’s not having a great back-row experience, we can sub somebody in right away.”

The team’s main obstacle is the fear of having another poor season, Marschall said.

“I think that’s our number-one thing this year is getting rid of that fear,” Marschall said. “Fear of losing, fear of repeating anything like that is something we got to get rid of. Otherwise, it will hold us back.”