Women's Volleyball
Sophomore Bianca Sauls led the Mavericks as a freshman with 3.04 kills per game |
UT ARLINGTON USES YOUTH MOVEMENT TO CARRY SUCCESSFUL TRADITION INTO 2008
July 17, 2008
ARLINGTON, Texas - When most collegiate volleyball programs graduate five starters, including three All-Conference performers, the following season is typically thought of as a rebuilding year. That philosophy doesn't belong to UT Arlington fifth-year head coach Diane Seymour, who believes her recruiting class of seven freshmen will help reload the Mavericks. UT Arlington will once again look to be a top contender in the SLC, especially considering the Mavericks return sophomore standout Bianca Sauls (Pflugerville, Texas), and two-year starter Teena Sobczak (Plano, Texas).
Athleticism and raw talent might best describe the Mavs newcomers. Also in the mix this season will be several key returners who might not have received the amount of playing time they wanted last season, but have benefited from the experience of working and playing with a talented class of veterans from a year ago.
"I've never liked to use the term rebuilding," Seymour said. "I'd like to use the term that we are reloading. I can understand if we are not picked very high in the pre-season polls, but I don't think we are going to play as young as people think."
Seymour had a similar situation in 2001 when she was an assistant coach at UT Arlington, after the Mavs graduated a large group of seniors following the 2000 season.
"We brought in six or seven new players, with only one junior-college player," Seymour said of the 2001 Mavericks squad. "We asked freshmen to step on the court and to play right away. We had a freshman middle, a freshman setter, and a freshman right side with only two returning starters, and we went on to win a conference championship that season. It can be done."
Outside Hitter
The Mavericks will have their most depth at this position with All-Conference candidate Bianca Sauls, senior Ally Wade (Richardson, Texas), and two-year starter Teena Sobczak along with four incoming freshmen who will look to challenge for a starting position.
It didn't take long for Sauls to adjust to the Division I level recording a team-high 3.04 kills per game as a freshman.
"It is hard for me to imagine how good Bianca's freshman year was," Seymour said. "I go back and look and she led us in kills per game and was second in total kills. This season we are going to move her over to the right side, where Torie Dacus left as a four-year starter. We think this will be a good compliment for Bianca, which is a more natural position for her. This will put Bianca in a position where she can get a lot of kills and provide some solid play on the right side."
Sobczak was among team leaders as a sophomore with 12 double-doubles, also ranking third on the team in digs (356) and kills (247). She posted 431 kills as a freshman - second all-time - and her 1,343 attempts set a freshman school record.
"Teena is by far our most experienced ball-control player," Seymour said. "We would like to see her get back and have some numbers like she put up during her freshman season. We will also rely on her a lot to keep us steady on defense and in our serve-receive pattern. A lot will be expected of Teena this year."
Wade, a three-year letterwinner, is one of only two seniors on the Mavericks roster and is expected to provide leadership after having a strong spring season.
"She had a tremendous spring," Seymour said. "She is really hungry to get on the floor this year. She came in behind a class of six freshmen, so she hasn't gotten a lot of playing time. She has worked hard every year for us and I think it is going to pay off for her this year. A lot of people last spring mentioned how hard she was hitting the ball. We are hoping she will play with leadership even though she doesn't have a bunch of matches under her belt."
Tara Frantz (Santa Fe, Texas), a three-time All-Galveston County selection, is a 6-foot-1 freshman who will look to give the Mavs immediate impact at the outside hitter position.
"Tara has huge upside," Seymour said. "She will probably be the biggest outside hitter we've had since Heather Hoy (1994-97), who put up tremendous numbers. Tara is a very good jumper, she hits the ball extremely high and she can jump and touch the rim. One area that is very important in this conference, especially when playing Stephen F. (Austin) and Texas State, is blocking the back-slide from the middle attacker, and this is one place that we think Tara can help us tremendously."
Freshman Alicia Shaffer (Magnolia, Texas) gives UT Arlington options with her ability to play as an outside hitter or in the libero position. Her high school career accolades include being named a 2006- 2007 Prep All-American "Defensive Dandy", and earning First Team All-District and Academic All-District honors.
"Alicia is a kid we really wanted to get on this team," Seymour said. "She has great ball control and will provide us with some outside hitter depth. We really look to see her challenge for the libero spot. She has a good jump serve, has a feel for the defensive part of the game and gets a good read on the ball. I think she can put up some big defensive numbers and be a steady player in our serve-receive pattern."
After leading her high school team in kills, aces, digs and hitting percentage in 2007, freshman Lauren Carpenter (Murphy, Texas) will look to take her game to the next level with UT Arlington.
"Lauren is a real steady and all-around competitive player," Seymour said. "She will provide great depth for us at the outside hitter position. I can see her challenge for some playing time because she is consistent in her overall game."
Amanda Aguilera (Pearland, Texas) was named one of the Top 25 "Players to Watch" in the Houston area prior to her senior season, and the 5-foot-10 standout didn't disappoint. She finished her prep career as a top performer in the District 24-5A and also garnered M.V.P. honors at the Spring Branch Tournament.
"Amanda reminds us of another former UTA player, Amber Pack (1999-2002), who put up great numbers in this program," Seymour said. "She has a cannon for an arm swing. She can hit a good shot and pound it through the block with a solid overall game. This is another player who will be in the mix for playing time immediately."
Middle Blocker
This will be a position with plenty of new faces with the graduation of Gina Kalb and Ellen Murray (all-time UT Arlington record holder for career block assists). Senior Michelle Schwartz (Tomball, Texas) is the only player at this position with collegiate experience, but the talent available to Seymour will provide the Mavericks with a lot of options during the season.
Schwartz has played in 32 career matches, with her finest campaign coming as a sophomore when she posted 50 kills, a .252 hitting percentage, seven service aces and 32 total blocks. Her experience at the net will be an asset with a young core this season.
"Hopefully Michelle can go back and put up some numbers like she did a couple years ago," Seymour said. "We are going to look to Michelle to be a leader for these middle blockers. She is the most offensive among the middle blockers, but the question will be if she can keep up with the rest of the middles in the blocking scheme."
Redshirt-freshman Christy Driscoll (Roanoke, Texas) returns to the UT Arlington program and will look to make an impact this season.
"Christy is coming off a strong freshman spring season," Seymour said. "She is a player we are excited to have. She is another kid that jumps up and touches 10-feet. She is going to probably be our most dynamic middle blocker. I'm hoping she won't play like a freshman, rather play like a sophomore, even though she is a redshirt freshman. I think we will see some surprising numbers from her. We are expecting a lot from her, but I think she can handle it."
Freshman Emily Shearin (Dallas, Texas) enters the collegiate level after being named the 13-4A Most Valuable Player as a senior. Shearin comes from an athletic background where her father, cousin, uncle, grandfather and great-grandfather all played at the collegiate or professional levels.
Shearin will look to be an immediate threat defensively for the Mavs in 2008.
"Emily is the best blocker I have seen in a long time," Seymour said. "Offense will be one thing we will have to work on, but the reason we signed her is because she is a natural at the net. She has good size at 6-foot-1, she makes a good lateral move, and she can flat out block the ball."
Anna Schepcoff (Houston, Texas) has played against top competition the past three years competing in the Junior Olympics and was a three-time First Team All-District selection. She will be another option that Seymour will have at the middle blockers position this season.
"Anna is a really good blocker and jumps extremely well," Seymour said. "She is a player that I feel will contribute quite a bit, and will give us added depth in the middle."
Setter
Sophomore Raegan Daniel (Arlington, Texas) takes over the setter position from graduated senior Emily Nedderman, who was a three-year starter with the Mavs. Daniel played in 19 games during her freshman season while chipping in 17 assists and 10 digs.
"We are excited to finally see Raegan take over this offense," Seymour said. "She got a chance to watch Emily, which was great for a couple of years, and was able to see her captain her team. Raegan is a kid that I knew from the day I saw her play as a sophomore in high school that I wanted her to be the setter here at UTA. She understands what is expected of her, knows what our offensive system is and handles her teammates extremely well. She is going to do a good job at really mixing things up with our offense and playing good defense as well."
Libero
It will be the second straight year the Mavs have had to replace an all-conference libero. Ashley Smith, the all-time leader in digs (1,921), and Dani Johnson (1,446 career digs) each left their mark on the program's historic legacy, and now it will be up to Katie Utecht (Fort Worth, Texas) and Shaffer to take over the reins in the Mavs back court.
Utecht saw limited action as a true freshman last season while collecting seven digs and one ace on the season.
"Our team really loves this kid," Seymour said. "She did a good job coming off the bench last year, and she learned a lot from our senior libero last season (Dani Johnson). Katie is capable of playing in the back row at any moment. We will look for Katie to get out on the floor quite a bit this year."