LOVB Omaha Beats Madison with Balance, San Diego Deals Indy Their First Loss of the PVF Season
In this episode of Volley Talk, we take a close look at the LOVB Omaha vs LOVB Madison match, and discuss what happened in the Indy Ignite's first PVF loss of the season.
Sarah & Adam answer some listener questions, play a fun round of Level of Concern, and share what has been happening in NCAA men's volleyball this week!
If you have questions for us or topics you would like us to explore, drop us a line on Instagram or email us at info@sarahpavan.com!
Instagram: http://instagram.com/volleytalk_podcast
2025-01-27
59 min
Transcript
7 chapters
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Transcript
1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,000 Hi volleyball fans and welcome back to Volley Talk, the podcast created for volleyball lovers 2 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:10,520 who want to dig deep into what is going on in NCAA and international volleyball. 3 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:15,160 I'm your host Sarah Pavin, I'm an Olympian, beach volleyball world champion, former Nebraska 4 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:19,560 Cornhusker and longtime pro, both indoor and on the beach. 5 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:24,000 And I'm Adam Schultz, former indoor player, international volleyball coach, and the show's 6 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:26,160 resident stat guy. 7 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:29,520 I'm just gonna say there's a lot less drama this week. 8 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:31,080 Thanks on the volleyball baby. 9 00:00:31,080 --> 00:00:33,440 But still a lot of volleyball happening. 10 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:39,560 So I promise that all of our passion will be directed to actual games. 11 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:42,500 Okay, just a heads up. 12 00:00:42,500 --> 00:00:50,560 We did have some movement happen in the men's NCAA rankings and both love and PVF are rolling, 13 00:00:50,560 --> 00:00:58,160 enough so that we have an incredibly early lay of the land as far as rankings go. 14 00:00:58,160 --> 00:01:02,180 So we are very excited to talk volleyball with you all this week. 15 00:01:02,180 --> 00:01:16,840 So let's get started. 16 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:21,600 Okay I swear this will be the last transfer portal update. 17 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:22,600 Will it? 18 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:25,800 Until the spring, I hope. 19 00:01:25,800 --> 00:01:27,560 But this is just a baby one. 20 00:01:27,560 --> 00:01:34,600 Oregon setter, Kristen Klein, has followed her former head coach, Matt Ulmer, to Kansas. 21 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:35,600 Is this shocking? 22 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:42,180 No, a lot of players do develop connections with their coaches, oftentimes setters. 23 00:01:42,180 --> 00:01:48,040 So she will be joining her head coach at Kansas. 24 00:01:48,040 --> 00:01:52,760 Internationally and close to home for Sarah and I, Canada has hired Giovanni Guedetti 25 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:57,840 as their women's national team head coach, Shannon Windsor, who I will say has done a 26 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:03,320 fantastic job with the program, moves into the position of director of high performance. 27 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:09,560 So we'll see if that tandem can get them over the hump for the Olympics in 2028. 28 00:02:09,560 --> 00:02:10,560 What do you think about that? 29 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:12,400 I'm a little surprised to be honest. 30 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:18,560 I thought Shannon did an incredible job turning around the culture and the mentality of the 31 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:19,560 program. 32 00:02:19,560 --> 00:02:24,800 I'm hoping this was her decision and that she either didn't want to travel as much or 33 00:02:24,800 --> 00:02:29,760 wanted to be close to her family and was looking for some stability. 34 00:02:29,760 --> 00:02:33,600 I hope they didn't push her out to bring in an international coach. 35 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:38,400 Listen, the Canadian program has had several international coaches of very high standard 36 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:44,960 and it hasn't gone well in terms of their expectations, their culture, how they interact 37 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:46,640 with Canadian athletes. 38 00:02:46,640 --> 00:02:54,480 I hope that Shannon has prepared the girls enough to be in that environment because this 39 00:02:54,480 --> 00:02:56,840 could go horribly wrong. 40 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:02,800 With the U.S. getting an automatic birth in 2028, this is their best shot to qualify for 41 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:04,000 the Olympics. 42 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:05,040 He's a great coach. 43 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:07,080 I just hope it doesn't go sideways. 44 00:03:07,080 --> 00:03:10,000 I mean, he had a really bad season on Serbia last year. 45 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,680 I think I personally would have stuck with Shannon, but if she wanted to move on, then 46 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:15,200 you have to replace her with somebody. 47 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:20,120 I thought about reaching out to her and just like inquiring, but if it wasn't her choice, 48 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:22,440 I felt like that would be super insensitive. 49 00:03:22,440 --> 00:03:24,080 So I'm on the same page as you. 50 00:03:24,080 --> 00:03:31,380 Like she has done such an amazing job with that program and has helped elevate them to 51 00:03:31,380 --> 00:03:33,720 be top 10 in the world right now. 52 00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:40,760 If they pushed her out just for a big name, that bothers me because she has like built 53 00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:41,760 that. 54 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:43,640 Well, hope it goes well. 55 00:03:43,640 --> 00:03:45,800 As Adam said, this is Canada's chance. 56 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:47,840 So let's make it up. 57 00:03:47,840 --> 00:03:49,480 In NCAA men's volleyball. 58 00:03:49,480 --> 00:03:55,000 So based on a recording schedule, UCLA and Ohio State were playing as we were recording. 59 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:56,600 We thought it would be straightforward. 60 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:57,600 It wasn't. 61 00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:00,640 Ohio State beat UCLA in four. 62 00:04:00,640 --> 00:04:08,160 So that loss pushed UCLA from number one to number three in the AVCA rankings, which meant 63 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:12,820 that this week we had a new number one in Long Beach State. 64 00:04:12,820 --> 00:04:20,440 So with that shuffle this week, number two UC Irvine beat number five BYU in both of their 65 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:21,920 head to head matches. 66 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:25,800 The first one in five, the second one three straight. 67 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:32,920 Number 16 UCSB upset number 10 Grand Canyon in the first match of their back to back three 68 00:04:32,920 --> 00:04:38,720 straight, but then Grand Canyon got it together on Saturday winning in five. 69 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:43,580 So not sure what that is going to do to the rankings of those teams. 70 00:04:43,580 --> 00:04:47,980 And UCLA righted the ship after their loss to Ohio State last weekend. 71 00:04:47,980 --> 00:04:53,620 They beat Cal State Northridge and UC San Diego both in four this week. 72 00:04:53,620 --> 00:05:00,720 So I'm assuming the rankings will stay as they are, but we might have a little bit of 73 00:05:00,720 --> 00:05:04,640 a mix up in the like 10 to 15 range. 74 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:12,640 Moving on to love, the head to head match was Salt Lake beating Houston in four and 75 00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:19,260 on the weekend matches Omaha defeated Madison also in four and then lost to Austin three 76 00:05:19,260 --> 00:05:23,080 zero while Atlanta beat Madison in five. 77 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:24,440 So there were some close games. 78 00:05:24,440 --> 00:05:26,560 Madison's going through it. 79 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:31,840 Madison is struggling and I was not expecting that to be honest. 80 00:05:31,840 --> 00:05:36,440 I thought they were going to be one of the top teams. 81 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:41,920 I had to answer some questions for an Italian publication about love. 82 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:47,440 And one of the questions was like, who do you think will be like top three in the league? 83 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:53,000 Let me tell you all the teams that I picked are bottom three of the league. 84 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:55,040 So what do I know? 85 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:58,160 I expected Madison to be so much better. 86 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:01,280 Obviously, it's still early in the season, but like, come on. 87 00:06:01,280 --> 00:06:02,600 There are four matches in. 88 00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:06,080 So here are the current standings in love. 89 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:15,040 We have Omaha leading the league, then Atlanta, Salt Lake, Houston, Austin, and Madison. 90 00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:21,720 I thought Texas as a state was going to be high in the standings. 91 00:06:21,720 --> 00:06:22,720 So did I. 92 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:28,600 I had obviously, as I said, the bottom three teams, Houston, Austin, Madison as my like 93 00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:30,080 top. 94 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:33,240 I thought Atlanta would be the worst. 95 00:06:33,240 --> 00:06:37,720 And Omaha, there's something we'll talk about this later, but there's something to be said 96 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:41,200 for ball control and balance. 97 00:06:41,200 --> 00:06:46,760 We'll just say that on the PVF side, the San Diego Mojo handed the Indian night their first 98 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:49,360 loss of the season on Friday. 99 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:56,560 So Indy Atlanta, Omaha and San Diego are in the top four of the standings right now. 100 00:06:56,560 --> 00:06:59,320 But there's still a lot of parity. 101 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:04,360 There needs to be a lot more games played for those middle group of teams to kind of 102 00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:06,320 separate themselves from each other. 103 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:10,420 But one thing is certain Columbus is alone at the bottom. 104 00:07:10,420 --> 00:07:13,760 They are the only team that has yet to win a match. 105 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:17,560 So hopefully they'll be able to turn things around here soon. 106 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:20,920 That might have been our quickest weekly highlights ever. 107 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:21,920 Look at that. 108 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:28,440 Just the straight facts, just volleyball or just results, facts, standings. 109 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:30,600 We made it quick today. 110 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:32,760 That's what happens when there's no drama. 111 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:34,140 We had a bunch of matches. 112 00:07:34,140 --> 00:07:35,400 There was some good volleyball. 113 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:41,200 We'll get into some of the match statistics and analysis, but with no drama, those are 114 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:42,200 the stats. 115 00:07:42,200 --> 00:07:49,280 The one thing I do want to ask you listeners is we are totally interested in NCAA men's 116 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:50,280 volleyball. 117 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:57,600 But and I know we covered a match in depth last week, but the majority, the vast majority 118 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:03,400 of the feedback and conversations and things that are happening are around the women's 119 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:04,900 matches that we're sharing. 120 00:08:04,900 --> 00:08:06,800 So please let us know. 121 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:13,160 Do you want us to continue covering men's matches as part of our feature match section? 122 00:08:13,160 --> 00:08:18,840 Or would you rather us just keep you informed, keep them in the highlight section, but then 123 00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:20,420 focus on the women's matches? 124 00:08:20,420 --> 00:08:22,720 So please, please let us know. 125 00:08:22,720 --> 00:08:30,760 All right, our first feature match of the week is love Omaha versus love Madison. 126 00:08:30,760 --> 00:08:36,520 I had a lot of fun watching this match and it was kind of like a soap opera for me because 127 00:08:36,520 --> 00:08:39,240 it did not happen the way I expected it to. 128 00:08:39,240 --> 00:08:40,840 I was pretty surprised. 129 00:08:40,840 --> 00:08:51,200 My initial impression was Stivrans was unstoppable and Madison's left side defense was atrocious 130 00:08:51,200 --> 00:08:52,320 overall. 131 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:55,360 That was that was my initial takeaway. 132 00:08:55,360 --> 00:09:03,520 I want them like please on some replays show us from the end line because I was wondering 133 00:09:03,520 --> 00:09:07,400 what the heck are Madison's left sides doing on the block. 134 00:09:07,400 --> 00:09:12,600 We all know Lauren Stivrans is the queen of the slide, but like I think she was hitting 135 00:09:12,600 --> 00:09:14,440 a thousand percent at one. 136 00:09:14,440 --> 00:09:16,120 We're not even getting touchless. 137 00:09:16,120 --> 00:09:18,120 We're exceeding a hundred percent here. 138 00:09:18,120 --> 00:09:19,800 We're a thousand percent. 139 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:20,800 Okay. 140 00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:23,680 Because it was wild to watch. 141 00:09:23,680 --> 00:09:31,160 I'm like, yes, she is good, but like let's coordinate our block defense here, Madison. 142 00:09:31,160 --> 00:09:39,160 I wanted to see where the Madison left sides were lining up and because from the sideline, 143 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:43,000 the side view, you can't really tell the end view. 144 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:47,200 You get such a better picture of the defensive scheme. 145 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:52,080 I was like girls, get your lineup together or something, please. 146 00:09:52,080 --> 00:09:59,360 So one of the kind of overarching themes for me watching that match was Omaha was connected 147 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:00,480 defensively. 148 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:04,800 Their block took away something and their defense took away the rest of it and they 149 00:10:04,800 --> 00:10:09,120 did out block them, but they also got a ton of touches and slowdowns. 150 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:13,120 Their block was disciplined and their defense played around it. 151 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:17,720 Whereas Madison watching them play defense, they felt like a bunch of individuals. 152 00:10:17,720 --> 00:10:22,440 The blockers were trying to get blocks and missing and then the defense didn't know what 153 00:10:22,440 --> 00:10:24,520 they were doing or where to fill in. 154 00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:31,160 It never seemed like they were trying to funnel the hitters into a zone or take away a space 155 00:10:31,160 --> 00:10:32,160 and play around it. 156 00:10:32,160 --> 00:10:33,160 Well, yeah. 157 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:38,400 And I was getting confused too, because like they would get a couple digs and then all 158 00:10:38,400 --> 00:10:42,360 of a sudden the defender would completely change their position, but the hitter hit 159 00:10:42,360 --> 00:10:44,520 the exact same angle they had been hit. 160 00:10:44,520 --> 00:10:47,840 And I was just like, who's making these decisions? 161 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:53,080 Or yeah, like you said, or are you all just deciding what to do on your own? 162 00:10:53,080 --> 00:10:59,800 I was shocked how much deep angle they were leaving open for Drevniak. 163 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:05,440 The position six defender was completely shifting over to the line seam. 164 00:11:05,440 --> 00:11:10,480 Carlini was shifting over into the sharp angle and then randomly would jump into her left 165 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:12,480 and get beat, but whatever. 166 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:14,120 The whole deep corner was open. 167 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:15,600 I'm like, what are you doing? 168 00:11:15,600 --> 00:11:22,280 It seems their defense for the Madison right sides was completely reactionary. 169 00:11:22,280 --> 00:11:25,200 So something would happen and then they would shift and try and take that away and open 170 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:26,360 up something else. 171 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:31,480 You have Carlini, who is a fantastic defensive player. 172 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:37,640 When she's in the back row digging, take your block, take away the line, funnel it towards 173 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:38,640 her. 174 00:11:38,640 --> 00:11:41,680 You can't set afterwards, but at least you're going to get some transition opportunities. 175 00:11:41,680 --> 00:11:44,760 Especially because their libero wasn't doing much for that match. 176 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:52,240 So it just, it didn't seem coordinated or well thought out from a Madison defensive 177 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:55,520 standpoint specifically on the right sides. 178 00:11:55,520 --> 00:12:00,440 Switching topics real quick, talking about Lauren Carlini taking the first ball. 179 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:03,520 How many times is this woman going to have to pass a free ball? 180 00:12:03,520 --> 00:12:05,700 That was mind blowing. 181 00:12:05,700 --> 00:12:08,480 This isn't the first match that we've noticed that though, either. 182 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:09,480 You know what? 183 00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:12,680 Front row, middle, right side, step in and pass the free ball. 184 00:12:12,680 --> 00:12:14,720 Your setter should not be taking it. 185 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:15,720 Libero. 186 00:12:15,720 --> 00:12:16,720 Okay. 187 00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:17,720 Somebody. 188 00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:19,400 It's wild, but that was just a side point. 189 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:20,400 Okay. 190 00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:21,400 Continue. 191 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:24,360 I think that was a real indicator of how the match went because points were pretty hard 192 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:25,960 to come by in general. 193 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:27,960 Like Omaha kept some rallies going. 194 00:12:27,960 --> 00:12:31,620 There were lots of extended rallies in this match. 195 00:12:31,620 --> 00:12:37,160 Madison actually dug more balls than Omaha, but they never seemed controlled or like they 196 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:39,800 were able to get really good transition opportunities. 197 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:42,020 Whereas Omaha didn't need as many digs. 198 00:12:42,020 --> 00:12:43,240 They were getting good touches. 199 00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:44,240 They were in system. 200 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:46,620 They were able to deliver an attack and transition. 201 00:12:46,620 --> 00:12:49,160 So that to me was a big factor in the match. 202 00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:53,400 I was surprised at how often Madison was running Shousei out of the back row. 203 00:12:53,400 --> 00:13:00,760 I felt like looking at the final match stats, Franklin did get a decent amount of sets, 204 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:06,460 but like watching it in real time, it felt like they were not setting her at all. 205 00:13:06,460 --> 00:13:12,160 I felt like so many balls were being set to Shousei even when Franklin was in the front 206 00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:13,160 row. 207 00:13:13,160 --> 00:13:16,440 Well, and especially in the first two sets, I watching the first two sets of the match, 208 00:13:16,440 --> 00:13:20,980 I thought Sarah Franklin must've had a shoulder injury or they were trying specifically not 209 00:13:20,980 --> 00:13:22,440 to set her overall. 210 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:30,120 Sarah Franklin got 31 sets compared to Thomas Ilarra's 35 and Claire Shousei's 40. 211 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:31,120 And I don't know. 212 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:32,120 Go ahead. 213 00:13:32,120 --> 00:13:33,720 Shousei got yanked in like set three or something. 214 00:13:33,720 --> 00:13:34,720 Correct. 215 00:13:34,720 --> 00:13:40,600 It just, it seemed like they were trying to save her shoulder at the beginning to me. 216 00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:44,680 And then when it wasn't going the way they planned, then they tried to set her and get 217 00:13:44,680 --> 00:13:47,080 her going later on in the match. 218 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:54,320 The last thing that I have for Madison before we can talk about Omaha is Anna Hall was in 219 00:13:54,320 --> 00:13:57,020 the lineup for Madison for the first time. 220 00:13:57,020 --> 00:14:03,260 She got subbed out in the third and Bia was put in the Brazilian middle blocker that we 221 00:14:03,260 --> 00:14:04,960 have seen play for them. 222 00:14:04,960 --> 00:14:06,720 What were your thoughts on her? 223 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:10,280 Before we talk about her play, and I thought she did some very good things. 224 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:12,840 I'm curious about the glasses situation. 225 00:14:12,840 --> 00:14:14,660 I don't know if anybody else noticed this. 226 00:14:14,660 --> 00:14:20,840 She wore her glasses only in the front row and then took them off to serve. 227 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:26,120 And I'm curious if she needs them to actually see or if, cause playing defense though being 228 00:14:26,120 --> 00:14:27,120 able to say seems tough. 229 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,780 I'm like, what are these bifocals? 230 00:14:30,780 --> 00:14:34,280 But also if you're worried about getting hit in the face, it hurts more to get hit with 231 00:14:34,280 --> 00:14:37,480 glasses I think than without glasses. 232 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:43,000 And if you've gotten blown up in the face or you're, you have an eye injury and that's 233 00:14:43,000 --> 00:14:44,600 why you're wearing your glasses. 234 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:48,840 No offense, but as a middle, put those glasses on in the back row. 235 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:49,840 You know what I'm saying? 236 00:14:49,840 --> 00:14:53,720 Like protect those eyeballs because I feel like the middles are the most likely to get 237 00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:54,720 hit in the face. 238 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:55,720 On defense for sure. 239 00:14:55,720 --> 00:14:57,000 Probably walking too. 240 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:01,160 Anyway, that was aside from her play, that was just a curiosity that I noticed during 241 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:05,180 the match and I was wondering why that was happening, but I thought she did a pretty 242 00:15:05,180 --> 00:15:06,240 good job. 243 00:15:06,240 --> 00:15:07,240 She worked hard. 244 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:08,880 She made herself available in transition. 245 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:12,920 I thought laterally she moved pretty well to take up space and balked well. 246 00:15:12,920 --> 00:15:19,200 I thought overall they didn't run their middles enough, but I thought she was fine. 247 00:15:19,200 --> 00:15:22,280 She was very dynamic, very quick off the ground, jumped really well. 248 00:15:22,280 --> 00:15:25,800 I was surprised that Carlini wasn't setting her more. 249 00:15:25,800 --> 00:15:27,520 It was interesting to see that switch though. 250 00:15:27,520 --> 00:15:33,560 Yeah, I didn't think their offense, it just didn't seem like they had a plan either offensively 251 00:15:33,560 --> 00:15:34,720 or defensively. 252 00:15:34,720 --> 00:15:38,560 Madison in general seemed to reacted in that match to me. 253 00:15:38,560 --> 00:15:42,720 Interesting that Annie Schumacher was dressed for this match, but still didn't play and 254 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:44,880 they chose to play Thomas I. 255 00:15:44,880 --> 00:15:46,260 Laura instead. 256 00:15:46,260 --> 00:15:48,400 I found that very curious. 257 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:53,680 And I will say again, watching this match and I wasn't, this is not fair for her, but 258 00:15:53,680 --> 00:15:56,160 I didn't think she was scoring enough. 259 00:15:56,160 --> 00:16:01,280 You were hating on her so much and I'm like, she's scoring points, dude. 260 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:05,320 It just, it didn't look good to me, especially at the beginning. 261 00:16:05,320 --> 00:16:09,960 She got better as the match went on and she finished stats wise very well. 262 00:16:09,960 --> 00:16:11,840 Also look how many digs she had. 263 00:16:11,840 --> 00:16:17,980 Again, like I said, this was one of those performances by her where the eye test for 264 00:16:17,980 --> 00:16:20,560 me just, it wasn't there. 265 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:24,120 And then I looked at the stats afterwards and I thought, man, she played really well. 266 00:16:24,120 --> 00:16:25,600 What was I watching? 267 00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:28,280 But she had the most points on the team at 17. 268 00:16:28,280 --> 00:16:30,280 She hit 314. 269 00:16:30,280 --> 00:16:33,480 She had 15 digs, like kudos to her. 270 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:35,280 She found ways to score. 271 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:38,360 It just, it didn't, it didn't look good to me. 272 00:16:38,360 --> 00:16:41,040 So I, yeah, I was wrong. 273 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:42,040 Okay. 274 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:43,240 On to Omaha. 275 00:16:43,240 --> 00:16:48,960 We had not watched Omaha play until after we recorded last week. 276 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:53,960 I did not think that they were going to be a threat in the league. 277 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:55,520 I will be honest. 278 00:16:55,520 --> 00:17:02,360 I just didn't think they had enough firepower, but they have proven that if your block and 279 00:17:02,360 --> 00:17:06,120 defense are working, you will eventually score points. 280 00:17:06,120 --> 00:17:12,280 Ball control in Jordan Larson and Justine Wong-Arantes, like they hold it down in the 281 00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:14,120 back row. 282 00:17:14,120 --> 00:17:16,360 So that is a great place to start. 283 00:17:16,360 --> 00:17:21,520 Your setter does not have to do much running to get the offense going unless Jaylee Winters 284 00:17:21,520 --> 00:17:24,240 is passing. 285 00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:25,240 Come at me with that. 286 00:17:25,240 --> 00:17:26,240 I don't care. 287 00:17:26,240 --> 00:17:27,240 She's not a good passer. 288 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:31,640 It's kind of wild, but yeah, we talked about Stiverance being great on the slide. 289 00:17:31,640 --> 00:17:38,360 I think that that I'm not a fan of the six two that I feel is a very good use of it. 290 00:17:38,360 --> 00:17:39,360 Absolutely. 291 00:17:39,360 --> 00:17:44,680 I mean, Stiverance is a dynamic athlete and you want to get her on the floor and involved 292 00:17:44,680 --> 00:17:46,280 as much as possible. 293 00:17:46,280 --> 00:17:48,320 I like her running the slide. 294 00:17:48,320 --> 00:17:53,560 I think long term, she's going to need to learn to hit out of system on the right side 295 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:54,600 for them to use her. 296 00:17:54,600 --> 00:17:59,440 So it's a great use and it plays into Omaha's strength because they're a really good ball 297 00:17:59,440 --> 00:18:00,440 control. 298 00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:04,960 So they can, they're in system a lot in general, so they can utilize that slide. 299 00:18:04,960 --> 00:18:11,120 But as an opposite, as you know, you want that player to be your outlet in transition. 300 00:18:11,120 --> 00:18:14,720 So obviously she's three weeks into playing on the right side. 301 00:18:14,720 --> 00:18:16,480 I'm sure she'll figure it out. 302 00:18:16,480 --> 00:18:21,120 She's big, she's athletic, but transitioning between hitting that slide and then being 303 00:18:21,120 --> 00:18:26,440 an outlet in transition, I think will be important for their long term success. 304 00:18:26,440 --> 00:18:29,400 Yeah, they're definitely avoiding setting her out of system. 305 00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:35,280 I think I saw her jump off of two feet one time in the match against Madison and it did 306 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:36,280 not go well. 307 00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:39,000 I was going to say, was it on the block? 308 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:42,880 No, one time on the attack and it was a little wonky. 309 00:18:42,880 --> 00:18:47,760 So they do have her in the front row with Winters, which is not by accident. 310 00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:52,840 I think, you know, Winters is definitely the outlet when things go sideways in that lineup. 311 00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:56,920 But yeah, as an opposite, you do need to know how to hit out of system. 312 00:18:56,920 --> 00:19:00,120 And so that is something that she can try to add to her arsenal. 313 00:19:00,120 --> 00:19:07,120 I personally am very impressed with Drevniok, the opposite, the German opposite. 314 00:19:07,120 --> 00:19:09,160 She is fun to watch. 315 00:19:09,160 --> 00:19:13,640 She has she hits multiple angles, good out of system. 316 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:16,600 She keeps taking rips, even if the sets aren't there. 317 00:19:16,600 --> 00:19:18,160 I like her. 318 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:19,680 She knows her role in the team. 319 00:19:19,680 --> 00:19:28,680 I think overall, Omaha has maximized their rosters, skills and personnel incredibly well. 320 00:19:28,680 --> 00:19:29,680 Good ball control. 321 00:19:29,680 --> 00:19:31,840 You can you put Stiverns in and use her. 322 00:19:31,840 --> 00:19:37,240 Drevniak has a good out of system swing and you can use her to score points. 323 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:39,560 I think she's solid all the way around. 324 00:19:39,560 --> 00:19:40,560 Good fundamentals. 325 00:19:40,560 --> 00:19:42,400 I agree with you. 326 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:45,520 They have been very deliberate in their lineup. 327 00:19:45,520 --> 00:19:52,320 As I said, their passing and defense in Larson and Juanerontes is solid. 328 00:19:52,320 --> 00:19:55,440 They have Drevniak and Larson in the front together. 329 00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:59,060 Drevniak is getting fed the majority of out of system balls. 330 00:19:59,060 --> 00:20:02,200 And then as I said, we have Stiverns and Winters together. 331 00:20:02,200 --> 00:20:09,280 So it's very clear where they want to set the out of system balls at any given time. 332 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:14,560 But the player who impressed me the most was Candelaria Herrera. 333 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:16,860 She was outstanding. 334 00:20:16,860 --> 00:20:22,400 She played very, very well, both from a blocking perspective and an offensive perspective. 335 00:20:22,400 --> 00:20:28,560 I love how fast this woman loads her arm on the attack. 336 00:20:28,560 --> 00:20:30,360 Her window is so big. 337 00:20:30,360 --> 00:20:33,440 And Laura Dikema, she has had a great career. 338 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:36,280 Do I think that she's the best setter in love right now? 339 00:20:36,280 --> 00:20:37,520 Absolutely not. 340 00:20:37,520 --> 00:20:44,840 She's missing sometimes, but because Herrera's elbow is loaded so early, she's able to fix 341 00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:49,920 so many questionable sets that most middles maybe struggle with. 342 00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:56,440 Well, and she is off the ground fast and early so the setter can see her, which makes her 343 00:20:56,440 --> 00:20:58,200 easier to set. 344 00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:02,360 I thought she personally, I would have given her player of the game. 345 00:21:02,360 --> 00:21:03,840 Oh, Dravnjak got it. 346 00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:08,520 Dravnjak got it and well deserved, statistically very, very good. 347 00:21:08,520 --> 00:21:14,040 But what Herrera did for them, I thought was incredibly valuable. 348 00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:19,880 And then finally, what I'll say about watching Omaha was, and this is a byproduct of again, 349 00:21:19,880 --> 00:21:26,480 I think them leaning into their team strengths, their set distribution as a team was incredibly 350 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:27,480 balanced. 351 00:21:27,480 --> 00:21:30,480 They had Winters had 47 attacks. 352 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:32,280 She's getting a lot of out of system balls. 353 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:34,960 Then you have Dravnjak next at 37. 354 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:38,640 So that makes sense that they're the two highest because they're also getting the out of system 355 00:21:38,640 --> 00:21:40,200 sets. 356 00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:47,120 But then you had Larsen 26, Herrera 18, Stivrans 22, Theta 9. 357 00:21:47,120 --> 00:21:49,940 Overall though, a pretty balanced attack. 358 00:21:49,940 --> 00:21:56,200 And that may be one thing that led to Madison's issue blocking was that they were able to 359 00:21:56,200 --> 00:22:01,040 go to three or four options at any given time, which obviously helps your offense. 360 00:22:01,040 --> 00:22:08,680 This may be a controversial statement, but my take on Omaha is that their middle blockers 361 00:22:08,680 --> 00:22:15,360 and opposites are kind of making up for their outside hitters. 362 00:22:15,360 --> 00:22:18,640 Not making up for that's maybe not fair. 363 00:22:18,640 --> 00:22:26,160 But I feel like the strength of their middles and opposites makes life easier for the left 364 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:27,160 sides. 365 00:22:27,160 --> 00:22:28,960 Do you know what I'm getting at here? 366 00:22:28,960 --> 00:22:34,960 So if we compare Madison and Omaha specifically in this match position by position, I would 367 00:22:34,960 --> 00:22:39,640 say the Madison left sides were taking passing into this. 368 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:47,080 The Madison left sides were better than the Omaha left sides, but Omaha's middles, right 369 00:22:47,080 --> 00:22:50,200 sides and liberos were better outplayed them. 370 00:22:50,200 --> 00:22:55,680 So, and I mean, again, it comes down to knowing your personnel, right? 371 00:22:55,680 --> 00:22:57,000 What are your strengths? 372 00:22:57,000 --> 00:23:02,980 You know, is Larson ball control very good, understands the game, she sees so well that 373 00:23:02,980 --> 00:23:07,240 she can get out of trouble, but she's not blowing anybody up at this point in her career, 374 00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:08,240 right? 375 00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:11,640 You can't rely on her to get you out of trouble offensively. 376 00:23:11,640 --> 00:23:17,300 And Winters played well, but she's also, if Winters, in my opinion, having watched not 377 00:23:17,300 --> 00:23:22,540 enough matches, if she's going to see a solid two man block all match, I think she's going 378 00:23:22,540 --> 00:23:23,540 to struggle. 379 00:23:23,540 --> 00:23:25,600 Now, did she take care of business in this match? 380 00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:26,600 Absolutely. 381 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:30,200 But I think the fact that they're in system, they're running their middles and they're 382 00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:33,800 going to the outside makes life easier on the left sides. 383 00:23:33,800 --> 00:23:35,680 And I would agree with your assessment. 384 00:23:35,680 --> 00:23:41,440 This left side duo is definitely not the strongest offensively in love. 385 00:23:41,440 --> 00:23:45,520 I had never seen Winters play before love. 386 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:48,520 So I've only seen her play a couple matches now. 387 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:51,560 Honestly, I expected more. 388 00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:56,800 In the hype, I feel like A, she doesn't get off the ground. 389 00:23:56,800 --> 00:24:02,920 And B, she is broad jumping so far on her attack. 390 00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:05,680 The height that she's clearing the net is not good. 391 00:24:05,680 --> 00:24:08,520 Plus her passing and defensive struggles. 392 00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:11,240 So as of this moment, I'm not a Winters fan. 393 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:15,280 As far as Jordan, and I know people have been asking, so I'll address it now. 394 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:19,200 Jordan is an incredible ball control player. 395 00:24:19,200 --> 00:24:21,120 Her passing top notch. 396 00:24:21,120 --> 00:24:23,240 Okay, do not serve her the ball. 397 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:27,800 The way she's able to read the game, the way she's able to see the court offensively and 398 00:24:27,800 --> 00:24:30,020 where players are moving. 399 00:24:30,020 --> 00:24:31,020 Very good. 400 00:24:31,020 --> 00:24:38,560 I have so much respect for Jordan and what she has done, what she has accomplished, what 401 00:24:38,560 --> 00:24:43,560 she's done for volleyball in the US in the state of Nebraska. 402 00:24:43,560 --> 00:24:45,400 She's one of the greatest of all time. 403 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:47,720 That being said, she's 38 years old. 404 00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:50,200 Okay, trust me, I'm the same age. 405 00:24:50,200 --> 00:24:53,920 I know she is at this point in time. 406 00:24:53,920 --> 00:25:00,240 She is not playing very high above the net, which makes it tough to score points. 407 00:25:00,240 --> 00:25:07,560 You see her managing because her court vision is so good, but she's not playing high enough 408 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:08,920 above the net. 409 00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:11,240 In my opinion, she used to. 410 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:18,200 There's a reason that you see the oldest players typically in the setter and libero roles because 411 00:25:18,200 --> 00:25:19,980 they don't have to jump. 412 00:25:19,980 --> 00:25:22,600 You don't have to compete above the net. 413 00:25:22,600 --> 00:25:24,400 This is not a knock on her at all. 414 00:25:24,400 --> 00:25:28,200 It's just a byproduct of age. 415 00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:33,600 I think she's managing and making it work, but I just think that from a point scoring 416 00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:40,720 perspective and from an elevation power perspective, the two Omaha left sides, they're not there 417 00:25:40,720 --> 00:25:43,600 compared to other teams in the league right now. 418 00:25:43,600 --> 00:25:49,840 Well, watching Jordan attack, as soon as teams gave her something, as soon as the block wasn't 419 00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:54,320 formed, as soon as the defense moved at all, she was able to see that and put the ball 420 00:25:54,320 --> 00:25:56,560 in the open position. 421 00:25:56,560 --> 00:26:02,520 Where Omaha is going to struggle is if their ball control falls apart, if a team is able 422 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:08,480 to isolate Winters' passing and they have to set the left side in out of system scenarios 423 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:14,580 for a whole match and their block defense is set up to defend that, if they can manage 424 00:26:14,580 --> 00:26:18,160 to get that scenario, Omaha is going to struggle. 425 00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:21,840 They've done a great job playing into their strengths, but that for me, if I'm game planning 426 00:26:21,840 --> 00:26:24,520 against them, is what I'm trying to accomplish. 427 00:26:24,520 --> 00:26:25,960 It was a fun match to watch. 428 00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:26,960 Great rallies. 429 00:26:26,960 --> 00:26:30,520 As we said, not all we expected because we know that I thought Madison would be good. 430 00:26:30,520 --> 00:26:36,200 Yeah, it's just, it was fun to watch a team like Omaha who was so coordinated, who was 431 00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:39,480 so on the same page. 432 00:26:39,480 --> 00:26:45,960 They were very smooth in their ball control, in their defensive system. 433 00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:47,980 It was cool. 434 00:26:47,980 --> 00:26:52,740 They have found their identity as a team and they are playing with that strength in mind. 435 00:26:52,740 --> 00:26:58,540 Our second feature match of the week is PVF San Diego Mojo versus Indy Ignite. 436 00:26:58,540 --> 00:27:05,120 As we said earlier, San Diego handed Indy their first loss of the season. 437 00:27:05,120 --> 00:27:06,120 Initial thoughts. 438 00:27:06,120 --> 00:27:09,520 So I'm still getting to know some of these players. 439 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:15,120 A lot of them I have not watched in college or anywhere, so it's first impressions for 440 00:27:15,120 --> 00:27:16,120 me. 441 00:27:16,120 --> 00:27:21,320 I was impressed with their left sides, how quick they were, how fast they were to the 442 00:27:21,320 --> 00:27:23,160 ball, the speed of their arms. 443 00:27:23,160 --> 00:27:26,360 And it was fun to watch and Indy came flying out of the gate. 444 00:27:26,360 --> 00:27:30,520 I thought it was going to be a three-nothing sweep, which was not the case. 445 00:27:30,520 --> 00:27:35,280 San Diego, I'm not sure they had any, actually the most standout player for San Diego for 446 00:27:35,280 --> 00:27:36,280 me was their setter. 447 00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:38,600 I thought she did an incredible job. 448 00:27:38,600 --> 00:27:42,120 Well, I thought Janasia Moore was unconscious. 449 00:27:42,120 --> 00:27:43,520 That is also true. 450 00:27:43,520 --> 00:27:45,320 Her arm was, she scored on everything. 451 00:27:45,320 --> 00:27:47,280 It was a golden swing. 452 00:27:47,280 --> 00:27:51,480 I had never seen her play before, but if she can replicate that across the season, she 453 00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:52,480 will be... 454 00:27:52,480 --> 00:27:53,480 Because she hasn't. 455 00:27:53,480 --> 00:27:54,480 This was her first start ever. 456 00:27:54,480 --> 00:28:00,000 I mean, we're talking player of the year caliber performance if she can replicate that. 457 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:01,000 It's unconscious. 458 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:04,120 Yeah, Indy definitely started strong. 459 00:28:04,120 --> 00:28:05,280 I agree with you. 460 00:28:05,280 --> 00:28:07,440 I thought it was going to be a sweep. 461 00:28:07,440 --> 00:28:12,160 And then the tables turned and some weird stuff started happening. 462 00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:14,880 So I thought Sydney Haley started the match really well. 463 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:18,680 I thought her offense was really smooth. 464 00:28:18,680 --> 00:28:20,920 Her set distribution was good. 465 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:24,600 And honestly, I thought as the match went on, she got worse and worse. 466 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:27,040 So yeah, I think the setter roles flipped. 467 00:28:27,040 --> 00:28:31,680 I think Lee did not start well and got better as the match went on. 468 00:28:31,680 --> 00:28:34,560 And Haley agreed, got worse as the match went on. 469 00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:37,380 I think San Diego pick up their serving pressure. 470 00:28:37,380 --> 00:28:44,600 And as you were saying, yes, the outsides and opposites for Indy are very dynamic. 471 00:28:44,600 --> 00:28:48,760 They jump well, but like they're very small. 472 00:28:48,760 --> 00:28:53,140 And if passing starts to fall apart and they get a solid double block in front of them, 473 00:28:53,140 --> 00:28:55,520 that thing is coming back fast. 474 00:28:55,520 --> 00:28:58,200 And we started to see that happening. 475 00:28:58,200 --> 00:29:02,520 Granted, Teeler and member Mena were scoring. 476 00:29:02,520 --> 00:29:03,640 They're scoring well. 477 00:29:03,640 --> 00:29:05,280 They were scoring efficiently. 478 00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:10,160 Just the San Diego block defense was able to set up on them early. 479 00:29:10,160 --> 00:29:14,080 So I think I don't know what their hitting percentages were. 480 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:18,320 I know they scored well, but it didn't look as smooth as they were used to. 481 00:29:18,320 --> 00:29:29,140 So member Mena hit 232 on 56 attempts and Teeler hit 171 on 35 attempts. 482 00:29:29,140 --> 00:29:32,520 Like Teeler was unconscious in set one. 483 00:29:32,520 --> 00:29:35,080 And then for me, she kind of disappeared. 484 00:29:35,080 --> 00:29:40,200 And I watching member Mena, I was like, it seemed like a grind. 485 00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:41,200 Yeah. 486 00:29:41,200 --> 00:29:45,640 I thought San Diego made good defensive positional adjustments. 487 00:29:45,640 --> 00:29:52,120 They started to give up the middle attack and move back on defense with their base position. 488 00:29:52,120 --> 00:29:56,560 And they were able to get many more touches on the outside hitters after that first set. 489 00:29:56,560 --> 00:30:00,400 So I thought it was actually a really good team adjustment from a defensive position 490 00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:01,400 standpoint. 491 00:30:01,400 --> 00:30:07,960 Adam's biggest outrage of the match was why is Elena Scott not the starting libero, his 492 00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:09,920 favorite libero of all time? 493 00:30:09,920 --> 00:30:11,720 I'm telling you, she should have been playing. 494 00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:15,380 Every time she came onto the floor, she had positive contributions. 495 00:30:15,380 --> 00:30:17,160 She served well. 496 00:30:17,160 --> 00:30:18,600 She put the team in trouble. 497 00:30:18,600 --> 00:30:19,720 She would make digs. 498 00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:22,240 Her out of system setting, still incredible. 499 00:30:22,240 --> 00:30:24,340 Put the girl on the court. 500 00:30:24,340 --> 00:30:25,340 She's a leader. 501 00:30:25,340 --> 00:30:26,340 She's very skilled. 502 00:30:26,340 --> 00:30:27,760 I want to see her play. 503 00:30:27,760 --> 00:30:28,760 Kylie Myrrh. 504 00:30:28,760 --> 00:30:31,960 She was, I wasn't a huge fan when she was in college. 505 00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:34,040 I like Elena Scott as well. 506 00:30:34,040 --> 00:30:37,400 So I don't, I'm not sure that that change will be coming, you know? 507 00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:39,080 I mean, they're undefeated. 508 00:30:39,080 --> 00:30:40,080 They're playing. 509 00:30:40,080 --> 00:30:41,080 Well, not anymore. 510 00:30:41,080 --> 00:30:42,080 Well, not anymore. 511 00:30:42,080 --> 00:30:43,080 They're under, but they're playing well. 512 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:44,240 I, nothing against her. 513 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:45,240 She played fine. 514 00:30:45,240 --> 00:30:47,280 I'm just an Elena Scott fan. 515 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:49,520 I think she will eventually be a better libero. 516 00:30:49,520 --> 00:30:51,080 We watched San Diego play last week. 517 00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:53,840 I thought this week they looked much smoother. 518 00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:57,640 Lee, as you said, was running a really good offense. 519 00:30:57,640 --> 00:30:59,600 She got involved in the block. 520 00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:05,360 Ronika Stone, I feel is like the foundation of that team. 521 00:31:05,360 --> 00:31:07,680 She obviously has a middle. 522 00:31:07,680 --> 00:31:12,640 She's not getting set a ton, but any opportunity they have to push her the ball, they try to 523 00:31:12,640 --> 00:31:13,720 do that. 524 00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:17,240 As we said, Janasia Moore was pretty much unconscious. 525 00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:22,240 I thought their libero, Venegas also played really well. 526 00:31:22,240 --> 00:31:28,200 It was a big turnaround from when we watched them play Orlando last week to now. 527 00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:30,520 They just seemed more cohesive. 528 00:31:30,520 --> 00:31:34,440 Well, and this is part of being at the beginning of the season, right? 529 00:31:34,440 --> 00:31:36,640 What's happening now is not what's going to happen. 530 00:31:36,640 --> 00:31:40,120 Which coaches are able to implement their systems, get their players to buy in. 531 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:46,440 We're going to see huge improvements in overall philosophy and execution over the next couple 532 00:31:46,440 --> 00:31:47,440 of weeks, I think. 533 00:31:47,440 --> 00:31:53,560 I'm curious to see, did Indy just gel right away and this is who they are? 534 00:31:53,560 --> 00:31:57,480 The other teams are going to catch up because they're going to have to figure out that second 535 00:31:57,480 --> 00:31:59,480 left side position. 536 00:31:59,480 --> 00:32:04,800 Right now, if you look at the score sheet, member Mena had 24 points and Thieler had 537 00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:10,720 18, which is great, but then we're talking their next highest player was Blake at nine. 538 00:32:10,720 --> 00:32:11,720 The distribution- 539 00:32:11,720 --> 00:32:12,720 Blake Muller, the middle. 540 00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:13,720 Correct. 541 00:32:13,720 --> 00:32:15,440 If you were just on a first name basis. 542 00:32:15,440 --> 00:32:18,640 I know all the players so well. 543 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:25,440 I'm just getting to know these players, but me and Blake, we go way back. 544 00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:31,480 The distribution from Hilly, I think she's going to need to find more avenues from points 545 00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:35,480 as teams kind of settle in and figure out what players tendencies are. 546 00:32:35,480 --> 00:32:38,000 One of the sets was super close and Indy had the lead. 547 00:32:38,000 --> 00:32:41,320 I think they were up 24-22 or something crazy. 548 00:32:41,320 --> 00:32:47,560 And then Sydney Hilly kept feeding the ball to Carly Scott, who was hitting negative and 549 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:51,680 getting consistently blocked by the setter, De Youngly. 550 00:32:51,680 --> 00:32:52,680 Why? 551 00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:53,680 Why? 552 00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:57,560 You have set point, run your middles who are actually scoring for you. 553 00:32:57,560 --> 00:32:59,160 I'm pretty sure Muller was in. 554 00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:06,000 The decision making to me cost them that set because they had no business losing that. 555 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:07,200 Well, you're correct. 556 00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:16,880 It was 26-25 for Indy and they set Scott twice and she had two chances to put the set away. 557 00:33:16,880 --> 00:33:22,920 And I think there was an error and like a tip maybe or something like two plays where 558 00:33:22,920 --> 00:33:26,440 she had a good opportunity to finish and she didn't. 559 00:33:26,440 --> 00:33:28,600 And I just didn't think that was the right selection. 560 00:33:28,600 --> 00:33:31,320 You've got two players who had been scoring all match. 561 00:33:31,320 --> 00:33:33,320 Those are the little keys because if you win that set. 562 00:33:33,320 --> 00:33:35,640 Yeah, over to like set member Mena in the back row. 563 00:33:35,640 --> 00:33:36,640 Absolutely. 564 00:33:36,640 --> 00:33:38,060 Like she's dynamic enough. 565 00:33:38,060 --> 00:33:39,060 She jumps well. 566 00:33:39,060 --> 00:33:44,160 She was scoring definitely some questionable decision making, especially at the end of 567 00:33:44,160 --> 00:33:49,460 sets, but also from both setters because at that same time, Lee set the middle instead 568 00:33:49,460 --> 00:33:52,440 of Moore when they were up by one in overtime. 569 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:57,400 And it's like, I get you want to run the middle, but Moore is literally unconscious. 570 00:33:57,400 --> 00:33:59,200 She's scoring on everything, give her the ball. 571 00:33:59,200 --> 00:34:01,040 That one I can get behind that decision. 572 00:34:01,040 --> 00:34:05,520 I can get behind more than Hilli's decision because you're going to set somebody who came 573 00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:10,480 off the bench, who hasn't really done anything while she's been on the court. 574 00:34:10,480 --> 00:34:15,280 She passed pretty well offensively, but like Lee, I can get behind because you're going 575 00:34:15,280 --> 00:34:21,100 to set your middle who that is a foundational player for you as opposed to somebody who 576 00:34:21,100 --> 00:34:22,400 is their first match. 577 00:34:22,400 --> 00:34:28,240 Granted in that match, Moore played amazing, but I can understand the history of like finishing 578 00:34:28,240 --> 00:34:32,640 matches like let's go to our like veteran star player. 579 00:34:32,640 --> 00:34:37,400 Well, Indy started up seven two in that third set and that lead got away from them. 580 00:34:37,400 --> 00:34:44,840 I will say I didn't think Pittman who's the right side for San Diego did much offensively, 581 00:34:44,840 --> 00:34:51,160 but defensively she blocked really well, especially down the stretch and she served well and she 582 00:34:51,160 --> 00:34:55,160 generated a lot of points from the baseline in terms of putting them in trouble and getting 583 00:34:55,160 --> 00:34:56,160 them going. 584 00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:58,080 So I thought that was big for them as well. 585 00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:01,520 Well that's another like stiffen situation. 586 00:35:01,520 --> 00:35:03,240 Pittman played middle in college. 587 00:35:03,240 --> 00:35:10,020 It's a very different game slowing down your approach having to hit high balls out of system. 588 00:35:10,020 --> 00:35:17,720 So I'm not shocked that she's not an offensive powerhouse quite yet, but yeah, she caused 589 00:35:17,720 --> 00:35:24,200 them problems blocking wise and I think her rotation was the best one for them as a point 590 00:35:24,200 --> 00:35:26,080 scoring rotation when she was serving. 591 00:35:26,080 --> 00:35:27,080 Correct. 592 00:35:27,080 --> 00:35:34,220 The crazy thing for me was Indy actually passed much better than San Diego did statistically, 593 00:35:34,220 --> 00:35:40,380 but Lee found a way to run the middles way more than Sydney Hilly did. 594 00:35:40,380 --> 00:35:44,420 And I don't know if you're just comfortable with players and obviously that middle connection 595 00:35:44,420 --> 00:35:49,320 takes some time to establish or if you know, I haven't watched a ton of Indy games so I 596 00:35:49,320 --> 00:35:53,840 don't know if those players and Teeler and member Mena have just been able to carry them, 597 00:35:53,840 --> 00:35:58,720 but she's going to need to figure out how to get those middles involved more, especially 598 00:35:58,720 --> 00:36:00,240 if they're passing as well as they are. 599 00:36:00,240 --> 00:36:05,240 Well, which is crazy because like San Diego had a double block in front of the outsides 600 00:36:05,240 --> 00:36:10,720 like all the time, I guess because they're like, well, no setting the middle. 601 00:36:10,720 --> 00:36:16,520 Member Mena actually got player of the week or whatever last week, so she has been playing 602 00:36:16,520 --> 00:36:17,520 well. 603 00:36:17,520 --> 00:36:23,280 And I mean, points scoring wise, like 24 points in four sets is really good. 604 00:36:23,280 --> 00:36:29,840 I just think I keep going back to the size thing and it's not that I'm against smaller 605 00:36:29,840 --> 00:36:30,840 players. 606 00:36:30,840 --> 00:36:35,960 It's just, again, the height that you're playing above the net and having like hands in your 607 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,560 face as you're swinging. 608 00:36:38,560 --> 00:36:41,560 I they to make their lives easier. 609 00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:45,000 You've got a five eight outside of five nine right side. 610 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:51,760 You need to find ways to create some gaps and some space for them. 611 00:36:51,760 --> 00:36:54,080 And how are you going to do that? 612 00:36:54,080 --> 00:36:55,080 Run the middle. 613 00:36:55,080 --> 00:37:00,500 Well, what did you think about the tempo of sets to those two players or in general from 614 00:37:00,500 --> 00:37:02,840 Sydney Hilly to Lee? 615 00:37:02,840 --> 00:37:10,920 I was surprised how slow Sydney Hilly's offense was considering the size of the hitters. 616 00:37:10,920 --> 00:37:14,360 Normally when you have smaller hitters and we talked about this with the BYU men's match 617 00:37:14,360 --> 00:37:21,280 last week, if you have an undersized hitter, you need to speed it up to create movement, 618 00:37:21,280 --> 00:37:26,280 to create those flashes of seams and space to like help them out. 619 00:37:26,280 --> 00:37:31,880 Big players, they can they get that height above the net that they can create those angles. 620 00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:35,020 But yeah, I thought it would be faster than it was. 621 00:37:35,020 --> 00:37:40,440 So that's my number one change or improvement that Indy will have to do. 622 00:37:40,440 --> 00:37:45,560 Because again, I don't know how many of these players coaches have seen. 623 00:37:45,560 --> 00:37:49,680 Coaches have studied how much film there is, you know, so if you're playing well in your 624 00:37:49,680 --> 00:37:53,700 dynamic, you're going to start off strong just because people don't know your tempo. 625 00:37:53,700 --> 00:37:55,560 They don't know your angles. 626 00:37:55,560 --> 00:37:57,400 But Indy's a new team. 627 00:37:57,400 --> 00:37:58,820 Indy's a new team. 628 00:37:58,820 --> 00:38:03,480 So I'm curious, they got it to a hot start, which is always good. 629 00:38:03,480 --> 00:38:09,260 But as the preparation gets better, as the amount of information and your angles becomes 630 00:38:09,260 --> 00:38:12,320 more apparent, how do you make those adjustments? 631 00:38:12,320 --> 00:38:18,720 And I think Sydney Hilly is good enough to run a more complex and a faster offense. 632 00:38:18,720 --> 00:38:23,140 And I'm curious to see if they're able to make that adjustment, because if they don't, 633 00:38:23,140 --> 00:38:25,120 it could be a long rest of the season for them. 634 00:38:25,120 --> 00:38:30,600 Well, in college, she was playing with massive girls, you know, you're playing with Dana 635 00:38:30,600 --> 00:38:35,600 Recky at 6'8", Anna Smreks 6'9", your outsides are 6'4". 636 00:38:35,600 --> 00:38:40,760 It's a different kind of game when you've got players that are that big. 637 00:38:40,760 --> 00:38:42,960 So that adjustment definitely needs to be made. 638 00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:48,240 But I think like even this head to head battle is a case study in this same discussion and 639 00:38:48,240 --> 00:38:50,920 be that Moore is not huge. 640 00:38:50,920 --> 00:38:57,000 Janasia Moore is like six feet tall, but she was given the opportunity to be very effective 641 00:38:57,000 --> 00:38:58,000 offensively. 642 00:38:58,000 --> 00:38:59,000 Why? 643 00:38:59,000 --> 00:39:05,460 Because Indy was so focused on the San Diego middles in Ronika Stone, and it started Lalo 644 00:39:05,460 --> 00:39:07,960 Blackwell, but then switched to Paige. 645 00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:12,900 They were so hyper focused on them because Lee runs them so frequently that it was able 646 00:39:12,900 --> 00:39:15,600 to create those open opportunities. 647 00:39:15,600 --> 00:39:21,880 So I think even when you look at this match, it's the same discussion, but one team executed 648 00:39:21,880 --> 00:39:27,040 it and did what they needed to do as far as the chess match, whereas the other one didn't. 649 00:39:27,040 --> 00:39:31,420 I will say one other point that I love to see and you know, part of this is because 650 00:39:31,420 --> 00:39:37,780 we lived in Korea and saw the volleyball there for two years, but Lee's competitive spirit 651 00:39:37,780 --> 00:39:44,200 as that match went on her, her fire when she would get a block or her teams would score 652 00:39:44,200 --> 00:39:48,640 points, I thought she was a true leader on the court. 653 00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:50,760 And that transcends language barriers. 654 00:39:50,760 --> 00:39:51,760 A hundred percent. 655 00:39:51,760 --> 00:39:54,720 It's like you can tell like I'm here to win. 656 00:39:54,720 --> 00:39:59,240 I thought that was really great to see because you don't our experience in Korea, in my opinion 657 00:39:59,240 --> 00:40:06,440 was very there is it's not docile, but there's a very big component of respect. 658 00:40:06,440 --> 00:40:10,840 And sometimes that comes across as being meek. 659 00:40:10,840 --> 00:40:14,440 And that's not the case when you get to know the girls off the court, but to see her be 660 00:40:14,440 --> 00:40:19,320 able to let her competitive spirit shine through and just be a part of that. 661 00:40:19,320 --> 00:40:24,140 It was really great to see given our experience of being there full of surprises this week. 662 00:40:24,140 --> 00:40:28,920 Everything we think we know is going to happen did not happen, which I think makes it kind 663 00:40:28,920 --> 00:40:29,920 of exciting. 664 00:40:29,920 --> 00:40:34,520 We'll see if Indy is able to bounce back, make some adjustments this coming week in 665 00:40:34,520 --> 00:40:35,520 San Diego. 666 00:40:35,520 --> 00:40:36,520 Let's see. 667 00:40:36,520 --> 00:40:40,420 Hopefully they're able to continue rolling because because that was a lot of fun to watch. 668 00:40:40,420 --> 00:40:43,280 It's now time for my favorite segment of the show. 669 00:40:43,280 --> 00:40:46,680 We're going to play a new game called levels of concern. 670 00:40:46,680 --> 00:40:50,200 You just had to check what it's called. 671 00:40:50,200 --> 00:40:51,800 So my worst skill is naming things. 672 00:40:51,800 --> 00:40:54,640 I can come up with a concept, but the naming things is always tough. 673 00:40:54,640 --> 00:40:57,280 So we're going to go, we're going to call it level of concern. 674 00:40:57,280 --> 00:41:01,560 So what's going to happen is I'm going to put you into the role of a team, a player. 675 00:41:01,560 --> 00:41:08,780 I'm going to give you a scenario and you are going to tell me what your level of concern 676 00:41:08,780 --> 00:41:10,320 is in that situation. 677 00:41:10,320 --> 00:41:12,080 So there are five options. 678 00:41:12,080 --> 00:41:15,640 So your first level of concern is you're not very concerned. 679 00:41:15,640 --> 00:41:20,840 It's the equivalent of losing an assistant coach to be a head coach at another program. 680 00:41:20,840 --> 00:41:22,080 Not really a huge deal. 681 00:41:22,080 --> 00:41:23,080 Wow. 682 00:41:23,080 --> 00:41:24,080 Adam is harsh. 683 00:41:24,080 --> 00:41:25,880 He's like, I don't care about you. 684 00:41:25,880 --> 00:41:30,940 Your second level of concern is losing a top recruit to a rival. 685 00:41:30,940 --> 00:41:34,560 Not ideal, but it's not going to sink your program. 686 00:41:34,560 --> 00:41:40,140 Your third level of concern is being in a five match losing streak. 687 00:41:40,140 --> 00:41:46,080 The next one is a Pittsburgh losing Tori Stafford to Texas level of concern. 688 00:41:46,080 --> 00:41:52,680 So we are, well, it's, it's very high, but it's not as high as this Nebraska having a 689 00:41:52,680 --> 00:41:53,960 losing preseason. 690 00:41:53,960 --> 00:41:55,320 That is your highest level. 691 00:41:55,320 --> 00:41:56,320 Yeah. 692 00:41:56,320 --> 00:41:57,320 A losing preseason. 693 00:41:57,320 --> 00:41:58,920 That's, that's the biggest part of this. 694 00:41:58,920 --> 00:42:00,200 One of the biggest parts of the season. 695 00:42:00,200 --> 00:42:05,400 If you were to go into conference play, having a losing record, Nebraska having a losing 696 00:42:05,400 --> 00:42:06,400 season. 697 00:42:06,400 --> 00:42:07,400 Okay. 698 00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:08,400 All right. 699 00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:09,400 We'll go, we'll go the nuclear option. 700 00:42:09,400 --> 00:42:11,000 Nebraska having a losing season. 701 00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:14,480 That is the highest level of concern that there is in volleyball. 702 00:42:14,480 --> 00:42:15,480 Okay. 703 00:42:15,480 --> 00:42:18,640 So here, here are the questions and we can both answer these. 704 00:42:18,640 --> 00:42:19,640 I think it'll be fun. 705 00:42:19,640 --> 00:42:23,240 So your first question, you are Lexi Rodriguez. 706 00:42:23,240 --> 00:42:28,240 How concerned are you that you are not going to play all season? 707 00:42:28,240 --> 00:42:29,240 Hold on. 708 00:42:29,240 --> 00:42:31,240 I'm looking at the concern options. 709 00:42:31,240 --> 00:42:38,180 If I'm her, I'm in my first year of pro literally weeks after I ended my college season and 710 00:42:38,180 --> 00:42:41,440 I'm playing behind one of the best liberos in the world. 711 00:42:41,440 --> 00:42:47,360 I would say losing an assistant coach to be the head coach level one concern. 712 00:42:47,360 --> 00:42:50,780 And honestly looking at her face during the matches, she's chilling. 713 00:42:50,780 --> 00:42:51,880 She is chilling. 714 00:42:51,880 --> 00:42:54,480 Just chatting with everybody on the bench dancing. 715 00:42:54,480 --> 00:42:57,040 I'm like, this girl does not seem concerned at all. 716 00:42:57,040 --> 00:42:58,040 So I'm a little higher than you. 717 00:42:58,040 --> 00:43:01,360 I'm being in a five match losing streak. 718 00:43:01,360 --> 00:43:03,840 I'm all for earning your spot. 719 00:43:03,840 --> 00:43:10,520 And like my thing is you chose to go to a place where you knew that Justine was playing. 720 00:43:10,520 --> 00:43:12,480 Like you had to know the writing was on the wall. 721 00:43:12,480 --> 00:43:17,040 Did you think like as a fresh out of college kid, you're just going to walk in and beat 722 00:43:17,040 --> 00:43:18,040 her out? 723 00:43:18,040 --> 00:43:19,040 Come on. 724 00:43:19,040 --> 00:43:20,040 I personally think great. 725 00:43:20,040 --> 00:43:24,720 You can learn from the current us national team libero, but you're a competitor. 726 00:43:24,720 --> 00:43:26,720 You just beat her record. 727 00:43:26,720 --> 00:43:28,480 You want to be on the floor. 728 00:43:28,480 --> 00:43:29,480 You're competitive. 729 00:43:29,480 --> 00:43:33,800 If I'm her, I'm thinking about being on the 20, 28 roster and I need to play to do that 730 00:43:33,800 --> 00:43:34,800 again. 731 00:43:34,800 --> 00:43:37,400 How long is Justine going to be there in front of you? 732 00:43:37,400 --> 00:43:42,960 If you don't get a chance to play at all to prove how good you are, I'm concerned if I'm 733 00:43:42,960 --> 00:43:43,960 Lexi Rodriguez. 734 00:43:43,960 --> 00:43:46,000 My thing is you should have picked another team. 735 00:43:46,000 --> 00:43:47,960 Well, but this is the situation she's in. 736 00:43:47,960 --> 00:43:49,920 I'm more concerned than you are. 737 00:43:49,920 --> 00:43:56,340 Question two, you are Salt Lake City management. 738 00:43:56,340 --> 00:44:02,120 How concerned are you that Haley Washington is not going to be available for you for most 739 00:44:02,120 --> 00:44:03,120 of the season? 740 00:44:03,120 --> 00:44:07,480 I don't know if I'm being over dramatic, but I'm like losing Tori Stafford level of concern. 741 00:44:07,480 --> 00:44:09,800 Do you want me to finish before you tell me? 742 00:44:09,800 --> 00:44:10,800 Go ahead. 743 00:44:10,800 --> 00:44:13,040 Well, A, she's a founding athlete of love. 744 00:44:13,040 --> 00:44:16,720 B, she's been a starter on the US national team. 745 00:44:16,720 --> 00:44:18,860 So she's very good. 746 00:44:18,860 --> 00:44:26,800 So from an optics perspective for the brand, from a skill perspective for Salt Lake, I 747 00:44:26,800 --> 00:44:29,360 mean, you want to be winning matches. 748 00:44:29,360 --> 00:44:34,280 And if she, if she's your best middle, which I believe she is like, how long are you going 749 00:44:34,280 --> 00:44:35,400 to be out here? 750 00:44:35,400 --> 00:44:37,480 Like the clock's ticking. 751 00:44:37,480 --> 00:44:44,000 I am also losing Tori Stafford on this because you know, everything that I kind of had a 752 00:44:44,000 --> 00:44:47,820 vibe about was that she was going to start the second match. 753 00:44:47,820 --> 00:44:55,080 Like she was close to coming back and no offense to Dixon, but the upgrade from Dixon to Washington 754 00:44:55,080 --> 00:45:00,200 Do you think they would actually replace Dixon or do you think that they would replace the 755 00:45:00,200 --> 00:45:01,200 other one? 756 00:45:01,200 --> 00:45:04,520 Cause right now it's alternating between Serena Gray and Sophie Fisher. 757 00:45:04,520 --> 00:45:08,640 I personally think that they should replace Dixon, but I don't know if that's the direction 758 00:45:08,640 --> 00:45:09,760 they would go. 759 00:45:09,760 --> 00:45:14,680 I think longterm it's got to be Dixon and she's done a great job coming in, but regardless, 760 00:45:14,680 --> 00:45:19,120 if she comes on the floor, you are way better with her. 761 00:45:19,120 --> 00:45:22,960 And the fact that it hasn't happened yet, I don't know if there's been a setback or 762 00:45:22,960 --> 00:45:26,080 where she's coming from a recovery standpoint. 763 00:45:26,080 --> 00:45:31,920 I think she's a fundamental piece for your team and I am wanting her back greatly and 764 00:45:31,920 --> 00:45:33,020 right now. 765 00:45:33,020 --> 00:45:35,240 You are the commissioner of the PVF. 766 00:45:35,240 --> 00:45:43,040 How concerned are you that your expansion team is winning the league in season two? 767 00:45:43,040 --> 00:45:46,720 Losing my assistant coach to another program level of concern. 768 00:45:46,720 --> 00:45:47,720 Is it a big deal? 769 00:45:47,720 --> 00:45:49,120 Like, does it matter? 770 00:45:49,120 --> 00:45:51,240 You've added a team, they're doing well. 771 00:45:51,240 --> 00:45:55,280 Don't you want your expansion teams to do well to prove that the investment was worth 772 00:45:55,280 --> 00:45:56,280 it? 773 00:45:56,280 --> 00:46:00,440 Not to mention if they're doing well, then that's another market that can like grow interest 774 00:46:00,440 --> 00:46:01,440 in the game. 775 00:46:01,440 --> 00:46:02,440 Yeah. 776 00:46:02,440 --> 00:46:04,360 I'm like, I don't care at all. 777 00:46:04,360 --> 00:46:05,360 I would agree with you. 778 00:46:05,360 --> 00:46:06,960 I'm losing an assistant coach to that one as well. 779 00:46:06,960 --> 00:46:13,600 I think especially in a market in a league that's so new, you still want to attract new 780 00:46:13,600 --> 00:46:17,920 franchises and the ability to be successful I think goes a long way with that. 781 00:46:17,920 --> 00:46:22,760 And you're going to have more competition next year for teams and locations. 782 00:46:22,760 --> 00:46:24,640 I definitely think that's a positive as well. 783 00:46:24,640 --> 00:46:27,400 And our final question for level of concern. 784 00:46:27,400 --> 00:46:29,040 You are Eric Sullivan. 785 00:46:29,040 --> 00:46:37,680 What is your level of concern that your US players staying and playing in the US hampers 786 00:46:37,680 --> 00:46:43,720 your ability to have internationally ready players for the 2028 Olympics? 787 00:46:43,720 --> 00:46:51,080 I'm probably lose a top recruit level of concern because the players that you're seeing play 788 00:46:51,080 --> 00:46:59,160 in the US are either fresh, fresh out of college little babies, or they are on the tail end 789 00:46:59,160 --> 00:47:05,200 of their career and have done the overseas dance for long enough. 790 00:47:05,200 --> 00:47:11,680 I think the ones who are in the meat of their career, they're still staying overseas. 791 00:47:11,680 --> 00:47:17,400 So it's the transitionary athletes, the ones who are either entering their national team 792 00:47:17,400 --> 00:47:20,760 years or on the way out that are playing in the US. 793 00:47:20,760 --> 00:47:26,440 So I'm like, maybe the ones that you were looking at bringing in immediately, you're 794 00:47:26,440 --> 00:47:28,480 like, is this the best? 795 00:47:28,480 --> 00:47:34,840 But I think the ones who are going to be the biggest difference makers in LA are getting 796 00:47:34,840 --> 00:47:36,160 that competition they need. 797 00:47:36,160 --> 00:47:37,520 I'm a little higher with this. 798 00:47:37,520 --> 00:47:39,560 I think I'm losing Torrie Stafford. 799 00:47:39,560 --> 00:47:40,560 Wow. 800 00:47:40,560 --> 00:47:44,800 I think the leagues in the US are great for the sport in general. 801 00:47:44,800 --> 00:47:49,760 I think you're going to see more and more kids playing and being connected with that. 802 00:47:49,760 --> 00:47:53,440 I look at a Madison Skinner as an example. 803 00:47:53,440 --> 00:47:59,520 So there's somebody who could potentially be your opposite in 2028 and she's playing 804 00:47:59,520 --> 00:48:06,160 here in the US and her specifically playing overseas against bigger blocks in different 805 00:48:06,160 --> 00:48:13,080 systems and part of that for me is being uncomfortable, living overseas, leaving the US, understanding 806 00:48:13,080 --> 00:48:15,600 what that international game looks like. 807 00:48:15,600 --> 00:48:20,920 I think that's valuable experience in playing while uncomfortable. 808 00:48:20,920 --> 00:48:23,940 And I think for most players, it doesn't matter. 809 00:48:23,940 --> 00:48:28,560 But if you have your eyes on two or three players who are coming out of college this 810 00:48:28,560 --> 00:48:32,920 year or next year, you can't replace those four years of experience. 811 00:48:32,920 --> 00:48:38,900 And again, long term, I think you're so excited, but for 2028, I think there are some key players 812 00:48:38,900 --> 00:48:42,200 that you wish would be overseas playing in Italy or Turkey. 813 00:48:42,200 --> 00:48:45,200 So that wraps up our level of concern game. 814 00:48:45,200 --> 00:48:46,200 I kind of had fun with that. 815 00:48:46,200 --> 00:48:47,200 I'm not sure. 816 00:48:47,200 --> 00:48:48,200 I like that one. 817 00:48:48,200 --> 00:48:49,200 I'm not to the roster. 818 00:48:49,200 --> 00:48:50,200 So we're going to have to throw that into the rotation. 819 00:48:50,200 --> 00:48:57,200 And again, anybody has any questions or thoughts about anything that we can throw into a game? 820 00:48:57,200 --> 00:48:59,240 Toss them up on YouTube or on Instagram. 821 00:48:59,240 --> 00:49:03,160 I'm always looking for more ideas and we love the participation. 822 00:49:03,160 --> 00:49:06,720 All right, we have a few listener questions this week. 823 00:49:06,720 --> 00:49:13,520 So our first one is how much do you think love slash PVF will prepare or impact potential 824 00:49:13,520 --> 00:49:17,040 national team athletes for the 2028 Olympics? 825 00:49:17,040 --> 00:49:20,320 Is it better if they were to play overseas in Italy or Turkey? 826 00:49:20,320 --> 00:49:22,460 We kind of just touched on this. 827 00:49:22,460 --> 00:49:25,520 So I don't know if you want to go into it again. 828 00:49:25,520 --> 00:49:31,960 Again, I just really quickly, I think that being in an uncomfortable situation of leaving 829 00:49:31,960 --> 00:49:37,200 the US and understanding what other players do, what other systems look like, how other 830 00:49:37,200 --> 00:49:41,520 setters and liberals function, like all of that gives you information that helps you 831 00:49:41,520 --> 00:49:44,520 prepare for that international season. 832 00:49:44,520 --> 00:49:50,700 And so I don't think it applies generally, but I think it does apply to three or four 833 00:49:50,700 --> 00:49:52,760 athletes that they might have their eyes on. 834 00:49:52,760 --> 00:49:55,720 And like not every league is as good as Italy or Turkey. 835 00:49:55,720 --> 00:50:01,600 So if they could get contracts in those leagues and play against that kind of talent night 836 00:50:01,600 --> 00:50:07,560 in and night out and train against that every single day, like I know for me, I signed in 837 00:50:07,560 --> 00:50:14,300 Brazil like the year they won the gold medal in the Olympics and I was playing with gold 838 00:50:14,300 --> 00:50:17,200 medalists every single day at practice. 839 00:50:17,200 --> 00:50:23,400 And that inherently made me so much better because the level that I was exposed to day 840 00:50:23,400 --> 00:50:27,140 in and day out was Olympic gold medal level. 841 00:50:27,140 --> 00:50:28,800 So there is something to be said. 842 00:50:28,800 --> 00:50:30,840 I think adaptability is huge. 843 00:50:30,840 --> 00:50:36,140 I think getting out of your comfort zone is huge because you don't accomplish great things 844 00:50:36,140 --> 00:50:37,360 by staying comfortable. 845 00:50:37,360 --> 00:50:38,840 Let me tell you, I would agree. 846 00:50:38,840 --> 00:50:41,400 It would be, it's scary. 847 00:50:41,400 --> 00:50:45,000 It is uncomfortable, but I think the payoff could be huge. 848 00:50:45,000 --> 00:50:49,720 Question two is will Omaha ever play Lexi Rodriguez? 849 00:50:49,720 --> 00:50:50,720 No. 850 00:50:50,720 --> 00:50:56,560 I mean, she's in a really tough spot because they run the six two, so they use all of their 851 00:50:56,560 --> 00:50:57,560 subs. 852 00:50:57,560 --> 00:51:00,160 So she's not even coming in as a serving sub. 853 00:51:00,160 --> 00:51:07,160 And unless Justine gets hurt, you're not going to see the floor because she is the best period. 854 00:51:07,160 --> 00:51:08,160 You're not playing. 855 00:51:08,160 --> 00:51:12,000 If your priority was to get on the court, you should have gone somewhere else. 856 00:51:12,000 --> 00:51:15,120 And I keep going back to that, I spoke about it earlier. 857 00:51:15,120 --> 00:51:18,320 What possessed you to sign with a team? 858 00:51:18,320 --> 00:51:20,520 One of love's strengths are their liberos. 859 00:51:20,520 --> 00:51:23,240 Where do I think that Lexi could play? 860 00:51:23,240 --> 00:51:25,480 I think she could play for Houston. 861 00:51:25,480 --> 00:51:31,560 I think she could play for Atlanta and potentially Madison. 862 00:51:31,560 --> 00:51:34,220 Other than that, it'd be tough. 863 00:51:34,220 --> 00:51:38,880 So I'm curious, you know, if the league is looking ahead, because we actually don't know 864 00:51:38,880 --> 00:51:43,440 how the players signed, if they get assigned to teams, what that process is like. 865 00:51:43,440 --> 00:51:45,740 It's very much hidden behind the veil. 866 00:51:45,740 --> 00:51:49,100 They might want her there and go, hey, you're going to sign an eight year deal. 867 00:51:49,100 --> 00:51:50,520 You're going to sit behind. 868 00:51:50,520 --> 00:51:55,000 If you're if you're thinking about going pro, you guys, let me tell you right now. 869 00:51:55,000 --> 00:51:56,800 Don't sign an eight year deal. 870 00:51:56,800 --> 00:52:02,360 Well, but I'm just saying it Lexi in Omaha draws a crowd. 871 00:52:02,360 --> 00:52:03,360 Right. 872 00:52:03,360 --> 00:52:04,660 Her being there makes sense. 873 00:52:04,660 --> 00:52:06,040 How long is Justine going to play? 874 00:52:06,040 --> 00:52:07,600 Is she going for another Olympics? 875 00:52:07,600 --> 00:52:11,400 Like we don't know any of those questions, but we'll we'll see. 876 00:52:11,400 --> 00:52:13,820 But as of right now, she's not playing. 877 00:52:13,820 --> 00:52:18,580 Question three is what does it mean to have a disciplined block? 878 00:52:18,580 --> 00:52:20,880 I love this question. 879 00:52:20,880 --> 00:52:26,680 And specifically, this listener was referring to announcers who always go, oh, what a discipline 880 00:52:26,680 --> 00:52:28,200 block like that was really good. 881 00:52:28,200 --> 00:52:30,840 And just wondering what the criteria for that is. 882 00:52:30,840 --> 00:52:35,560 Now, I will say most of the announcers or a lot of the announcers use this in an incorrect 883 00:52:35,560 --> 00:52:37,640 way, in my opinion. 884 00:52:37,640 --> 00:52:39,960 But what does a discipline block look like for you? 885 00:52:39,960 --> 00:52:41,400 And then I can give you my answer. 886 00:52:41,400 --> 00:52:43,960 I guess for me, you and I are kind of talking about this. 887 00:52:43,960 --> 00:52:46,760 I think my definition is a little more basic. 888 00:52:46,760 --> 00:52:54,340 For me, it means getting set and taking your space without reaching. 889 00:52:54,340 --> 00:52:59,560 So even if you're a middle blocker and you know you're not going to close the block instead 890 00:52:59,560 --> 00:53:05,240 of just jumping sideways and throwing your hands sideways, like stopping where you are 891 00:53:05,240 --> 00:53:13,980 and taking the space that you can in order to give a clear direction to your defense. 892 00:53:13,980 --> 00:53:19,840 If hands are moving everywhere and bodies are flying sideways, it's very hard for a 893 00:53:19,840 --> 00:53:21,400 defense to get set up. 894 00:53:21,400 --> 00:53:27,140 So for me, it is like getting set and just taking solid space wherever you are. 895 00:53:27,140 --> 00:53:28,140 I like the definition. 896 00:53:28,140 --> 00:53:35,760 I'll go on to say part of being in a discipline block is getting your assignment. 897 00:53:35,760 --> 00:53:37,600 And we don't always know what those assignments are. 898 00:53:37,600 --> 00:53:42,660 But if you're supposed to take the line in this situation, it allows the three players 899 00:53:42,660 --> 00:53:44,780 behind you to do their job. 900 00:53:44,780 --> 00:53:48,740 If the block is not correct, the defenders are guessing on where to be. 901 00:53:48,740 --> 00:53:51,320 So first and foremost would be doing your job. 902 00:53:51,320 --> 00:53:56,160 And then let's say some of the common errors I see when it comes to a discipline block 903 00:53:56,160 --> 00:53:59,300 are outside hitters drifting when they close. 904 00:53:59,300 --> 00:54:01,880 So it opens up a scene between their middle block. 905 00:54:01,880 --> 00:54:04,560 That's one you mentioned hands reaching. 906 00:54:04,560 --> 00:54:08,940 And again, you're creating different scenes and areas for the hitters to use you. 907 00:54:08,940 --> 00:54:14,000 And then the last one would be if the block is very high and not over the net, you open 908 00:54:14,000 --> 00:54:15,820 up that space below you. 909 00:54:15,820 --> 00:54:20,640 You want to be over versus up, which you sometimes see as well. 910 00:54:20,640 --> 00:54:26,400 And our final listener question of the week is, do you think top USA players like Plummer 911 00:54:26,400 --> 00:54:28,840 and Skinner will join love soon? 912 00:54:28,840 --> 00:54:29,840 I don't. 913 00:54:29,840 --> 00:54:32,240 I think they're making more money overseas. 914 00:54:32,240 --> 00:54:38,900 I think that they both of those players specifically will be key in the 2028 Olympics, I believe. 915 00:54:38,900 --> 00:54:45,720 And the level of competition, training, the thing about being overseas that listeners 916 00:54:45,720 --> 00:54:52,080 may or may not know is you're playing in your league, which is stronger top to bottom, I 917 00:54:52,080 --> 00:54:53,080 would say. 918 00:54:53,080 --> 00:54:55,280 But you're also competing in Champions League. 919 00:54:55,280 --> 00:55:00,240 So you're seeing all of the best players and that is from different countries. 920 00:55:00,240 --> 00:55:02,880 You're in a tournament style, single elimination. 921 00:55:02,880 --> 00:55:06,620 There's an incredible amount of pressure to perform in those matches. 922 00:55:06,620 --> 00:55:10,000 You have to train with the best to be the best, in my opinion. 923 00:55:10,000 --> 00:55:16,160 And players who have aspirations of starting on the national team for 2028 will continue 924 00:55:16,160 --> 00:55:24,080 to be overseas, in my opinion, until the US leagues can bring in top outsides, opposites 925 00:55:24,080 --> 00:55:25,220 and middles. 926 00:55:25,220 --> 00:55:26,220 That will be the case. 927 00:55:26,220 --> 00:55:27,220 I agree. 928 00:55:27,220 --> 00:55:30,160 I think their earning potential overseas is much higher. 929 00:55:30,160 --> 00:55:35,660 Again, we don't know what the love compensation structure looks like. 930 00:55:35,660 --> 00:55:39,040 So if anybody knows, let us know, please. 931 00:55:39,040 --> 00:55:43,740 But I just I think that their earning potential is too high and everything that Adam alluded 932 00:55:43,740 --> 00:55:45,560 to aside from money. 933 00:55:45,560 --> 00:55:50,440 Like you're not seeing that in love right now. 934 00:55:50,440 --> 00:55:54,600 Training with and against the best every single day and then competing against the best in 935 00:55:54,600 --> 00:55:59,120 different forums, like Champions League, like the league, like the cup. 936 00:55:59,120 --> 00:56:01,840 No, it's it's not a comparison. 937 00:56:01,840 --> 00:56:04,240 Not to mention the season is nine months long. 938 00:56:04,240 --> 00:56:08,440 So you're getting that much more good training as opposed to love where they start their 939 00:56:08,440 --> 00:56:10,960 preseason training in like November. 940 00:56:10,960 --> 00:56:12,480 It's you can't compare it. 941 00:56:12,480 --> 00:56:13,480 All right. 942 00:56:13,480 --> 00:56:15,560 So let's let's look forward to this week. 943 00:56:15,560 --> 00:56:18,280 We'll talk about some of the matches. 944 00:56:18,280 --> 00:56:21,320 One of the requests we had and it can be a little confusing. 945 00:56:21,320 --> 00:56:22,840 Where can we watch these matches? 946 00:56:22,840 --> 00:56:24,040 Where are where can they be found? 947 00:56:24,040 --> 00:56:28,000 So let's go over the matches we're going to watch this week and where we can do that. 948 00:56:28,000 --> 00:56:33,220 So on Wednesday, we have our love head to head match, which is going to feature Houston 949 00:56:33,220 --> 00:56:34,880 and Madison. 950 00:56:34,880 --> 00:56:40,000 So two teams that are sitting at the bottom of the standings currently. 951 00:56:40,000 --> 00:56:43,360 So we'll see who comes out on top for that one. 952 00:56:43,360 --> 00:56:47,800 That's going to be at eight o'clock Eastern on Love Live. 953 00:56:47,800 --> 00:56:50,120 We're not huge fans of Love Live. 954 00:56:50,120 --> 00:56:53,440 We had a bad experience trying to watch the feature match this week. 955 00:56:53,440 --> 00:56:55,240 The screen was black a lot. 956 00:56:55,240 --> 00:56:56,240 Yeah. 957 00:56:56,240 --> 00:56:57,240 Just voices. 958 00:56:57,240 --> 00:56:59,360 So hopefully I don't know if anyone else had that experience. 959 00:56:59,360 --> 00:57:04,800 I'd be curious to know if that was our Internet or the feed in general. 960 00:57:04,800 --> 00:57:08,120 The the announcers, we could still hear them talking completely fine. 961 00:57:08,120 --> 00:57:09,680 But the screen was just black. 962 00:57:09,680 --> 00:57:10,680 I don't know. 963 00:57:10,680 --> 00:57:11,680 It was really. 964 00:57:11,680 --> 00:57:12,680 Let us know if you had trouble with that. 965 00:57:12,680 --> 00:57:18,280 Following up the feature match, the weekend with love will be hosted in Atlanta this week. 966 00:57:18,280 --> 00:57:23,280 Matches on Friday will be on ESPN plus and then the Saturday matches will be on Love 967 00:57:23,280 --> 00:57:24,280 Live. 968 00:57:24,280 --> 00:57:28,880 There are a ton of really good men's matches this week. 969 00:57:28,880 --> 00:57:32,260 I'm really hoping the feedback comes back that they want us to analyze some of them 970 00:57:32,260 --> 00:57:34,120 because I would love to watch. 971 00:57:34,120 --> 00:57:35,880 This week is going to be good. 972 00:57:35,880 --> 00:57:43,360 You have USC, UCLA, Ohio State, Penn State, who needs a win. 973 00:57:43,360 --> 00:57:49,040 They're all playing in Columbus this weekend, Thursday to Saturday. 974 00:57:49,040 --> 00:57:53,680 Hawaii and BYU have back to back matches Friday and Saturday. 975 00:57:53,680 --> 00:57:55,480 That will also be very good. 976 00:57:55,480 --> 00:57:59,560 And UC Irvine and Stanford are also playing. 977 00:57:59,560 --> 00:58:04,000 All of those men's matches will be on Big Ten Plus. 978 00:58:04,000 --> 00:58:09,800 I hope you guys have Big Ten Plus or wait for the match to end and watch it on YouTube. 979 00:58:09,800 --> 00:58:11,760 But you didn't hear that from me. 980 00:58:11,760 --> 00:58:12,760 All right. 981 00:58:12,760 --> 00:58:14,480 Let's look at PVF now. 982 00:58:14,480 --> 00:58:16,760 So the Thursday match is at 10 o'clock Eastern. 983 00:58:16,760 --> 00:58:20,000 Atlanta Vibe will play the San Diego Mojo. 984 00:58:20,000 --> 00:58:23,160 We'll see if they can keep rolling and build on their win over Indy. 985 00:58:23,160 --> 00:58:28,520 On Friday, also at 10 p.m. Eastern, the Indy Ignite will play Vegas Thrill. 986 00:58:28,520 --> 00:58:32,080 Indy looking to right the ship and continue to stay at the top of the league. 987 00:58:32,080 --> 00:58:37,620 Those matches will both be on the YouTube PVF channel. 988 00:58:37,620 --> 00:58:40,480 That concludes this week's episode of Volley Talk. 989 00:58:40,480 --> 00:58:44,800 There's always something shaking in the volleyball world, and we hope you enjoyed this little 990 00:58:44,800 --> 00:58:45,800 fix. 991 00:58:45,800 --> 00:58:48,160 Be sure to follow the show so you don't miss any updates. 992 00:58:48,160 --> 00:58:52,040 And we'd be so grateful if you'd leave us a five star review. 993 00:58:52,040 --> 00:58:57,040 You can also find us on Instagram at Volley Talk underscore podcast. 994 00:58:57,040 --> 00:59:01,800 If you have a topic that you want us to discuss, be sure to let us know by reaching out on 995 00:59:01,800 --> 00:59:05,780 Instagram or at info at Sarah pavin dot com. 996 00:59:05,780 --> 00:59:32,120 Thanks so much for joining us and we'll be back next week.