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Volleyball preview   The Racer Insider's Will Aubrey

(August 22, 2007)

Last year Murray State's volleyball team was one of the most improved in the entire country as they went from seven wins in 2005 to 19 in 2006. Their 11 wins in Ohio Valley Conference play led to a third place finish, their best since 2003.

One of the primary reasons for that was defense as MSU led the nation in digs.

“We knew we needed ball control and defense,” head coach Dave Schwepker said. “So a few years ago we recruited an entire class who excelled at that. Last year they were sophomores and they made a big difference for us. And this year they'll be juniors and we expect even more out of them.”

The Racers return five of their top seven players but the two who were lost to graduation were the best hitters on the team, Katie Kemezys and Holly Jansen.

That pair accounted for 48 percent of the team's kills and they were the only players who saw more than limited action with a hitting percentage over .200.

“We'll miss Katie and Holly,” Schwepker said. “But our offense will be more balanced this year. Instead of going to just one or two girls we'll spread it around and get everyone involved.”

Tara DeMage and Sarah Hayden figure to be the starting middle-hitters.
DeMage was fourth on the team in kills last year with 238 and fourth in hitting percentage at .175. She will have to improve both numbers this year for the Racers to be successful.

DeMage earned all-star honors at the Memphis Invitational last season and had 18 kills at Kent State. So she is capable of being an offensive force.

“Tara played on the outside last year but she played middle in the spring,” Schwepker said. “She does almost everything well because she sees everything and knows what's going on.

“Two or three years ago she had shoulder surgery and that has hampered her on offense. But I think you'll see a lot more out of her this year than you have in the past.”

Hayden is a freshman from Assumption High School in Louisville where she earned all-district honors last year. Over the past two seasons she led the Rockets to an 84-2 record (43-0 in 2005) and two state championships.

Assumption's only losses were to the eventual national champion.

“Sarah played middle for her high school team and she has a lot of experience playing against tough competition,” Schwepker said. “I think that has prepared her well to play at this level and I believe she's a good fit for our team.

“We're holding her out of practice right now because of her back but she's had back problems her entire life. And she's been playing volleyball for a long time.

She's only sitting out because we told her to.

“I'm confident that Sarah will be ready to play when the season starts. She knows her back's going to hurt but she just deals with it.”

Alyssa Groves and Alison Mugler return at outside hitter.

Groves was fifth on the team in kills last year with 243 but her hitting percentage was an anemic .113. She did lead the team in service aces with 27 while committing just 20 service errors and she was tied for fourth in digs with 362.

“Alyssa excels in the back row and she's started for us since she was a freshman,” Schwepker said. “She's good on defense and passes the ball well but she hasn't been as effective as we would like on offense.”

Mugler was third on the team in kills last year with 294 but although her hitting percentage was higher than Groves' at .179, it still wasn't high enough. She was second on the team in digs with 446.

Mugler earned all-tournament honors at the Kent State Invitational last year.

“Alison is also good on the back row and she's an excellent defensive player,” Schwepker said. “We're going to need more offense from her this year though.

“Both Alison and Alyssa are shorter girls and when you aren’t as tall it takes a little longer to learn how to attack effectively at this level. But their hitting percentage was higher last year than it was when they were freshmen and we expect it to go up again this year.

“The main thing is that they have two years of experience. They know the conference, the teams we play, and the gyms we play in. And they should be very comfortable.”

Another freshman, Becca Lamb, will also play at outside hitter. Lamb, played four seasons at Breese Mater Dei High School in Highland, IL. Where she helped the Knights to a combined 113-43 (.724) record.

As a senior she was an honorable mention all-state selection and a first team all-district.

“Becca is a very powerful hitter and she played for a good high school program,” Schwepker said. “She jumps higher than anyone on the team and we think she can help us this year.”

Cassie Chesney returns for her sophomore season at setter after making the OVC's All-Newcomer team last season when she finished second in the league and 42nd in the nation in assists with 12.69 per game.

Chesney was also third on the team in digs with 404.

“From what I see Cassie is a completely different player from what she was last year,” Schwepker said. “She's improved tremendously and she was already very good last year. She is tough and she has much better technique than she did a year ago.”

Heather Norris returns at libero after having a phenomenal season in 2006.

Last year Norris led the OVC in digs per game at 6.49, which put her sixth in the nation. She was an honorable mention All-American and was selected to the All-Midwest Region team.

Norris was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week five times and was the league's Defensive Player of the Year.

While most volleyball fans would say the kill is the most exciting play in the game they might change their mind if they watched Norris play. Her lightning quick reflexes enable her to get to balls that appear to be certain kills for the other team. And when she comes from nowhere to dig a ball at the last instant the crowd goes nuts.

“Heather did a great job last year,” Schwepker said. “She's continued to work hard which is always something you worry about when someone gets the kind of accolades she got last season. And I think she's even better this year because she's passing the ball better.”

Ashley Meagher is back for her senior year and she'll fill a utility role this season.

“Ashley came off the bench for us last year and she's concentrating on defense and passing right now,” Schwepker said. “She'll back up Heather at libero and she'll be Cassie's backup at setter. And if anyone is struggling with their defense we can bring her in.”

Another freshman, Ashley Nenninger, rounds out the squad. An outside hitter, Nenninger is a raw talent.

She played four seasons at Notre Dame High School in Marble Hill, Mo. As a senior she set the school record for most kills in a season and was named the Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year for her region.

“Ashley has a lot of ability but she doesn't come from a strong high school or club program,” Schwepker said. “She's going to be a great hitter, though. She's tall with very long arms and she can really kill the ball. We'd like to redhsirt her but with our numbers so low she may have to play for us this year.”

Numbers may indeed be the biggest problem the Racers face with only nine players on the roster. The scholarship limit is 12 and some schools have more than that on their roster.

Volleyball is played with six on a side so you need at least 12 to scrimmage.
“We were recruiting some girls from China,” Schwepker noted. “But they didn't pass their TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) so we didn't get them. That leaves us with nine so we'll deal with it.

“What we tell these girls is that we have five of our top seven players back and they've all played together for two years. So we just had to add two players and we've done that.”

Murray State was picked fifth in the OVC's preseason poll behind Jacksonville State, Morehead State, Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee State.

Norris was a first team preseason all-conference selection while Chesney was a second team selection.

But fifth place would be a step backward after last season and Schwepker isn't buying that for a second.

“Last year our goal was to be in the top four of the conference and we finished third,” he said. “We were happy with that but we wanted to win the conference tournament. That was our objective from the outset.

“This year our goal is to be in the top three and then win the tournament. The tournament is the main thing because we want to go the NCAA. And that's what we're concentrating on. We'll do whatever it takes to get to the NCAA tournament.”

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