After tough losses against Baylor, TCU, Gopher volleyball enters stretch of home matches with added motivation
MINNEAPOLIS — After a pair of tough losses this weekend, Gopher volleyball is ready for a stretch of matches at home, still against opponents that are hungry for a win against a top-25 team.
Following their win against Texas, the No. 1-ranked team in the country, the Gophers had to shift their mindset — going from "hunter" to "hunted." They knew that teams would be eager to take them down as they headed down to Waco to face No. 23 Baylor and TCU as part of the Big Ten/Big 12 challenge.
Both games went to overtime in five sets, both games saw career-high performances from multiple players, and the Gophers had match point against both opponents. The wins were in reach, yet they couldn't close out.
The team has played five-set matches in all four of their regular season games so far, all against teams they could be facing in December. And all of the losses have been by just two points.
"We just think that no one's played as much good volleyball as us, and we also talked about — it's six points between being 4-0, and if we'd won those six points we'd be 4-0," head coach Keegan Cook said.
If they had won those six points, the No. 19 Gophers could be ranked in the top 5.
"But how different of a team would we really be?" Cook said. "Would we be as motivated as we are right now at 1-3?"
The Gophers at times gave up leads that could have changed the outcome of the match. They led 9-4 in the fifth set against TCU, but couldn't finish the job, eventually losing 20-18.
"We should have been better there, not letting it get to that point. But if you get to those coin flip situations, you you be as assertive as you can be, be aggressive, make sure you don't give your opponents the chance to take the last swing. We made that mistake a few times I think, which we learned from," Cook said. He'd like to place an emphasis on being better earlier on in the match, so they don't have to get into late, tight situations.
The narrow losses have provided a healthy level of motivation — the team knows what they're capable of achieving, and they're hungry to prove themselves. With several players in new, bigger roles, Cook is hoping those key matches gave them experience to guide them through the rest of the season.
The Gophers were led offensively by junior Julia Hanson, who has waited patiently for her time to step into the spotlight. After playing sparingly last season, she posted career-best performances of 19 digs against Baylor and 23 kills against TCU. Cook said that she's growing at a rapid rate, hitting with range and control, all while being able to take in information and convert it immediately.
Melani Shaffmaster posted her first career triple double, with 10 kills, 21 digs, and 47 assists against TCU. Shaffmaster dislocated her finger at 17-17 in the fifth set — an intense injury in a key moment — but she'll be alright long-term, Cook said. For right now, she'll just need to manage the injury and keep healthy.
Alex Acevedo also made her first regular-season appearance as a Gopher; the transfer from Oregon was a steady presence off the bench after McKenna Wucherer struggled to terminate against Baylor.
"I just saw a lot of poise for someone who's a redshirt freshman. Just really calm and collected, and pretty aggressive and assertive in some big moments against good teams," Cook said. He's hoping to get her more involved over the course of the next few matches, he added.
The Gophers open at home against St. Thomas on Tuesday evening. The two faced each other during a spring match last year, and though the Tommies have struggled since they moved from DIII to DI, they return the vast majority of their team from last season.
Then this weekend, the Gophers will host LIU and Auburn, two teams that made it into the NCAA tournament last season. Auburn, a strong defensive team, defeated #15 Florida State last weekend while holding them to a .125 hitting percentage. It'll be a test for the Gopher offense, but the perk of a early and tough schedules is that the Gophers have faced strong, physical teams before.
First serve against the St. Thomas is at 7 p.m. Tori Dixon, who was a star middle blocker for the Gophers from 2010 to 2013, will be honored during the game, as she was inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame on Friday.
