UT: Volleyball hopes to rebound from loss to Florida Southern
By DAVID NORRIE, Times correspondeny
Published November 4, 2007
Don't mention the city of Lakeland around the University of Tampa volleyball team. Playing there, or more so against rival Florida Southern, seems to be a substantial speed bump to the Spartans' reign of dominance.
From the beginning of the 2005 season until now, Tampa has won 88 matches. Compare that to just seven losses - and of those seven, three have been handed to UT in Lakeland, the latest on Tuesday, when the 11th-ranked Moccasins upset the No. 1 Spartans in five games.
The good news for Tampa (11-1) is that it still holds a two-game lead over Florida Southern (9-2) in the Sunshine State Conference standings with four games left to play.
And if there is a silver lining, it may be a hopeful case of dj vu. Last September, the Spartans went into Jenkins Field House ranked No. 1 and lost to the 5th-ranked Moccasins. In November, after claiming his first national championship in 23 seasons, coach Chris Catanach pointed to that loss as a catalyst for the team's 18-game winning streak that ensued.
Senior Erin Clark hopes the loss can lead to something good.
"We lost our first match of the season, and that was kind of an eye-opener," Clark said. "But we may have went into (Tuesday's game) thinking we were that good because we hadn't lost since. I'm looking at this as another wake-up call, and now we have an opportunity to see some of our weakness and make some changes before the post-season."
The loss to Southern was just the second time this season that the Spartans had been taken to a fifth game. In fact, after an season-opening loss to California Baptist, Tampa had dropped only seven games in their following 24 matches.
Returning six of seven starters from the national championship squad and with the Spartans baseball team winning back-to-back national titles, there certainly are high expectations for volleyball to repeat. With good chemistry and top-notch talent, Clark says the team just needs to obtain that sense of urgency it had a year ago.
Part of that, according to her, is being able to count on leaders, like herself, to get that next point and close out games, something the team failed to do early in the pivotal first game against Southern, in which UT held game point at 29-27 but lost three points in a row.
"I'm disappointed," she said. "If you're okay with losing, then you're not a true competitor. And I'm the kind of player who looks at the stats after a game and pays more attention to the things I failed to do than the things I did well.
"At the same time, I know this is an opportunity for myself and the entire team to refocus and try to peak from here."
FOUR HONORED IN WOMEN'S SOCCER: Junior Shelby Kuni made it 3-for-3 on Thursday, earning the third all-SSC first-team selection of her career. Her 11 goals this season led the team, and she has a good chance during the postseason to tie or even surpass the school record for career goals (Tai Kirklin, 51).
Kuni is joined on the first team by goalie Shannon Aitken, defender Nicole Murphy and midfielder Courtney Evans. Aitken, who holds UT records for wins and shutouts, finished the season with 14 victories and nine shutouts. Evans led the Spartans with 12 assists this season.
Defenders Maria Mohammed and Ashley Flateland were named to the SSC second-team.
CROSS COUNTRY: Senior Laura Woznicki was a unanimous choice in earning SSC runner of the year honors, which were announced Wednesday. She posted three top-three finishes, including first place at the SSC championships, finishing the 6K course in a time of 21:39.
Woznicki made all-SSC first-team, along with teammates Jessica Forrester, Paige Williams and Julia Vola.
Coach Jarrett Slaven was named SSC coach of the year for the sixth time in his eight seasons, leading the Spartan women to their fifth SSC title in six years as well as a No. 15 ranking in the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll.
Anthony Nicolosi, David Forry and Chris Catanach were named all-SCC first-team on the men's side.