Commitment is something the Bluffton College volleyball team knows all about. After a 33 game season spanning September and October the volleyball team is already hard at work.
The team took just two weeks off after the season before starting an open gym and lifting routine that will continue the remainder of the year. Hopes are high that the off-season commitment and hard work will return Bluffton College volleyball to the powerhouse program of the past.
Volleyball success is a tradition at Bluffton. Head coach Sara Wakefield knows-she was part of it. Having played during some of Bluffton's most successful years, coach Wakefield is eager to get her team back to the success of the past.
"It was a rough season, we had more potential than we showed on the court," said coach Wakefield of last season. Bluffton only managed a 10-23 overall record last season, but did end with a 3-3 mark in the Heartland Conference. The 2002 team will look to improve in both categories.
The first step to preparing and improving for next season is what the off-season workouts are all about. The team's off-season preparation currently consists of two open gyms and two lifting routines per week. The open gyms consist of scrimmages and the lifting program is on an individual basis.
Although it seems like a lot of work, next year sophomore Erin Kreim is confident her team is more than ready. "I am more determined now with the experience I received last season," Kreim said. Kreim also said that commitment to the team was a strong reason for the off-season workouts. An emphasis will be placed on improving team offense this off-season while developing the play of the team's younger players. The volleyball team will have an opportunity to show off their hard work in a few months. They will have formal practice in March to prepare for two tournaments in April.
The off-season routines will continue until the end of the spring semester at Bluffton. The volleyball team will than return two weeks before fall semester to begin pre-season practice. With all the work the volleyball team is prepared to put in, next year's team is likely to turn potential into results.
Tisher, a 5-8 middle hitter, ranked sixth in the HCAC last season with .77 blocks per game as she collected a team-high 93 rejections. Her 217 kills were second on the team and are the third-highest total ever by a freshman at Bluffton (Deb Wagner Hucke had 258 in 1986 and Erin Kreigh had 218 in 1992).
Rothe, a 5-9 middle hitter, ranked fourth on the team in kills with 164, which is the seventh-highest total by a freshman, and added 59 blocks, 186 digs and nine aces.
Three other players with varsity experience also return, including junior Jenae Meck and sophomores Erin Kreim and Kelly Kettinger.
Meck, a 6-0 middle hitter, ranked fourth on the team in blocks last season with 51 and ranked fifth in kills with 115 despite missing several matches with an injury. Now with two years of varsity experience, she will be counted on to be a force at the net.
Kreim and Kettinger both saw action in 10 matches and 28 games last season, providing support in the serve and back row rotation. Kreim totaled six aces and 38 digs, while Kettinger provided three aces and 34 digs. Both were the leaders of the junior varsity squad.
Wakefield's talented recruiting class will be counted on to add support to the veterans when pre-season camp opens in Founders Hall on August 17. The Beavers get the 2002 season started at the Kalamazoo Invitational August 30 and 31.
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