Shocker VB at Shocker Volleyball Classic

[flyingMoose]

The Shockers host the Classic this weekend, their last tournament before the conference season begins. The Shocker matches are against Cal Poly at 7 pm on Thursday, against Northern Colorado at 7 pm on Friday, and against Omaha at 4 pm on Saturday.

Based on RPI and Pablo, the Shocks, Cal Poly, and Northern Colorado appear to be closely matched. Omaha is not close behind.

[1972Shocker]

I will be unable to use my 2 season tickets for the Friday match vs Northern Colorado.

If anyone is interested in those let me know. I can send them to you via a text message. You will need a WSU ticket office account to download them which is not too hard to setup if you don't have one.

If you are interested send me a PM with a name and a mobile phone number.

[flyingMoose]

Someone has started a thread on Volleytalk for this tournament. Usually these are knowledgeable posters, not just homers. I assume that at a minimum, you can log in as a Guest.

Highlights so far are: SOS - Shockers 18, Omaha 19, Cal Poly 38, Northern Colorado 79. Omaha switched to a 5-1 this past weekend and was much improved. All four teams should finish in the top three of their conference. Any team that can go 3-0 will greatly help their RPI.

[1972Shocker]

On Lambo's radio show this past Monday Lambo talked quite a bit about how he hopes to utilize Maddie Wilson. I would start listening at around the 19:50 mark and runs through around the 29 minute mark.

https://www.audacy.com/podcast/kfhfm-on-demand-8f571/episodes/wichita-state-chris-lamb-show-16-sep-24-9e428

He said they has 2 days to see if this Maddie Wilson thing can go. "So here we are as if tomorrow (Tuesday) is the first day so spring". It could have started on Monday but apparently there was miscommunication or lack of communication as Maddie could have practiced on Monday if she had not played on Sunday vs Nebraska and Lambo side if he had realized that was the case if would have held her out of the Nebraska match in a heartbeat. Not sure how much difference one more day of practice would make but that should not happen. In any case, it doesn't really sound like Maddie is 100% yet.

Lambo says he knows what Maddie is capable of (when healthy anyway) and this system he has that he used with Katie Zimmerman early in her career can work with Maddie. If Maddie is who he thought she was from the spring (before her injury) and Brooklyn or Gracie or Alyssa can run away with the L1 position, which he thinks they are all capable of that, but the question is can any of them do it consistently, then he is looking at the most fire power the Shocks could have. He is going to see with one will stay the most focused and play the hardest. Need train it and work through and see if it gets there. But this depends on whether Maddie can take the spot over (I think he is talking about the right side behind the setter).

Lambo also thinks that if this works out for Maddie Wilson this will open things up for Sarah Barham who plays totally different than Frosty did. But that is also largely dependent on Izzie being able to play faster than she needed to with Frosty.

I lot of ifs and buts with this scenario plus he only has 2 days to train it. Plus not sure at what level Maddie is operating at physically and I have questions about Maddie's durability as she was hurt last year and again this year.

[jimshocker]

Ugh. Blah. Shms.

He has more than two days to figure things out. He literally has the entire season up until the conference tournament.

At this point, an undefeated conference run could possibly be enough. Otherwise, win the conference tournament or play in the consolation bracket again.

At least he didn’t analogize that his hose was too short like he did last year at this time.

Go Shocks!

[flyingMoose]

Odds and Ends

Current RPI via Figstats:

22 Cal Poly
52 Northern Colorado
69 Shockers
312 Omaha


Pablo for the week of 16 Sep (which should be about 80% based on this year's results with the rest last year's):

5870 Northern Colorado
5765 Shockers
5735 Cal Poly
5140 Omaha

With the home-court advantage, the Shockers are about 55% favorites against Cal Poly and Northern Colorado and about 80% favorites against Omaha.


Massey (I don't follow Massey that much, but he has an interesting little tool to predict match results using his data)

Shockers 3-2 Cal Poly
Shockers 3-2 Northern Colorado
Shockers 3-1 Omaha

This falls in line with what Pablo says.


This tournament is a Lambo Classic. Invite teams that you think will do well in their mid-major conferences, will have a good record for the season, beat some of them, and build up your RPI.

[1972Shocker]

WICHITA STATE (3-6, 0-0 American)

Thursday, Sept. 19 (7:00 p.m. CT) vs. Cal Poly (5-3, 0-0 Big West)
Wichita, Kan. (Charles Koch Arena)
Live Stats // Watch

Friday, Sept. 20 (7:00 p.m. CT) vs. Northern Colorado (8-2, 0-0 Big Sky)
Wichita, Kan. (Charles Koch Arena)
Live Stats // Watch

Saturday, Sept. 21 (4:00 p.m. CT) vs. Omaha (1-7, 0-0 Summit)
Wichita, Kan. (Charles Koch Arena)
Live Stats // Watch

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS:

• Cal Poly checks in to play on Thursday with a 5-3 record following a five-set win over fellow American Athletic Conference opponent North Texas. All three of Cal Poly's losses have come to teams either ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25.
• Cal Poly and the Shockers have one common opponent so far this year. The Shocks were swept by Arkansas 19, 18, 18 in Fayetteville and Cal Poly lost in 4 sets 21, (22). 16, 21 in San Luis Obispo.
• The Mustangs lead the Big West conference with 13.50 kills per set led by Indiana transfer Tommi Stockham (a 6-2 RSr. OH) who is a 3-time Big West First Team All-Conference selection. Stockham is averaging 4.0 KPS so far this year who appears to be a big, strong player.
• Redshirt junior setter Emme Bullis is top 20 nationally with 10.61 assists per set.
• Head coach Caroline Walters (6th season, 88-68) has been with the Cal Poly program for 16 years, working her way up from assistant to associate head coach and finally to the head coach role. Walters is one of the best players in Santa Clara history, ranking first in program history in digs per set.

SCOUTING THE BEARS:

• Northern Colorado boasts an 8-2 record that includes a trio of power conference victories. The Bears have already knocked off Michigan State and Ole Miss at home to go along with a road victory over in-state foe Colorado.
• UNC is led by All-American setter Syd Cole, who ranks third nationally in total assists with 406 and paces the conference with 10.15 helpers per set.
• The Bears rank third nationally as a team with 535 kills. Sophomore outside hitter Gabi Placide is the top attacking option at 3.03 kills per set, one of five Bears averaging better than two kills per frame.
• Longtime head coach Lyndsey Oates is in her 20th season at the helm in Greeley with a 355-228 record overall (.609).

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS:

• Omaha brings a 1-7 record to Wichita, though the Mavericks have played another challenging non-conference slate that includes Houston, Washington State and Oklahoma.
• The Mavericks began last season 0-9 but rallied in Summit League play to win the conference tournament and advance to the program's first NCAA tournament.
• Omaha has struggled to put points on the scoreboard, ranking 307th nationally with a .142 hitting percentage and 306th with 10.61 kills per set.
• Head coach Matt Buttermore is in his sixth season at the helm of the Mavericks, owning an 88-62 record (.587). Prior to his time with the Mavericks, Buttermore was an extremely successful coach at Hastings, where he won the NAIA National Championship in 2016.

---

The possibility of the Shockers going winless in this tournament is at least on the bingo card. Hopefully, that square doesn't get called.

[1972Shocker]

RH: Persistence During COVID Landed Senior At Wichita State

The videos kept coming to the coaches via email. One clip showed a high school libero practicing passing with her father serving and mom setting in the street in Cypress, Texas. Another showed her digging volleyballs in the driveway after hitting them off the side of the house.

"If nothing else, you were impressed with her gumption," Wichita State coach Chris Lamb said. "She was literally her putting her phone against a tree, making movies, of her out there against a garage door."

Annalie Heliste's creative content got her noticed, got her to Wichita State and, this season, got her the libero uniform.

While her skill with iMovie provided the origin story, Heliste's determination and skills put her in position for a significant senior season.

"Annalie has been a huge success story of getting better statistically every semester, growing her job description every semester," Lamb said. "It's been a perfect story of steady incline."

COVID-19 limited her recruiting during her junior year at Cy-Fair High School – and liberos are usually recruited less heavily than attackers even in normal times. Heliste decided that the pandemic would not keep her from playing NCAA Division I volleyball. She focused on WSU and Rice. A phone call with Shocker coaches encouraged her and she sent videos twice a week.

"I had to make the recruiting process my own," she said. "I had to get unique with it. I wanted to show coaches that, just because of the circumstances we were in, I was still getting in reps, and I was working hard."

Heliste took an unofficial visit to WSU and couldn't meet coaches face to face. Former assistant Chelsea Scott gave her a FaceTime tour of Koch Arena while Heliste and her parents sat in a car outside. She first met Lamb in-person when practice started in the fall of 2021.

"That was trusting your gut," she said. "I wanted to play Division I volleyball and these coaches, through the phone, were making me feel great and I was already part of the family."

"You never catch (Heliste) taking a day off," Lamb said.

"I've got a lot of data and I've seen people improve," Lamb said. "A lot of people tend to hit a wall. But she's a technical genius, so the fact that her technique is so good, as her confidence has gone up and her reading skills have gone up, so have her passing numbers."

Gabi Maas enjoys watching Heliste get rewarded for her hard work.

"I feel like she's been an underdog, a little bit," Maas said. "And that made her so much better, pushed her to be that good. Watching her grow into a leadership role has been super-awesome."

[1972Shocker]

In other Shocker VB news Morgan Stout will miss this weeks matches due to a concussion the cause of which is unknown.

[flyingMoose]

Other Thursday Match

Northern Colorado 1-3 Omaha
23, 21, (20), 25

The move to a 5-1 for Omaha seems to be making a big difference.

[1972Shocker]

Nice comeback from a 3-8 start by the Shocks to take the 1st set 25-22.

Shocks played poorly down the stretch in set 2 falling 20-25.

I am not confident the Shocks can prevail against Cal Poly's far superior firepower.

Shocks somehow forged fo19-all tie in set 3 only to watch Cal Poly close out on a 6-0 run to take the set 25-19. The Shocks with a lot of self-inflicted damage.

[BAShocker]

I’m keeping most of my thoughts to myself, as I would likely get smoked on here SN. However, why we keep a certain player in the back row, who struggles (at best) to pass, is beyond me.

Guess if I knew the answer, I’d be a volleyball coach.

[1972Shocker]

I’m keeping most of my thoughts to myself, as I would likely get smoked on here SN. However, why we keep a certain player in the back row, who struggles (at best) to pass, is beyond me.

Guess if I knew the answer, I’d be a volleyball coach.

I know exactly what your thinking. And I agree.

[1972Shocker]

Shocks find a way to extend the match to a 5th set winning 25-21 in set 4.

[1972Shocker]

Not sure what the block stats are but that seems to be a key allowing the Shocks to be in this match.