ABILENE – After spending all of last weekend battling the nation's best teams at the Colorado Premier Challenge, Abilene Christian volleyball will start its final lap around the Lone Star Conference playing at challenge champion West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico.
The Wildcats visit the WTAMU Fieldhouse Friday at 7 p.m. and the Zias Saturday at 2 p.m. (MT).
The No. 7 Lady Buffs sank No. 3 Tampa, 3-0, to win
Division II's most prestigious volleyball tournament and begin the week at 7-1. Their lone loss came on opening day against Adams State, but since then they've defeated the likes of No. 10 Metro State and defending South Central regional champion No. 5 Central Missouri. The Tampa Spartans reached the national semifinals in 2011.
WT was led at the Denver-based event by its setter Lauren Beville and libero Lacy Hayes. Hayes was named tournament MVP after tossing up an average of 11.5 assists per set to go along with 59 digs and seven block assists. Beville averaged 5.36 digs per set and was Tuesday selected as the Lone Star Conference's Defensive Player of the Week.
The Lady Buffs have won the last six conference championships and 11 of the last 13, but ACU head coach Kellen Mock thinks this year's WT squad could be its best.
“They've always had a strong program with talented players,” she said, “but in Denver, I thought they played more as a single unit and looked better than some of their previous teams. They really worked together well on the court and will pose a huge challenge for us.”
As for the Zias, they're off to a 4-4 start that includes wins over North Alabama and Texas-Permian Basin. Mock's teams are 8-0 all-time vs. Eastern New Mexico, but with a majority of her team going into Portales for the first time, the Wildcats are taking the Zias quite seriously.
“I've looked at Eastern's record and they're doing better this season,” she said, “and even though we've won a lot against them, they always play us tough and can give us absolute fits.”
ACU swept last year's season series from the Zias, winning 3-0 in both meetings, but the Wildcats' 2010 team that featured all-region selections Shawna Hines,
Ijeoma Moronu and
Jennie Hutt were stretched to five sets before ultimately prevailing, 3-2.
This year's Wildcats are currently 3-5, but the record is not indicative of how well the team has played while facing a litany of obstacles and injuries. Junior
Neely Borger suffered her season-ending injury in the spring, and then over the last few weeks the Wildcats have lost their starting setter and sophomore
Haley Rhoads and junior libero Madelyn Robinette.
As it stands, the Wildcats have nine healthy players available for this weekend and only senior
Kalynne Allen and junior
Caley Johnson have more than two years experience under their belt.
The remainder of ACU's lineup is all comprised of freshmen and sophomores, but despite their youth and relative inexperience, Mock has come away impressed with their recent efforts.
“I knew these players would get playing time at some point during the year, but never did I think it would be at the expense of injuries,” she said. “They've had to shoulder quite a load, especially with Neely out of our offense, but they've responded to the challenge.
“Our trip to Colorado was a success; perhaps not in terms of wins and losses, but I think we proved that we belonged there and the scores don't reflect how hard we competed. The girls kept the plays going and it took our opponents a long time to score a single point. We showed a lot of promise and there's much for us to look forward to in the next three to four years.”
