The 2010 men’s soccer season around the corner and it’s time to start getting excited for what’s in store for the team this season. Winthrop has won back-to-back titles in the Big South and three of the last four. Since winning in 2006, the Eagles have lost goal scorers such as Saidi Isaac, Daniel Revivo, and Matthew Skonicki in addition to playmakers Michael Luk and David Kenga. Along with their departures have been the likes of Otto Loewy, Patrick Mitrovich, Henry Kalungi, Stephen Nsereko, Sean Weron, John Gilkerson, and Matt Lacey. All of these players accumulated several awards and achieved many great things in their careers at Winthrop.
Each year always has question marks and brings new faces to the roster. Last year the Eagles knew there were questions on whether the amount of youth could mesh with the veteran players and things turned out just fine in the end. Again, this season there is the question: How successful can this team be with so many inexperienced players accumulating a majority of the playing time and starting positions?
This year could see as many as eight underclassmen in the starting line-up. The last time there were this many underclassmen in the line-up, Winthrop pulled through for its first ever Big South Conference title in 2002. That season saw seven underclassmen in the starting line-up. It was a banner season for the Eagles including two wins over nationally-ranked Coastal Carolina. Of those underclassmen, four of them earned multiple all-conference awards and were four-year starters. The Eagles have started six underclassmen three times (’03, ’05, ’06) since then, but have only started a total of six in the last two years. Now don’t get me wrong. There is definitely a lot of youth on the team this year (18 underclassmen), but among this group is a lot of talent.
The coaches in the Big South obviously thought so because Winthrop was picked second in the preseason poll with Coastal Carolina. High Point was the favorite, which most of us believed would be and Coastal Carolina second doesn’t surprise me either, but I didn’t see this coming. I figured anywhere between third and fifth, but closer to fifth with everything that’s been lost in the past two years. Last year’s team finished tied for fourth in the regular season and were the fifth seed in the tournament. Matthew Skonicki graduated and Michael Luk along with Matt Lacey are graduated. That’s a lot of to lose in one year. Being picked second can be good or bad. Depending on how the young players look at it. Even if they were picked fifth or sixth, you will be a game most teams look forward to playing. That comes with having won three of the last four championships. You may not have played last season, but the other teams don’t care. So even with High Point as the favorite and a game everyone will look forward to, Winthrop will have to be ready to play every single conference game. There is always a little extra joy in defeating a conference team that is the defending champion. It’s a pride thing the young guys will have to take into consideration. That’s really nothing new since every conference game seems to be a knock-down drag out no matter who or where you play.
I’ve now seen the Eagles play two exhibition games and I’m not sure I can make a full assessment of what you will see in 2010. The team has suffered through injuries during the preseason and the line-ups have been all over the place. The two games I watched I did see a lot of good things and was impressed how the team knocked the ball around despite having guys out of position and so many starters out.
Winthrop returns Enrique Miranda (goalkeeper), Daniel DiBiagio (defender), Wylie Rea (defender), Matt Horn (defender), Jordan Osborn (defender), Tomas Brennan (midfield), Miquel Casajuana (midfielder), and Adam Skonicki (forward) who are all expected to start. That is a good amount of returning talent with experience, but it’s going to be up to what players plug the whole that will dictate the amount of success the Eagles have this year. Freshman Alex Bolton has impressed me so far in the two games I watched and he could be a mainstay in the midfield on the outside. He works hard and goes forward well. Like any freshman, he does have the tendency to give the ball up more than a coach would like, but that will be cleaned up as the season goes on. Freshman Matt Stinson is another freshman expected to start and he’s a very solid defensive midfielder from what I’ve seen so far. I was really impressed with him and DiBiagio against Furman in the exhibition opener when they arrived by plane at 6:30 at Charlotte-Douglas Airport and then came straight to the field to start the second half and play 45 minutes of very solid soccer.
Freshman I have not seen play are Tinotenda Chibharo, who is expected to be a starter or see a lot of playing time. One of the most impressive players in the preseason for me is senior Ted Bartels. This is a guy that has been hurt, ineligible and I saw him for the first time in three years on the field against Furman and he was moving the ball well and creating in the midfield for the Eagles. I was told that he was playing really well, but for him not having played in a real game in so long, I was impressed. He should see a lot of time if he maintains that level.
There is some talent that Winthrop can turn to for the starting line-up for the first few weeks while everyone gets healthy. One of the players we’re waiting on to get healthy is freshman Nick Kowalski. He had a small surgery a few weeks back and is expected to make an impact in the midfield when he returns (which could be 5-6 games into the season).
The goalkeeper situation is solid as Miranda returns after playing every minute last season and Tom Banfield, who redshirted last year, has looked solid in the preseason.
Defensively, Winthrop should be pretty strong and will be young, but good in the midfield. Up top, the Eagles will have a sophomore in Adam Skonicki and a combo of Andres Pullin, Brandon Forlemu, Felipe Netto and Randall Eads. Maybe even Bartels? We’ll see.
My prediction: If Kowalski comes back healthy and can play significant minutes, along with the rest of the guys getting healthy—this team can once again be a team to reckon with in the league. The Eagles are playing a solid schedule and will get tested early with games against Mercer, UNC Wilmington, East Tennessee State and Georgia Southern.
Personally I don’t agree with the prediction of the Eagles being second in the preseason poll, but I don’t get a vote in that anymore. Coach Rich Posipanko and his staff have been able to keep reloading for this run of three championships in four seasons no matter who graduated, etc. Why should this year be any different? I still think 4th or 5th is realistic. One thing for sure is no matter how the team starts the season, I believe this squad will get stronger and stronger as it moves into November and will fight to defend its title. There will be games where they look like they’ve figured it out and then games where you scratch your head. That’s the life of having a young team. Let’s hope we’re not scratching our heads very often.
Coastal Carolina
This program has one of, if not the richest tradition in the Big South. The Chanticleers have won nine regular season titles, been to the conference tournament title game 11 times and brought home nine Big South titles.
Despite being tied with the Eagles at second in the preseason poll, Coastal Carolina could easily capture the regular season like it did in 2009 and is always a contender to win the conference tournament. Even though 2009 Big South Conference Player of the Year Djamel Bekka graduated, the Chanticleers are loaded with nine of 11 starters returning. This teams overall record is always deceiving as head coach Shaun Docking always puts together a tough non-conference schedule. This year is no different with the likes of Old Dominion, Virginia Commonwealth, Elon, College of Charleston, North Carolina State and Maryland.
The returning players are featured by First Team All-Big South member Alex Russell, a senior with good size and one of the best defenders in the league. Senior’s Joe Anderson and Matt Schroeder return as the top two scorers for a Chanticleer team that put the ball in the net 29 times in 18 games last year. However, defensively, Coastal Carolina only allowed 20 goals all season, 10 of which came in three games. Both are very strong midfielders with good size and pace (Anderson at 6-3 and Schroeder at 6-2). Schroeder, Second Team All-Big South in 2009, is a defensive midfielder where as Anderson will be more involved in the attack as he plays on the outside.
Junior Scott Angevine returns in net for the Chanticleers and had a solid 2009 season in which he was 7-0-6 with four shutouts and a 0.65 goals against average. Those were good enough to earn him First Team All-Big South honors. I would assume he will be back as the starter.
Coastal will get Winthrop and High Point at home this season. Coastal Carolina was 5-0-3 in the league last year while High Point was 5-1-2. Hosting High Point could be the difference again this year. Coastal will have to travel to Liberty to open conference play and that will be in the middle of a three-game road trip and five of six on the road. Five of the conference games will be on the road. That will make it tough to repeat as regular season champions. The Chants will only play six home games.
Don’t know too much about the recruiting class of the Chanticleers, but just reading through the list there are a lot of players coming in with Olympic Development and Regional Team experience. There isn’t much room with nine starters returning but talented players like that will be fighting to start and earn playing time. Even with only six home games, I expect Coastal Carolina to be right there in the end and make its 12th title game appearance. Coastal is always a very physical team and that is key for playing in the postseason. I think all the experience of playing away from home will be an advantage in the end, especially for a veteran team.
High Point
There is a lot of attention on this team in 2010. The Panthers are the preseason favorite, they have the preseason Player of the Year and they are hosting the 2010 Big South Conference Tournament. With 10 of 11 starters returning, it isn’t surprising the coaches selected them as the favorite. High Point was definitely one of the favorites to win the conference tournament last year before all things got crazy with the rain and the relocation of the tournament to Gardner-Webb. High Point is ready to be the most relaxed team as the host and the players wake up and find out things are changing and it will be moved to Gardner-Webb. That curveball along with playing a seventh-seeded Radford team that was way better than its record, just made it that more difficult for the Panthers. It was a young team last season and eight of the top returning players for 2010 are sophomores. Mix that with Karo Okiomah (Preseason Player of the Year) and a few more veterans and you have a very solid Panther squad. This team played fast when I saw them play last fall and I expect the same out of them this season. The Panthers did add a Rock Hill, SC native to its recruiting class in Alex Martinez. He was named the MVP of the Clash of the Carolinas. Scott Rojo, one of the few seniors on the team, has been a key player since his freshman season and had a solid summer as he was named to the All-Premier Development League as well as the All-Eastern Conference Team in the PDL.
Shawn Sloan (So.) was a First Team All-Big South selection in 2009 and was the Freshman of the Year as he played in all 18 games. He scored six goals and had two assists while playing in the midfield. Defender Todd Ray was another Panther that made All-Big South honors. The All-Freshmen Team featured three High Point players in Sloan, Fejiro Okiomah and Patrick Donahue. Fejrio Okiomah scored four goals and had three assists while Donahue started all 18 games in the midfield. Michael Chelser returns in net for the Panthers. He started all 18 games and finished with a 1.30 goals against average and five shutouts.
This is a team with a lot of young talent that head coach Dustin Fonder has assembled and it is a team that has a very good chance at winning its first Big South Championship in men’s soccer.
Liberty
The Flames are coming off a very impressive season in which they won 12 games and will return seven very solid starters for the 2010 season. Liberty reached its fifth over final in 2009 and will have a lot of experience back for this season. The four starters not back were impact players. Juan Guzman was a very solid midfielder and Chris Mandall and Michael Ward (both All-Big South selections) were very solid in the back. Goalkeeper Andrew Madero also graduated after starting in 18 games with a 0.45 goals against average.
The biggest loss will be in the defense with those three gone, but the Flames do return their top five scorers from a year ago led by Darren Amoo. He is a very skillful and quick player that scored 14 goals last year as a redshirt freshman. He will be a player that will contend for the Big South Conference Player of the Year award. Playing alongside him will be junior Timothy Bullock, who had four goals and four assists last season and was selected to the All-Big South team. In the midfield, Phillip Aseweh, Juan Nino and Chris Phillips return to give the Flames one of the strongest, experienced midfields in the league. Nino posted eight assists last year and Aseweh had seven goals and six assists. This group was the foundation of a team that scored 43 goals last year and should be able to equal that. This is definitely the making of a team that could return to the championship match.
RADFORD
Radford is an interesting team and kind of an unknown, but has the potential to be a solid team. The Highlanders have a new coach for the first time in 17 years. New head coach Marc Reeves brings a wealth of experience from a successful program (St. John’s).
This team that finished seventh in the Big South last season returns a very solid core of players that were a part of a positive finish to the 2009 season after an upset of second-seeded High Point in the opening round of the Big South Conference Tournament.
The record of 5-9-3 last season was a bit deceptive as the Highlanders had a talented team that was involved in nine games decided by one goal or ended in a tie. The team managed just 18 goals in 17 games and if Radford solves that problem it should be one of the top four teams in the league. Radford had a 3-1 win over Virginia Tech and tied High Point and Winthrop during the regular season. Having watched the game against Winthrop, the game could have easily gone in favor of Radford as it applied a lot of pressure but missed opportunities, as did both sides.
The top five scorers return and seven or eight starters as well as both goalies. Sophomore Myles Jones is coming off a very impressive season in which he was named to the All-Big South Second Team and the All-Freshmen Team. He is a very solid defender and has great size at 6-3. He is from the same hometown as Winthrop’s two freshmen players from Harare, Zimbabwe. In addition to Jones, Radford returns a solid defense in veterans Aldo Macias and Brendan Shaffer. James Jordan and Iyiola Awosika return as the top scoring forwards and just add to the experience Radford brings to the 2010 season.
Reeves added five freshmen to the roster for the 2010 season (four midfielders and a forward). The newcomers will add depth to a midfield that returns Brian Gwanzura, Joe Baxter and James Leith.
One of the more interesting things about the 2010 Highlanders is the schedule. They will only be playing five games at home, opening up the home schedule with a conference game against rival Liberty and then playing Longwood, Presbyterian, Winthrop and Coastal Carolina at home. The non-conference schedule features games at North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Davidson, and Elon as well as neutral site games against Mercer and Georgia Southern. One thing for sure, the Highlanders will be battle tested and well prepared for the conference tournament. Playing on the road for 12 of your 17 games in a season won’t be easy. Despite that, I still feel Radford will finish among the top five teams in the league.
Gardner-Webb
Like many of the teams in the league, the Bulldogs return a solid core of players that includes nine of its top 12 scorers from last season. Gardner-Webb finished fifth in the league with a 4-3-1 record and is a team that seems to pride itself with hard work. Every game seems to be a battle. Gardner-Webb was the fifth seed in 2009 and lost a heartbreaker in the opening round to Winthrop in a shootout. This is a team that was voted sixth in the preseason poll, but is definitely capable of finishing around the top of the standings. I know it sounds like a broken record and it seems like every team I’ve talked about so far has a chance to win the league. I think that shows the depth of talented teams in the Big South heading into the season. This team opened the 2009 season with a 1-0 win at Clemson and also picked up wins over Jacksonville, Liberty, and Georgia Southern (5-2).
Gerard Hefferon, a very talented player that scored 10 goals and had eight assists last season, has graduated but there are nine players returning that scored at least one goal in 2009. Senior Romeo Kabanda is the top playmaker back for Gardner-Webb; five goals and eight assists last season. Gardner-Webb scored 31 goals in 17 games, but also allowed 31. This team was only shutout three times last season.
With a few questions on defense, Gardner-Webb could be susceptible to the same amount or more this year. If the Bulldogs defense comes together, they will be tough to beat. All-Big South selection Jon Ole Reinhardsen will be the veteran on defense, despite being a redshirt sophomore. Head coach Tony Setzer shuffled some players between midfield and defense last season and could give them a permanent home in the back this year.
Manning the net will be senior keeper Trent Kozman, who posted a 7-5-2 record last year with three shutouts. He missed the Big South Tournament with an injury.
I don’t know much about the newcomers other than there is a lot of them. But knowing coach Setzer, he’s brought in a few talented players that will help make this team even more competitive.
The schedule is competitive and Gardner-Webb will play VMI, Presbyterian College, Coastal Carolina and Radford all at home. Non-conference schedule will prepare them for Big South action as the Bulldogs travel to play Clemson and Appalachian State and will host Mercer, Georgia State, Davidson and UNC Greensboro.
The Bulldogs will definitely be a tough contest for every league team.
Presbyterian College
This is a team that is getting closer and closer to being a winner in this league. This team plays hard and plays very physical. Two of the teams three wins last season came in the Big South and they were against Radford and VMI as well as pulling off ties against the first and second best teams in the league last year (Coastal Carolina and High Point). They lost six games by one goal.
Seven starters return, including sophomore keeper Andrew Wallingford. He had a 1.24 goals against average in 2009 while senior James Neal returns after a 1-7-0 record and a 2.23 goals against average. Neal saw over 800 minutes in net while Wallingford played in 650.
Just like last season, I expect PC to compete in every league game. Last year they surprised with the ties against the top two teams in the league and this year I think one or even both of those ties turn into wins over someone in the top half of the standings.
All three wins the Blue Hose got in 2009 were at home. Winning on the road is key in the Big South to finish in the upper half of the standings and if PC figures out how to do that this season then the league is definitely facing a large number of tie-breaking scenarios.
VMI
This is a team that no matter what the circumstances are, they will fight you to the end. VMI works its tail off and is coming off a tough season in which it went 2-15-1. However, that team lost seven games by one goal (three in conference games) and lost three of its games in overtime while tying the other. The season ended with a 1-0 loss to top-seeded Coastal Carolina in the Big South Tournament.
This should be an improved VMI squad with the return of nine of its starters, including senior keeper Brian Sowell. This guy is really good and can keep the Keydets in games. I’ve witnessed two games in his career where no matter how many times you pounded the goal, he just refused to let the ball get by him. Whether it’s making the save and bouncing right up and save the rebound. He will be a key element in helping VMI improve from last year.
Senior Brian Harding was the leading scorer last season and returns as a starter in the midfield.
Third-year coach Richie Rose has experience returning and hopes to mold the newcomers in with the returning players to produce a good season. Rose brought in a class of nine players, almost all from the state of Virginia. Three of the players brought in were forwards to try and beef up the scoring a bit. Payton Case is a midfielder and defender Stephen Mallon both were part of the Virginia Olympic Development program. The only non-Virginia recruit is Aaron White, a forward from Wilson, NC and also part of the North Carolina ODP.
With the number of close results from last year in the league, I can only assume VMI will sneak in and turn some of the one goal losses into wins this year.
UNC ASHEVILLE
A new era begins in Asheville where first year head coach Matt Kern takes over. The coach has 18-years of experience in collegiate soccer and will look to turn things around for a team that was 6-12-2 last year with a 2-5-1 league record.
One thing a new coach usually has to do replace players and deal with changes. However, Kern stepped into situation where all 11 starters are returning. The Bulldogs were involved in 11 one goal games last year and also had the two ties. Every game is close and the Bulldogs hope more of them go in their favor this year than last.
One of the top players for the Bulldogs is forward Bryan Bartels, who was named to the All-Big South Second Team in 2009. He had two goals in 20 games with 12 starts. Also returning is Lassi Hurkainen, a junior that played over 1,600 minutes for the Bulldogs in 2009. Of the 11 starters returning, all but Eli Morrow and David Parra are juniors. Parra was a member of the Big South All-Freshmen Team along with teammate Zachery Odum, who tied for the team lead with three goals.
With so much returning, Kern only had to bring in a small number of recruits as he added five for the upcoming season. All freshmen and a transfer from the University of Rhode Island (Cody Zane) make up the class.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Opening Weekend
OK, OK, I know we have been a little slack on the ole blog. But if you didn’t notice there was a lot going on last week with the whole beginning of the school year. But we did have the first full weekend of games that counted and this is what we learned…
Women’s Soccer is still a work in progress. Friday the ladies looked like a completely different team than a year ago. Tricia Vensel netted a goal in the 3rd minute and Megan Pritts made it 2-0 before halftime and Eagle fans were wondering when the last time they saw the ladies score twice in one half. Unfortunately, Marshall responded with two second half goals to tie the match. But the tie felt like a win because the team played well and you could clearly see improvement and we knew that Marshall was a good team. On Sunday, it looked like they regressed a bit. Appalachian State controlled the match even though it was scoreless at halftime. Then in the second half ASU netted two quick goals and it was clear that it was not going to be Winthrop’s day. Gabrielle Corn scored in the 81st minute to make the final 2-1. I was pleased to see the Lady Eagles net the goal and fight hard despite being out-played most of the day. Fitness seems to be a bit of an issue, but it is still early in the season and I am sure that part will improve. The team is better than last season but consistency is lacking. The good news is there is not much difference among the top teams in the Big South and the bottom teams. I think we can be dangerous at the end of the season.
Volleyball went 1-2 this weekend at the William and Mary Tournament. Probably should have been 2-1, the Eagles let the final match against William and Mary slip away. Winthrop led 13-8 in the final set before the Tribe scored the final seven points. Finishing matches seemed to be the biggest problem for the Eagles. Winthrop led Seton Hall 2-0 before dropping two straight sets 26-28 before finally winning in five. The Wisconsin match, well, I am just going to say the bigger team won and that is to be expected. I like that this team is facing really tough competition to start the season. Wisconsin, Seton Hall, and William and Mary would do very well in our league. We can obviously play with these teams but we cannot let sets that we are winning slip away at the end. Another tough weekend is coming up as College of Charleston, Clemson, and South Carolina will be in town for the Carolina Classic. Should be a great weekend hopefully the Eagles can pull out a couple of wins.
Men’s Soccer went 0-2-1 in the preseason and will begin the regular season this weekend. On Saturday the Eagles played a very good Elon team to a 1-1 draw. Ted Bartels scored in the 51st minute to put the Eagles up 1-0. It looked like Winthrop would get the victory but in the final minute Elon scored to tie the match on a corner kick. There were five freshmen on the field at the time but it was disappointing to see us not hold off the final attack. The men will be very good when it is all said and done but right now they are playing a lot of young players trying to get them ready for a very tough conference schedule. The Big South is strong in men’s soccer and this team has to get better to win its third straight title. But again, they played really good teams in the preseason and I think they will be just fine.
We will have much more on Men’s soccer coming up later this week, so check back with us.
Women’s Soccer is still a work in progress. Friday the ladies looked like a completely different team than a year ago. Tricia Vensel netted a goal in the 3rd minute and Megan Pritts made it 2-0 before halftime and Eagle fans were wondering when the last time they saw the ladies score twice in one half. Unfortunately, Marshall responded with two second half goals to tie the match. But the tie felt like a win because the team played well and you could clearly see improvement and we knew that Marshall was a good team. On Sunday, it looked like they regressed a bit. Appalachian State controlled the match even though it was scoreless at halftime. Then in the second half ASU netted two quick goals and it was clear that it was not going to be Winthrop’s day. Gabrielle Corn scored in the 81st minute to make the final 2-1. I was pleased to see the Lady Eagles net the goal and fight hard despite being out-played most of the day. Fitness seems to be a bit of an issue, but it is still early in the season and I am sure that part will improve. The team is better than last season but consistency is lacking. The good news is there is not much difference among the top teams in the Big South and the bottom teams. I think we can be dangerous at the end of the season.
Volleyball went 1-2 this weekend at the William and Mary Tournament. Probably should have been 2-1, the Eagles let the final match against William and Mary slip away. Winthrop led 13-8 in the final set before the Tribe scored the final seven points. Finishing matches seemed to be the biggest problem for the Eagles. Winthrop led Seton Hall 2-0 before dropping two straight sets 26-28 before finally winning in five. The Wisconsin match, well, I am just going to say the bigger team won and that is to be expected. I like that this team is facing really tough competition to start the season. Wisconsin, Seton Hall, and William and Mary would do very well in our league. We can obviously play with these teams but we cannot let sets that we are winning slip away at the end. Another tough weekend is coming up as College of Charleston, Clemson, and South Carolina will be in town for the Carolina Classic. Should be a great weekend hopefully the Eagles can pull out a couple of wins.
Men’s Soccer went 0-2-1 in the preseason and will begin the regular season this weekend. On Saturday the Eagles played a very good Elon team to a 1-1 draw. Ted Bartels scored in the 51st minute to put the Eagles up 1-0. It looked like Winthrop would get the victory but in the final minute Elon scored to tie the match on a corner kick. There were five freshmen on the field at the time but it was disappointing to see us not hold off the final attack. The men will be very good when it is all said and done but right now they are playing a lot of young players trying to get them ready for a very tough conference schedule. The Big South is strong in men’s soccer and this team has to get better to win its third straight title. But again, they played really good teams in the preseason and I think they will be just fine.
We will have much more on Men’s soccer coming up later this week, so check back with us.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Your Feedback Needed
As we struggle through the "Dog Days of August" with temperatures hovering near the 100 degree mark, the start of basketball season can't get here soon enough. With that thought in mind, we want to begin a discussion on what starting times our fans favor for Saturday home games. In recent years, many of the Saturday games were scheduled for mid or late afternoon start times with the thought being that fans could enjoy the game and then go out for dinner or shopping afterward. The afternoon start times have also encouraged late-morning or early afternoon tailgating activities at the Coliseum parking lot.
As an unscientific survey, please give your feedback and thoughts on what Saturday start times you would prefer. Please pick from the following times: 2 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m. 5 p.m., 6 p.m., or 7 p.m. Your responses could give the folks in the athletic department a feel for what the fans would prefer. Let your friends who may be Eagle basketball fans know about this blog and encourage them to share their opinions.
As an unscientific survey, please give your feedback and thoughts on what Saturday start times you would prefer. Please pick from the following times: 2 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m. 5 p.m., 6 p.m., or 7 p.m. Your responses could give the folks in the athletic department a feel for what the fans would prefer. Let your friends who may be Eagle basketball fans know about this blog and encourage them to share their opinions.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Volleyball Part 2
Today, we are going to look at teams ranked fifth through ninth in the preseason Big South Volleyball Poll that was released last week. Yesterday we looked at the top four; Coastal Carolina, Liberty, Winthrop, and High Point…
When I first saw the poll I was surprised to see UNC Asheville at number five. The Bulldogs tied for the regular season title and were the top seed in last year’s tournament. However a semifinal loss to Coastal and the graduation of five seniors have coaches around the league down on the Dogs this year. But let us not forget who Coach Julie Torbett has remaining. Kelsey Benorden is perhaps the most consistent player in the league. She is an automatic double-double (10 kills and 10 digs) every time she steps on the court. Cindi Miller can play either outside or middle and last season provided the perfect complement to Benorden as the second outside hitter. It will be interesting to see if Coach Torbett moves her back to the middle this season. If she stays on the outside it gives Asheville a terrific outside attack. The Bulldogs must get better in the middle this season. Coach Torbett has gone back to the well (West Henderson High School) and tabbed freshman Meredith Foster (hey she has already replaced Ficker once) as the middle to replace Ficker. Holly Shelton showed some promise last season but needs to get quicker on the block. Jenna Dover and Rachel Guinane are seniors and need to have the best seasons of their careers for the Bulldogs to finish in the top four. I am not as worried about the loss of Raquel Miotto as some of the coaches are. Yes she was the best libero in the history of the Big South and she covered a lot of mistakes but Coach Torbett’s teams always play great defense. They did before Miotto, during Miotto’s time, and will again. Asheville will win its share of games and will battle all season for a top four berth.
As I was researching my notes I was preparing to say that Charleston Southern head coach Danyel Bellush had the best team she has ever had at CSU and this year the Bucs were going to bust into the top four. Then I looked at the top four. The Bucs are the hardest team in the league to predict. They have five returning seniors including Preseason All-Conference member Amanda Hill. Cori Holeman is a great blocker on the right side and adds enough offensive to take the pressure off of Hill. Amberle Trinder had a solid year last season and CSU won its last five regular season matches and then upset Winthrop in the conference tournament. This IS CSU’s best team. This is the year it should break into the top four in the league. I just don’t know who in the top four it is going to replace. The league may be the best it has been in the last 15 years. CSU can have it best team and still finish sixth but I will tell you what. I do not want to be a high-seed facing this team in the conference tournament. The schedule is another thing to watch that will work in CSU’s favor. Most teams have a weekend trip to Coastal Carolina and Charleston Southern. Coastal is the marquee match everyone will have to prepare for. Do not fall asleep on the Bucs. Hill is every bit as fun to watch and is every bit as good as Chelsey Kimes. I like this team a lot. They are a bit undersized but they are my sleeper. I expect CSU to pull off more than one surprise result this year. There are going to be a lot of teams that go 0-2 on the Beach trip. CSU just has to steal some wins on the road.
Presbyterian is similar in a lot of ways to Charleston Southern. Expect the Blue Hose to be much more competitive this season than in any previous season. PC returns five starters including Lisa Shelly, Presley Mabrey, and Amanda Kettles. It has good balance on offense, players continue to gain experience in the conference, and the only negative is that the league is so strong this year. PC has played really well at home in recent years but last year went just 3-10 on the road. It has to play better away from home. There are too many tough road trips and I just don’t see this team sneaking up on anyone. Depth is the obvious question mark with PC. The six starters can complete with anyone but the drop off is visible when you get deep in matches. The Blue Hose have to avoid injury to finish in the top of the league. I think this is the best PC team it has had since joining the league unfortunately too many other teams have their best teams as well. PC will finish below .500 but it will complete and will surprise a higher ranked team late in the year.
The top four hitters for Gardner-Webb all return including 2008 Freshman of the Year Laura Wilcox. Molly Rhyne had a solid year as well but the defense ranked seventh in digs per set a year ago. GWU went 4-12 in league play but one of its wins was a 3-1 victory over Coastal Carolina at the end of the year. Head Coach Chris Phillips knows the Big South as well as anyone and knows how to have success in the league. Unfortunately for the Runnin’ Bulldogs I just haven’t seen enough defensively to compete this year. Too many teams have too balanced of line ups. GWU only hit .190 last season. I realize it was a mostly freshman and sophomore team but now it’s a sophomore and junior led team. Like many others GWU will have a new setter. I think it will be another tough year for the Bulldogs but they are growing. Next year they will have the experience to make a move in the league. It is hard to say wait until next year before this year starts but in Boiling Springs the growing pains will last one more year.
Radford rounds out our list. The Highlanders struggled against everyone but High Point going 2-14 in league play with both wins coming against the Panthers. Lauren Clary was easily their best player and now she is gone. The Highlanders will have to find some offense. Radford hit just .157 as a team a year ago. Setter Desiree Aramburu often took the offense into her own hands and led the team with a .258 attack percentage as a setter. Laura Waddell, Carly Fleming, and Megan McWhorter have had flashes but they will each need to step up this season if Radford is to get out of the cellar. As with Gardner-Webb and Presbyterian, the league is just too strong this year to be fighting up hill. I think Radford will win more than two conference matches but it will be battling with GWU for eighth place all season long. I just don’t think the Highlanders have enough offensive weapons to compete night in and night out. I do like Aramburu as a setter and I think Radford will continue to improve under head coach Marci Jenkins. Radford has some freshman talent coming in but it will take time to develop.
When I first saw the poll I was surprised to see UNC Asheville at number five. The Bulldogs tied for the regular season title and were the top seed in last year’s tournament. However a semifinal loss to Coastal and the graduation of five seniors have coaches around the league down on the Dogs this year. But let us not forget who Coach Julie Torbett has remaining. Kelsey Benorden is perhaps the most consistent player in the league. She is an automatic double-double (10 kills and 10 digs) every time she steps on the court. Cindi Miller can play either outside or middle and last season provided the perfect complement to Benorden as the second outside hitter. It will be interesting to see if Coach Torbett moves her back to the middle this season. If she stays on the outside it gives Asheville a terrific outside attack. The Bulldogs must get better in the middle this season. Coach Torbett has gone back to the well (West Henderson High School) and tabbed freshman Meredith Foster (hey she has already replaced Ficker once) as the middle to replace Ficker. Holly Shelton showed some promise last season but needs to get quicker on the block. Jenna Dover and Rachel Guinane are seniors and need to have the best seasons of their careers for the Bulldogs to finish in the top four. I am not as worried about the loss of Raquel Miotto as some of the coaches are. Yes she was the best libero in the history of the Big South and she covered a lot of mistakes but Coach Torbett’s teams always play great defense. They did before Miotto, during Miotto’s time, and will again. Asheville will win its share of games and will battle all season for a top four berth.
As I was researching my notes I was preparing to say that Charleston Southern head coach Danyel Bellush had the best team she has ever had at CSU and this year the Bucs were going to bust into the top four. Then I looked at the top four. The Bucs are the hardest team in the league to predict. They have five returning seniors including Preseason All-Conference member Amanda Hill. Cori Holeman is a great blocker on the right side and adds enough offensive to take the pressure off of Hill. Amberle Trinder had a solid year last season and CSU won its last five regular season matches and then upset Winthrop in the conference tournament. This IS CSU’s best team. This is the year it should break into the top four in the league. I just don’t know who in the top four it is going to replace. The league may be the best it has been in the last 15 years. CSU can have it best team and still finish sixth but I will tell you what. I do not want to be a high-seed facing this team in the conference tournament. The schedule is another thing to watch that will work in CSU’s favor. Most teams have a weekend trip to Coastal Carolina and Charleston Southern. Coastal is the marquee match everyone will have to prepare for. Do not fall asleep on the Bucs. Hill is every bit as fun to watch and is every bit as good as Chelsey Kimes. I like this team a lot. They are a bit undersized but they are my sleeper. I expect CSU to pull off more than one surprise result this year. There are going to be a lot of teams that go 0-2 on the Beach trip. CSU just has to steal some wins on the road.
Presbyterian is similar in a lot of ways to Charleston Southern. Expect the Blue Hose to be much more competitive this season than in any previous season. PC returns five starters including Lisa Shelly, Presley Mabrey, and Amanda Kettles. It has good balance on offense, players continue to gain experience in the conference, and the only negative is that the league is so strong this year. PC has played really well at home in recent years but last year went just 3-10 on the road. It has to play better away from home. There are too many tough road trips and I just don’t see this team sneaking up on anyone. Depth is the obvious question mark with PC. The six starters can complete with anyone but the drop off is visible when you get deep in matches. The Blue Hose have to avoid injury to finish in the top of the league. I think this is the best PC team it has had since joining the league unfortunately too many other teams have their best teams as well. PC will finish below .500 but it will complete and will surprise a higher ranked team late in the year.
The top four hitters for Gardner-Webb all return including 2008 Freshman of the Year Laura Wilcox. Molly Rhyne had a solid year as well but the defense ranked seventh in digs per set a year ago. GWU went 4-12 in league play but one of its wins was a 3-1 victory over Coastal Carolina at the end of the year. Head Coach Chris Phillips knows the Big South as well as anyone and knows how to have success in the league. Unfortunately for the Runnin’ Bulldogs I just haven’t seen enough defensively to compete this year. Too many teams have too balanced of line ups. GWU only hit .190 last season. I realize it was a mostly freshman and sophomore team but now it’s a sophomore and junior led team. Like many others GWU will have a new setter. I think it will be another tough year for the Bulldogs but they are growing. Next year they will have the experience to make a move in the league. It is hard to say wait until next year before this year starts but in Boiling Springs the growing pains will last one more year.
Radford rounds out our list. The Highlanders struggled against everyone but High Point going 2-14 in league play with both wins coming against the Panthers. Lauren Clary was easily their best player and now she is gone. The Highlanders will have to find some offense. Radford hit just .157 as a team a year ago. Setter Desiree Aramburu often took the offense into her own hands and led the team with a .258 attack percentage as a setter. Laura Waddell, Carly Fleming, and Megan McWhorter have had flashes but they will each need to step up this season if Radford is to get out of the cellar. As with Gardner-Webb and Presbyterian, the league is just too strong this year to be fighting up hill. I think Radford will win more than two conference matches but it will be battling with GWU for eighth place all season long. I just don’t think the Highlanders have enough offensive weapons to compete night in and night out. I do like Aramburu as a setter and I think Radford will continue to improve under head coach Marci Jenkins. Radford has some freshman talent coming in but it will take time to develop.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Volleyball Part 1
This week I want to talk about Big South Volleyball. As you know, the Big South Volleyball Preseason Poll came out last week and that got me thinking. Now, I know most people are talking about football this time of year but here is a little love for the volleyball ladies across the league. In fact this maybe the only site where you can read a blog about Big South Volleyball from someone who is not a coach. So without any further ado, let’s look at the top four teams in the preseason poll…
Coastal Carolina is picked to win the league. Last season, the Chanticleers claimed the tournament title after placing fourth in the regular season. This is a pretty easy call and the coaches got it right. Coastal was much better than the fourth place team last year and they proved it in the tournament. They were the best team last year and, on paper, is the best team heading into this year. However, don’t underestimate the loss of setter Meagan Tracey and middle blocker Jill Nyhoff. Those were two very steady players and anytime you lose your setter the offense changes a little. But Kelsey Kimes is the best pure hitter in the league and Megan Bickford is the best returning middle in the league. Both deserve their pre-season all-conference selections and they give the Chants two excellent hitting options. Sierra Livesay will be better this year giving Coastal the best middle attack in the league. If they play to their potential each night they will win a lot of matches. However, playing to their level was sometimes a question mark last season, which is why they finished fourth. They need to be more consistent but they are still my top pick because when they play well, they are very good.
Personally, I think Liberty is picked too high at number two. Now don’t get me wrong, I think Shane Pinder is a terrific coach and he will get this team to play well. I just think losing Kallie Corbin, Chelaine McCarty, and Nikki Scripko will hurt this team more than the other coaches do. Karyl Bacon is a solid hitter, but she did not have to be the go to player last year. Loren Thomas is very good hitter but there are only five upperclassmen on this team. I know Coach Pinder recruited well, he always does, there is talent but I would have picked them fourth or fifth this year. They need to come of age, they have a new setter. The league is good this year. Liberty will lose some matches early with a tough schedule. I am not saying this team will not be a factor come tournament time but out of the gate, this is not the Liberty team we have watched the last three years.
Winthrop is picked third. The Eagles are the most experienced team in the league with five seniors. We saw UNC Asheville ride senior leadership to a regular-season title a year ago. There is something to be said for seniors who know this is their last chance. Kaley Viola and Kellie Sellers will lead the team from the outside. Sara Felts and Becca Toor in the middle give the Eagles arguably the most balanced attack in the league. The biggest question mark is who will replace last season’s Player of the Year Kelley Taylor. The good news is no one player has too. Give me three good options in the front row as opposed to one great option any day. Kelsey Hall is a senior setter. I like the leadership, I like it is this year or never mentality, and I think Winthrop will be better than it was last year. I also like that they lost in the first round of the tournament last season so they will be hungry to complete. This is a team that knows it can be beaten if it doesn’t play well. I think it will play well and will have a good regular season. We will find out early. The Eagles have some big name matches the first two weekends but it will serve them well come conference play.
High Point is picked fourth; I think this is too low. The Panthers are loaded with talent. Audie Gonzalez returns from injury. She has a great arm swing and tons of potential. She has also been known to bounce one off the back wall from time to time and the injury is a concern but she is fun to watch when she is on. Megan Smith had a breakout year last season and Julie Hershkowitz is the best libero in the league now that Raquel Miotto has graduated. Anna Lott is a big block in the middle with Stephanie Wallin. They struggled with consistency last year without Gonzalez but I expect High Point to be very strong and out-perform Liberty in the regular season. The biggest question mark is at setter for the Panthers but if they can find someone to distribute the ball I like their balance. Depth may be an issue but it is going to be with every team. Remember they took Coastal to five sets in the conference tournament last year. Neither Asheville nor Liberty did that. This team got better as the year went on and I think they are talented enough to make a lot of noise.
I will take you through the teams ranked fifth through ninth tomorrow. There are a couple of teams in the lower half to watch out for so check back.
Coastal Carolina is picked to win the league. Last season, the Chanticleers claimed the tournament title after placing fourth in the regular season. This is a pretty easy call and the coaches got it right. Coastal was much better than the fourth place team last year and they proved it in the tournament. They were the best team last year and, on paper, is the best team heading into this year. However, don’t underestimate the loss of setter Meagan Tracey and middle blocker Jill Nyhoff. Those were two very steady players and anytime you lose your setter the offense changes a little. But Kelsey Kimes is the best pure hitter in the league and Megan Bickford is the best returning middle in the league. Both deserve their pre-season all-conference selections and they give the Chants two excellent hitting options. Sierra Livesay will be better this year giving Coastal the best middle attack in the league. If they play to their potential each night they will win a lot of matches. However, playing to their level was sometimes a question mark last season, which is why they finished fourth. They need to be more consistent but they are still my top pick because when they play well, they are very good.
Personally, I think Liberty is picked too high at number two. Now don’t get me wrong, I think Shane Pinder is a terrific coach and he will get this team to play well. I just think losing Kallie Corbin, Chelaine McCarty, and Nikki Scripko will hurt this team more than the other coaches do. Karyl Bacon is a solid hitter, but she did not have to be the go to player last year. Loren Thomas is very good hitter but there are only five upperclassmen on this team. I know Coach Pinder recruited well, he always does, there is talent but I would have picked them fourth or fifth this year. They need to come of age, they have a new setter. The league is good this year. Liberty will lose some matches early with a tough schedule. I am not saying this team will not be a factor come tournament time but out of the gate, this is not the Liberty team we have watched the last three years.
Winthrop is picked third. The Eagles are the most experienced team in the league with five seniors. We saw UNC Asheville ride senior leadership to a regular-season title a year ago. There is something to be said for seniors who know this is their last chance. Kaley Viola and Kellie Sellers will lead the team from the outside. Sara Felts and Becca Toor in the middle give the Eagles arguably the most balanced attack in the league. The biggest question mark is who will replace last season’s Player of the Year Kelley Taylor. The good news is no one player has too. Give me three good options in the front row as opposed to one great option any day. Kelsey Hall is a senior setter. I like the leadership, I like it is this year or never mentality, and I think Winthrop will be better than it was last year. I also like that they lost in the first round of the tournament last season so they will be hungry to complete. This is a team that knows it can be beaten if it doesn’t play well. I think it will play well and will have a good regular season. We will find out early. The Eagles have some big name matches the first two weekends but it will serve them well come conference play.
High Point is picked fourth; I think this is too low. The Panthers are loaded with talent. Audie Gonzalez returns from injury. She has a great arm swing and tons of potential. She has also been known to bounce one off the back wall from time to time and the injury is a concern but she is fun to watch when she is on. Megan Smith had a breakout year last season and Julie Hershkowitz is the best libero in the league now that Raquel Miotto has graduated. Anna Lott is a big block in the middle with Stephanie Wallin. They struggled with consistency last year without Gonzalez but I expect High Point to be very strong and out-perform Liberty in the regular season. The biggest question mark is at setter for the Panthers but if they can find someone to distribute the ball I like their balance. Depth may be an issue but it is going to be with every team. Remember they took Coastal to five sets in the conference tournament last year. Neither Asheville nor Liberty did that. This team got better as the year went on and I think they are talented enough to make a lot of noise.
I will take you through the teams ranked fifth through ninth tomorrow. There are a couple of teams in the lower half to watch out for so check back.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Riginos Hired as New Baseball Coach
As you have no doubt heard by now, Tom Riginos accepted the offer to be the third head baseball coach in Winthrop history Friday afternoon. His formal introduction will be at a Wednesday press conference in the Eagle Club room. Full video coverage will be available.
Coach Riginos has an excellent pedigree having coached under Jack Leggett at Clemson the past two seasons. Of course, everyone in this area is familiar with the Tiger Baseball program that has made the trip to the College World Series 12 times. Leggett was recently named the ABCA Atlantic Region Coach of the Year. Prior to his time at Clemson, Riginos played and coaching under Pete Dunn at Stetson. The Stetson program you may be less familiar with but the Hatters have played in the NCAA Tournament seven times since 2000. Coach Dunn is seventh on the list of division I wins by an active coach. He has 1,097 wins in 31 years at Stetson. And let us not forget his time at Eastern Kentucky where he learned under the legendary Jim Ward who has been inducted into three separate Halls of Fame (Eastern Kentucky, Stetson, and the Ohio Valley Conference).
Riginos has learned from three of the finest baseball coaches around and now he has the opportunity to coach at Winthrop. Personally, I think this is an exciting time for both Coach Riginos and the Winthrop program. Coach Riginos gets the opportunity he has no doubt dreamed about for years, having his own team, making his own decisions, and teaching players the sport he loves. Winthrop gets a new coach who has been to Omaha, has been a part of one of the best programs in the ACC, and has successfully recruited athletes who have played for the US National team and who are in professional baseball.
Winthrop is not in the habit of hiring short term baseball coaches. As I mentioned, this is only the second coaching change in the program’s 30 year history. Horace Tubeville from 1980-1991 and Joe Hudak from 1992-2010 both achieved success at Winthrop and hopefully Tom Riginos will find success here as well. All of the pieces are in place. A beautiful ballpark, great tradition, and a talented core of returning players should make this an exciting year for Eagle Baseball.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)