Huskies volleyball remains on the road as GLIAC season opens

Team has played better than record shows

HOUGHTON -- At 4-4 after a pair of tournaments, the Michigan Tech Huskies volleyball team, on paper, appears to be just a .500 program at the moment. However, that record doesn't tell the whole story. The Huskies are 1-4 in matches that go to five sets. They have swept all three of their other matches.

Then there is a little matter of how good the opponents the Huskies have played are.

"We’re sitting in a good spot right now," said Huskies coach Cindy Pindral. "We have had a ton of battles.

"I think there’s a lot of beauty in learning early how to compete and how to battle against tough teams. Depending on what ranking system you look at, every single team that we’ve played has been ranked above us. So, to be 4-4 at this point is right on target, I would say. Certainly, we had a couple of chances to pull out maybe one or two upsets here and there.

Pindral admits her team still has learning to do.

"Of course, we want that South Dakota Mines game back," she said. "We had quite a few set, or match, points there, but we’re learning a lot as a team. We had to face a decent amount of adversity in a short period of time this past weekend as well. So, we’re learning as we go, and I would prefer to be battle-tested already this early in the season than to have to learn in GLIAC play."

A big part of why the Huskies have been able to punch above their weight class has been the play of senior outside hitter Rachel Zurek, who was named MVP of the Mountain Lion Classic last weekend. She has nearly twice as many kills as her closest teammate with 145 this season.

"Obviously, we love the numbers in the production," Pindral said. "Knock on wood, she’s on track to break the 1,000-career kills mark hopefully in the next several games here. She is playing with more joy, and more just positive energy, than I’ve ever seen her play (with).

"She has so much fun on the court, even when we’re down, or things are tight, or the score is tight or whatever it is. She’s playing with so much heart and so much fun, and it really radiates throughout the team. The team really rallies around her when she subs onto the court. She certainly has the ability to play six rotations, but we want to save her legs in the back row."

The player just behind Zurek in kills is freshman outside hitter Kayla Heinonen. Pindral picked her out as a player who could have an impact, but even she wasn't sure that Heinonen would be second on the team in kills with 78 through eight matches.

"We knew coming into the season that the L2, or the second outside hitter spot, was going to be a battle, and we had quite a few candidates," said Pindral. "We still have quite a few candidates that could play in that position. But the second week of preseason, Kayla really started to shine through, mostly with her defense and her passing. She’s just like an energizer bunny back there.

"She picks up so many good things, and then when she gets to the front row, she’s very creative with her shots. She was finding some offensive success early, and she’s still doing that. We were able to play her six rotations again in all of our matches."

Another freshman outside hitter is also off to a great start. With sophomore right side hitter Madelyn Torola suffering an injury on the trip, Reagan Lesley got a chance to step in on the right side. In four matches, she put up 28 kills.

"She has so much energy, she’s so excited to be out on the court, and she certainly has moments where she can really deliver," said Pindral. "She played right side a little bit her junior year of club, but primarily she’s been a left side. There’s not too much difference between them.

"But, once you kind of get into the weeds, then there are quite a few differences, especially taking the ball across your midline. It’s a little bit harder to track over your shoulder when you’re attacking. But Reagan provided a really quality spark, and she got some good block touches for us. (She) plays really good off-blocker defense. So, we’re going to use her again this week on the right side and see how she continues to blossom there."

Scouting the Panthers

The Davenport Panthers are 6-1 to open the season after winning all four of their matches last weekend in the Hampton Inn and Suites Grand Rapids Downtown Classic. They defeated Seton Hill, Northwood, Slippery Rock and Cedarville.

They are led offensively by senior outside hitter Abby Alan. She has 81 kills already this season. Junior outside hitter Karley Pretzer has also been good, racking up 69 kills.

Scouting the Cardinals

The Saginaw Valley State Cardinals are 6-2 on the season so far after also going 4-0 in the Grand Rapids Downtown Classic. They defeated the same four teams that Davenport beat.

They are led offensively by junior outside hitter Rachel Townsend, who has 79 kills. Junior outside hitter Chloe Vanwinkle and sophomore middle blocker Marissa Roe both have 52 each.

Junior setter Taylor Smith was named GLIAC Setter of the Week this week after tallying 148 assists, 13 kills, 24 digs, and 11 blocks during the tournament.

Game times

The Huskies and Panthers will battle Friday in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at 5 p.m. Saturday, the Huskies and Cardinals renew their rivalry in University Center, Michigan, at 2 p.m.