Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Volleyball's Sonya Locke Encouraged By First Scrimmage
08/23/2003 | 12:00:00 | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 23, 2003
By Lou Antoine
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Freshmen Johannah Yutzy and Jene' Pulliam each had 10 kills to lead the 2003 SIU volleyball team in an intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday at Davies Gym. Yutzy hit .666 (10 kills, two errors, 12 attempts) and added a solo block and block assist. Fellow freshman Ashley Saverine and lone senior Kelly Harman each added nine kills in the squad's first scored competition of the fall practice session. Freshman setters Monica Laird and Holly Marita had 31 and 19 assists respectively.
"Overall, I was encouraged by this scrimmage today. I know what they're capable of and when they did the right things it really showed. We just want them to be consistent and aggressive and they were tentative for a while today. I thought we served well, but that means we need to pass the ball better. We could have also played defense and communicated on offense better. We're still working on chemistry, but that will come with time. This scrimmage lets us know what we need to work on and it's a starting point. I wasn't really surprised by anything today," said SIU Head Coach Sonya Locke.
"We have a lot of people who can play and I'm really excited about our depth. I don't think we've ever been this deep in my 13 years here, it's scary. Pulliam is such a terminator who puts balls away. Saverine is a savvy player and we look for Harman's leadership and contributions this year. Yutzy is a very active player who didn't surprise me with her 10 kills and hitting percentage."
Added Yutzy, "We've come a long way and worked really hard in the preseason. We saw today how well we work together. I thought we did well and now we know what we need to work on as individuals and as a team. It was excited to compete and be in a game situation. I really enjoyed it and it helps us understand how fast the game is at this level."
SIU opens the season by hosting the 24th Saluki Invitational August 29-30 in Davies Gym. The Salukis' first match will be Friday, August 29 at 7 p.m. against Austin Peay State.
