2019 Saluki Volleyball Season Preview

Photo by: Will Becque

08/26/2019 | 2:43:00 | Women's Volleyball

The Salukis open the 2019 season on Friday.

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. — The 2019 volleyball season is officially underway, as the Salukis ready for their opening weekend of competition under first-year head coach Ed Allen.

Allen was hired after an eight-year stint at Alabama in which he posted a .592 winning percentage with a 134-92 overall record. Allen led the Crimson Tide to a pair of NCAA Tournament berths during his eight years at the helm and has compiled a 646-284 record with just one losing season in 27 seasons as a collegiate head coach.

Allen acted quickly in filling out his coaching staff, surrounding himself with familiar faces in Tristan Johnson, Shelly Dyche and Ronaldo Pacheco. Johnson, who began his coaching career as a student assistant at Alabama under Allen, will help in all aspects of training as well as head up Southern's recruiting efforts. Dyche also comes to SIU by way of Alabama, where she spent the last four years as Allen's Director of Operations and will serve in a similar capacity at Southern.

Pacheco, Allen's newest addition to the staff, comes to SIU from Ole Miss, where he spent the last five seasons, including the past two as the Associate head coach. During his tenure, the Rebels posted four-straight winning seasons for the first time in three decades. The 6-foot-5 Brazilian has extensive playing experience, as he played professionally for 18 seasons, which included a stint with the Brazilian National Team. Pacheco's coaching career began as a student assistant with Allen at Tulsa.

"We all get along extremely well and it is great to be able to bring Ronaldo back as a graduate assistant," Allen said of his coaching staff. "Ronaldo is quite possibly the most over-qualified graduate assistant in the country. When you have that type of continuity, it gives me the ability to really focus my attention on things that allow us to get better, quicker."

The Salukis will utilize a 6-2 offense and will be able to attack from all three front row positions at all times. Defensively, Southern will strive for good first touches so that they can remain in system and side-out when necessary.

"We're going to have to be a good serving and defending team," Allen said. "Defense wins a lot of matches. We have diversity from an offensive perspective. Running a 6-2, we will always have three and sometimes four hitters in the match."

Southern has significant depth at outside hitter, with four newcomers and a returner who did not play last season in the mix. Freshmen Alex Washington and Bailey Neuberger, junior transfers Kyra Hunter and Savannah Sheridan as well as redshirt sophomore Hannah Becker all figure to play notable roles this season. Washington, a two-time state champion from Bishop Gorman High School, will play all six rotations for the Salukis.

"We will ask as much of Alex as we will of any player that we have," Allen said. "With being a freshman, there will be growing pains but we are excited about how dynamic she can be. Right away, she's going to be an impact player for us."

Sheridan sat out last season after two seasons at San Jacinto Junior College in which she put down 569 kills to help the Gators go 56-12 and reach as high No. 12 in the NJCAA rankings.

"Savannah will play three rotations and will focus primarily on hitting and blocking," Allen said. "After a year off, she has made huge strides in just two weeks of camp but has the ability to be a lot better come November."

Becker, who is coming off an injury that sidelined her for much of her second season, returns and has been impressive during the preseason. She will likely play on the right side but has the ability to play middle should the Salukis need her there. Neuberger, meanwhile, will get her first taste of collegiate volleyball and will likely focus on playing in the back row during her freshman season. Hunter, a junior transfer from the University of New Orleans, is a left-handed hitter who provides SIU with options on the right side as she works herself back into playing shape after having had offseason surgery. Kat Wagner, a sophomore who finished third on the team with 212 digs a year ago, is also in the mix for playing time on the outside but figures to have a larger role in the back row as she has proven to be one of SIU's most consistent passers.

In the middle, Southern will lean on a pair of redshirt juniors in Emma Baalman and Lindsey Paulsen. Baalman played in all 31 matches last season and is SIU's top returning blocker while Paulsen had a career year last season after she came on strong late. Sophomore Libby Valek and freshman Meredith Woolsey will push Baalman and Paulsen for playing time. Valek will provide Southern an option for when it needs to rest one of its middles, especially during the early season grind, while Woolsey, an athletic 6-foot-2 freshman, will likely redshirt this season.

Southern has three setters on the roster and at least two will play prominent roles within SIU's 6-2 offense. Senior Alayna Martin, junior Rachel Maguire and sophomore Marissa Rossi are all back, with Martin and Maguire poised to handle the setting duties early on. Martin has started 60-straight matches dating back to her sophomore year and enters the season ranked 13th in school history in career assists. Maguire returns to setting after she was primarily used as an outside hitter last season, where she tallied 140 kills and 140 digs in 23 matches. Rossi will provide SIU with experienced depth at the position after she appeared in 15 matches last season.

"We have been training our setters to go six rotations as one will always stay in the front row and hit," Allen said. "I think it gives us a little bit of diversity in how we do things. The plan is for one to stay for all six rotations and will hit when they are in the front row. The other will play primarily as a back row setter."

In the back row, Southern has four defensive specialists who will push for playing time, led by senior Laura Rojas. Rojas will serve as Southern's libero after a junior season in which she notched 160 digs in 27 matches. Wagner, sophomore Katy Kluge and freshman Abi Fitzpatrick will provide Allen and his staff with options at defensive specialist when Southern wishes to sub in passers for hitters. Kluge is one of Southern's toughest servers while Fitzpatrick is a tenacious defender who has shown her ability to handle first-ball contacts.

"We have a plethora of defensive specialists and that position has the most depth of any position that we have," Allen said.

Southern opens the 2019 regular season this weekend with three matches at the Marcia Hamilton Classic, hosted by St. Louis University. The Salukis then return home for eight-straight matches, which will be SIU's longest homestand since 1980. Southern rounds out the non-conference schedule at Tennessee Tech's tournament before opening the conference slate on Sept. 27-28. Five of SIU's first six Valley matches are against programs that played postseason volleyball a year ago.

"Our schedule gives our kids a chance to compete in the preseason," Allen said. "With where we have been as a program, there isn't a single match that doesn't challenge us. Our schedule will prepare us perfectly for where we are at as a program."