One of the biggest question marks going into the season for the
UCLA women’s volleyball team was the starting libero
position.
Losing the Pac-10’s all-time dig leader Chrissie Zartman
to graduation presented the Bruins with a big hole to fill. Zartman
had an almost incomprehensible 708 digs last season, which broke
her UCLA record of 551 digs from the previous season.
Early on, the Bruins have turned to freshman Jordan Smith to
fill the void that Zartman left behind.
Smith, who had never played the libero position before this
season, has had to make adjustments while seemingly learning on the
job. The combination of injuries and the fact that many of the
Bruin freshmen are also learning and making adjustments on the fly
has not made her job any easier.
“With some of the injuries and all of the younger players
playing now, it’s definitely been a bigger role to be billed
with now,” Smith said.
Smith does have a team-high 133 digs this year and has shown
flashes of brilliance throughout the season, but knows that she
needs to shore up areas of her game as well, and has been working
hard in practice to do so.
“I’m working on my passing and on keeping my arms
away from my body,” Smith said. “Also, staying close to
the sideline on digs, and staying in my area.”
Despite all the work Smith has to do, coach Andy Banachowski has
been impressed with her progress so far.
“Jordan’s done a great job for us stepping up and
being our libero,” Banachowski said.
“It’s important that we get a solid performance from
Jordan or whoever’s got (the libero’s) jersey
on.”
PASSING PROBLEMS: The Bruins struggled with
their passing and their ability to set up hitting attacks against
USC on Friday. As a result, the Bruins have been paying special
attention to their passing in practice this week.
“We’re spending a lot of time on passing and getting
into our offense,” Banachowski said. “If we don’t
pass well, our offense becomes pretty one-dimensional, and we
can’t afford to do that.”
Outside hitter Nancy Barba, the Bruins’ lone senior, has
also felt her team’s need for an improved passing game.
“We’ve been working on our passing and all-around
defense,” Barba said. “Also, diving for loose balls and
being more aggressive.”
TIMES ARE CHANGING: For Barba, this season has
been a little different from her previous seasons. The Bruins lost
five starting seniors from last season, and many of them had been
mainstays in the team’s lineup.
“Usually, I’m one of the youngest players on the
court, and this year I’m the oldest player,” Barba
said. “It’s been interesting to see what new people can
do because we’ve had a similar team the last few
years.”
On a team mixed with underclassmen, Barba highlights the loss to
USC on Sept. 30 as being particularly difficult for the veteran
players.
“At the same time, beating ‘SC wasn’t the same
for them as it was for the older players.”
INJURY REPORT: The Bruins could receive a huge
boost this week as junior outside hitter Colby Lyman is recovering
from her bone contusion and hopes to play this weekend against
Oregon and Oregon State.
“Colby is starting to practice a little bit, and we expect
that she’ll be able to play some this weekend,”
Banachowski said.
According to the coach, Lyman’s veteran presence and
ball-handling ability has been sorely missed, and her presence in
the lineup would be a welcome addition.
EXTRA NOTES: The Bruins’ ranking slipped
from No. 17 to No. 21 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches
Association poll this week after losing to USC. The Bruins were not
ranked that low at any point last season, and it is their lowest
ranking yet this season.