With a week of volleyball practice in the books, umdbulldogs.com sat down to talk with 10th-year head coach Jim Boos about last season's end, what's been exciting for him so far this preseason, and the fan base. Boos also weighs in as a few players offer their top reasons to attend a UMD volleyball game. The team explains a few rules every fan might want to know when checking out a match this season. All in all, a smorgasbord of good topics in this quick Q & A session.
UMDBULLDOGS.COM - Last season obviously was a great year, as UMD sat among the top teams in Division II for the entire season. Things ended quickly though, with a three-match losing streak (your only of the year) that ended the season in a hurry.
Jim Boos - Like you said, it was certainly another great year for UMD volleyball, and we carried on a tradition that had been set by other teams in the program. When we got off to the hot start, we tried to caution the team not to get too far ahead of itself because we knew we had a grind coming up. In our conference there are just so many good teams, you are bound to hit a rough patch where you know you're not going to do as well. Unfortunately, some of our rough patches came near the end of the year, when ideally you'd like to be winning.
The biggest thing with last year's team is we found a way to be competitive at all times, and were really close in many situations. We just never found that secret ingredient to get us over the hump in those tight games, and that came back to bite us against a lot of good teams at the end of the year. This year's team, we're looking to reverse that fortune.
UMDBULLDOGS.COM - A lot of players return from last year's team, and they remember the quick end to the season after getting off to such a good start. You've been in the gym and have had a chance to see your 2011 squad for about a week. What excites you about this upcoming year based on what you've seen?
Boos - Nobody really knows where they're at until you get a few weekends in and start to get a good feel of the team. In our gym, we have a ball-control, defensive-minded feel. This is a really scrappy group, and we've got a lot of kids who can handle the ball. Points are being extended and digs are being made, and the energy level is extremely high. We still have some work to do, and some things to polish up, especially offensively, but in terms of scrappiness and effort level, it's at an all-time high in the gym right now. It's exciting to see.
UMDBULLDOGS.COM - You've had a good fan base here in Duluth, and for good reason. Division II volleyball is a much faster-paced, higher-flying sport than what you can see at the high school or club levels, and the Bulldogs have been a top-tier program since you began coaching in 2002. Despite the strong base of supporters, you'd like to see more fans, especially among the student body. Correct?
Boos - There's no such thing as “too many fans,” we're always happy to make room for more. In the past we've had some matches with some really large crowds, and it makes all the difference in the world for the girls. I think that environment is fun both for the fans and for the team to be a part of. As a visiting team, you love going places where you know there's going to be a big crowd, even if they're cheering against you.
It's just such a great environment to be a part of. One of our goals this year is to bring in more people, and I'm excited to target that. As far as on-campus kids, I think a lot of times it's just about letting them know what's going on. There's just so much going on in their world that if you're not on their radar, they're not going to go out of their way to find you. We want to let those kids know “Hey, you should walk across campus and come watch a volleyball game for a bit.”
UMDBULLDOGS.COM - If you could talk to some students who have never seen a match, and had one opportunity to talk them into stopping by Romano Gym one night to see the team, what would be your selling point?
Senior libero Allison Fanta – It's really fun! We have fun activities between our second and third set, so you have a chance to win some prizes… The band comes and plays… it's just a fun atmosphere.
Sophomore outside hitter Kate Lange – It's a really intense game, and it's fun, and the crowd gets really into it… You can meet people, and all the other fun stuff that goes with that!
Junior middle blocker Kalli Lochner – We've continually been a really good program here, and we have a lot of fun. It's a high-energy gym and we love to play for our crowd.
Junior defensive specialist Samantha Hertaus – I think our games are really intense. It's hard not to get into the game once you're here. I've never heard anyone who came say “Oh, that game was boring,” or “I wish I would have done something else.” Once they get in the gym, they just have so much fun.
Boos - This is not your mom-n-pop backyard barbeque volleyball game. This is not your high school gym class volleyball. This is high-energy, highly-powerful, highly-athletic volleyball. Most people who walk into our gym for the first time, whether it's practice or a match, come away going “wow.” They didn't realize this level of volleyball was played here. They don't understand how fast the game is, or how powerful and athletic these girls are. You may have seen volleyball before, but you probably haven't seen this kind of volleyball before. It's really something to watch.
UMDBULLDOGS.COM - Do you think volleyball is a tough sport to pick up on, as a fan, or easy? Can you enjoy the game without knowing all of the rules?
Boos - Like any sport, knowing the rules helps. But now that we have rally scoring, it takes away some of the mystery. Now, every serve equals a point. When the point ends, someone scores. That cleans up a ton for the casual fan. Obviously there are some added rules like Lifts, Double-Contacts and Net Violations, and others which the casual fan might not understand, and to be honest sometimes I think I don't understand, but overall volleyball is very easy to pick up on and enjoy.
Fanta - I do think it would be beneficial sometimes to have something for fans so they know what's going on, but it's still easy enough to follow and enjoy. The set still ends at 25, and you always know who is winning.
Lange - For the most part, it's easy. You might not know a couple of calls, but usually if the ball goes over the net and lands in bounds, it's a point.
Lochner - It's a pretty simple-concept sport. You can catch on really quick because the rules are really simple, and our announcers do a great job of explaining everything.
Hertaus - It would maybe be hard to come in and try to play, but watching it, volleyball is very easy to pick up on. You know when the team has to get it over the net, or try to get the other team to screw up and hit it out of bounds, or get a kill.
UMDBULLDOGS.COM – Just in case a fan did want to know a little more about the game, what are some of the basic things they might want to learn about you could explain for them?
Boos - I've got a couple things. First, you're going to see a player in a different color jersey on each team. That person is known as the “libero,” and they are an all-time defensive player. They can substitute in and out of the game freely, without it counting against your team as a substitution (each team gets 12 substitutions per set). It's similar to football in the fact that the play has to stop before they enter, but it doesn't count as a substitution. One thing, they are only allowed to defend, pass or serve. They can't do any attacking and they can't come in as the setter, so that's a little different. It almost looks like we have a soccer goalie.
Fanta - Players in the back row can't “attack,” (which means jumping off the ground and swinging) unless they're behind the ten-foot line. If you're in the back row, you have to usually stay down on your feet, unless you jump behind the ten-foot line. So when the official swings their arm down from the elbow, they are calling a back row attack. If the setter jumps when she is a “back row” player, and the ball goes over the net, they will call her for the same thing. Then the other team gets the point.
Boos - If the referee points down in the direction of one side or the other, that means the ball landed in the court. If they lift both hands up toward their head, that means the ball was out of play. In either situation, they will always signal who got the point by sticking their hand in that direction. There are also two line judges. If they stick their hand on top of the flag they are holding, that means someone touched the ball, therefore the other team might get the ball.
Lange - Double-Hit. So if the same person makes contact with the ball twice, like a setter or a hitter, the official blows the whistle, they hold up two fingers, and the other team gets the point.
Lochner - You aren't allowed to touch the net when you're playing, and if you do it's a Net Violation. The official blows the whistle and puts the palm of their hand toward the side of the net that was touched, then the other team gets the point.
Boos - You'll also see the setter giving hand signals. They are calling out offensive plays. There's a very specific plan in place every time the ball is coming over the net.
