Volleyball Preview: Piecing together the puzzle

MILWAUKEE - Despite just one healthy starter plus the team's libero returning, women's volleyball was picked second with a pair of first place votes in the BIG EAST's Preseason Coaches' Poll. They are also receiving 40 points in the AVCA Preseason Poll.

That's what a decade of consistent top-tier league finishes and NCAA tournament appearances have earned the Golden Eagles heading into 2022.

"I can't speak for the other coaches, but probably our communication in the spring when we got those transfers (Yadhira Anchante and Aubrey Hamilton)," said ninth-year MU head coach Ryan Theis. "I felt pretty confident. They call it 'reload, not rebuild,' right? I don't know on a national scene that that's where we're at, but there's a lot of talent (in our gym) and I think that people in the league knew that."

The puzzle

For Theis and the completely new coaching staff surrounding him, the challenge this autumn is positioning a group of seven newcomers and youthful returners into a cohesive unit as the fall colors start to emerge in Milwaukee.

"It's trying to piece it together to solve a puzzle," Theis said. "There are six rotations of serve-receive and six rotations of point scoring, so in those 12 rotations, how do you put kids in position to be successful? It's kind of like solving a puzzle, and I'd say we're over halfway in the solving and (the rest of fall camp) is continuing to problem solve. No one is perfect, certainly not us."

Replacing high-level talent

Marquette must replace three all-conference performers from last season, including the league's player of the year Taylor Wolf, an AVCA All-American, in addition to the program's all-time leader in service aces and six-rotation dynamo Hope Werch. Savannah Rennie also leaves a giant hole in the roster as a net-front presence, server and versatile attacker.

With those losses, the Golden Eagles have had to adjust to a different group of personnel over the last eight months.

Yadhira Anchante was a two-time NJCAA National Player of the Year

"We're a little bit quicker now than we've been," Theis said. "We wanted to go that route based on our roster of hitters. We were able to start that process in January with those two transfers here."

Anchante, the two-time NJCAA Division I National Player of the Year, and Hamilton, the 2019 Wisconsin State Gatorade Player of the Year, played with the Golden Eagles this spring and should slot immediately into the MU lineup.

"Yadhira is one high volleyball IQ person. She has great vision of what's going on on the other side of the net, which is very helpful. She makes hitters better. She's a pretty high-level setter," Theis said.

Anchante, a native of Peru, led Iowa Western to back-to-back NJCAA national titles and was among the national leaders in assists while recording 2,441 total (11.20/set) in her two seasons. She joins two other returning setters on the roster, Ella Foti and Caroline Dragani, neither of whom has played significant minutes for MU.

Hamilton was a local standout at Arrowhead High School in Hartland, Wisconsin where she was the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Player of the Year in 2019 while guiding the Warhawks to their first state championship. The 6-foot-2 outside hitter played a large role in her two seasons at the University of Notre Dame, averaging nearly three kills per set and should get plenty of swings for a young Golden Eagles lineup.

"Aubrey has a big arm and is a physical blocker," Theis said. "I think yesterday she had three straight (blocks in practice) and people tried to go at her. She has the ability to score points and go low error. Sometimes we are encouraging her to take more risks because she just doesn't want to make that mistake. But we're going to need her to score points, whether that is 3-and-a-half per game or 5-and-a-half per game, it depends on how she performs"

Returning stalwarts

Middle blocker Carsen Murray stepped into a large role in MU's lineup last season, starting all 32 matches while finishing second in the league with a .336 hitting percentage. She is the lone MU player to earn preseason all-conference recognition and will play a huge role in dictating Marquette's ultimate success. She currently holds the program max-touch record of 10 feet, six inches, and offers dynamic quickness and athleticism.

"Carsen has really stepped up in everything," Theis said. "When she got here with COVID (restrictions) we didn't get to work with her much, but we'd say a couple of years down the road she'll get it. But then she just took off.

"She stayed here all summer, probably lifting like five days a week getting stronger. She's stronger, she sees the game better than she did a year ago. She's gotten better at processing, and I think she's going to have a great year. She's worked very hard and ready to be a big-time middle in this league."

In the back row, Carly Skrabak stepped into the libero role early last year and never relinquished it, finishing with 25-straight appearances in the alternate uniform. She led the Golden Eagles with 426 digs (3.77 per set) in 2021, and her play in the BIG EAST Championship earned her all-tournament recognition.

"Carly had a great spring. I asked her if she could tell she's getting better, because I could see it, and she said 'yes.' That was a mode of confidence that we love to see in her. She doesn't let it go to her head and she wants to get better, so it helps having a confident libero back there."

Outside hitter Hannah Vanden Berg started 15 matches last season before suffering a season-ending knee injury in early November. She has averaged 2.11 kills per set over the course of her career and will aid the lineup when she works her way back from injury.

Developing in new roles

Injuries to Werch and Vanden Berg late last year opened room for freshman outside hitter Jenna Reitsma, who started the final four matches of the year and gained valuable experience down the stretch.

Reitsma was a Third Team Under Armour All-American out of high school and posted three matches with double-digit kills over the final five matches. She posted her first career double-double on Sept. 25 at Georgetown in her second start, while hitting .308 with three aces, and had a five-ace performance against Villanova on Nov. 21.

"Jenna was versatile for us last fall and we asked her to do a bunch of different things," Theis said. "She got a really nice spring season of pure left side in six rotations. Like a Hope Werch, we're asking Jenna to have a little of that versatility; she's the most versatile pin we have. We're asking Jenna to use her versatility to help us make others better."

Another player forced into a larger role last fall was middle blocker Anastasija Svetnik, who started the final six matches alongside Murray up front. She hit .288 and notched 17 blocks after transferring in from Oregon State.

Theis also believes players who had limited opportunities last season will be significant contributors in middle blocker Hattie Bray and defensive specialist Samantha Naber, both of whom were nationally ranked prospects in the high school class of 2021 according to PrepVolleyball.

"The redshirting of Hattie Bray last year and word might be out that she's pretty good," said Theis of league coaches' expectations of this roster. "With the injuries we had to do everything in our power to not take the redshirt off her last year, but we think that's going to pay off big time in having her around for five years. People know that there are some kids not on the floor that were gaining experience in addition to the transfers. I think we've got some pretty good pieces."

In the back row, Naber made just 20 digs last season in 17 matches, while Jadyn Garrison, who converted from a high school outside hitter, saw some success as an occasional serving replacement.

"Sam Naber really has developed into a terrific defensive player, which we knew she could do," Theis said. "But even in the last couple of days her serve-receive has been really improved to the point where she is going to have to play and help us defensively. Jadyn (Garrison) is getting healthy and Adriana (Studer) in the defensive position was a nice late pick-up for us, and she'll help early this year in some capacity."

Freshman five

Freshman Sienna Ifill is an explosive athlete

Studer is one of five freshmen on the roster and the lone back row player in that group.

"The freshmen are really talented," Theis said. "They are a good class and all dynamic with the ability to score, so it makes practice fun. But when they're all on one side you see the youth come out. I keep trying to make sure they're continuing to have confidence. It's harder, the ball is moving faster. They're all second guessing themselves (in early preseason practices), but they're going to have a fun four years here for sure."

Right-side Sienna Ifill and outside Natalie Ring are the two highest-rated incoming players in the group, earning mention in the top-150 class of 2022 recruits by PrepVolleyball. Those two probably have the clearest path to playing time while looking at roster composition, but outside hitter Ella Holmstrom and middle blocker Morgan Daugherty have shown ability during fall camp to make things interesting.

"There's a lot of athleticism out there right now," Theis said. "It's probably the most athletic we've ever been. Which at times out there is fun, but it's our youngest team by far since probably 2017. I get excited about the athleticism, but then get out there and slow things down we see the youth show up. We've got some work to do and some time to do it."

Time will tell

With the eligibility of an accomplished group of Golden Eagles expired, this year's Marquette squad will lean on a new cast. How quickly they gel is the ultimate question heading into this fall.

"(Adding) the two transfers at the semester helped a lot," Theis said. "Although there are seven new people on the roster, only five are freshmen. There's going to be a lot of freshmen and sophomores who are going to play. We've got a lot of points to make up, but I think we're stronger in a couple of areas.

"But the experience factor just needs time. I don't know that we're going to be running on full cylinders right away. We've had a lot of opening weekend successes, but this might be one of the toughest years to pull that off. I think they're going to be really good late."

Keep up with the Marquette University women's volleyball program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteVB) and Instagram (@MarquetteVB) and 'liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteVolleyball).