ND Volleyball: Irish to kick off conference play
By: MATT LOZAR
Sports Writer
With no weekday matches scheduled last week, the Notre Dame volleyball team went back to the basics to prepare for the start of Big East conference matches.
"I think as much as anything, it gave us four days to practice and to work through some things we needed to work on," Irish coach Debbie Brown said. "We worked on serving and passing, the two basics that have to be strong in order for us to play well."
Notre Dame (9-3) begins conference action this weekend by hosting Connecticut (4-7) and St. John's (11-7).
Since joining the Big East in 1995, the Irish have won six regular season conference titles, including the last three. The Irish haven't dropped a conference match since losing to West Virginia in November 1998 — a streak of 34 regular season contests. With that impressive resume comes the burden of getting an opponent's best effort in every match.
"We just have to realize for the teams in our conference, or non-conference, it is usually the biggest match of the year for them against us," Brown said. "Our opponents are very well prepared and emotionally up for the game. Our biggest challenge in the conference is that we have to get up for every match. We have to match or exceed the level of determination the opponent brings to the game.
"If we think that we don't have to work that hard, we are in big trouble," she continued. "But I don't believe the team is thinking that way."
Last year, St. John's went 6-6 in the Big East and tied with Seton Hall for sixth place. The Red Storm started this season by dropping their first four matches but won 11 of their past 14. As a team, St. John's averages 14 kills, 11.3 digs, and 1.7 blocks per game.
Connecticut qualified for the 2001 Big East tournament with a fourth-place regular season finish. The Irish defeated the Huskies in the semifinals of the postseason tournament.
The Huskies are struggling, having lost their last four matches. Despite the poor start to its season, Connecticut presents Notre Dame's offense with some problems.
"Traditionally, UConn has been a strong team in the Big East," Brown said. "I think one of the things they do well is that they are a good defensive team. They average 18 digs a game, which is good. The challenge for us is that we don't get frustrated getting dug and make shots that cause us to have unforced errors."
Notre Dame plays Connecticut Friday at 7 p.m. and St. John's at 2 p.m. Sunday. Both matches are at the Joyce Center.
Notes:
u The Irish have never lost a Big East conference match at the Joyce Center. Their home conference-winning streak is currently at 43 matches. Also, the Irish currently have a 29-match overall home winning streak, the longest in school history.
u Notre Dame's 3.63 blocks per game average puts them third nationally, behind Florida and Long Beach State.
All Sports Stories for Friday, September 27, 2002
