SMC VOLLEYBALL: Belles look for a boost
KATIE McVOY
Associate Sports Editor
Tonight's volleyball game will take place amidst a swirl of activity at Angela Athletic Facility.
In between Senior Night, intramural championships and a raffle, the Belles will have to be focused enough to beat the Spartans of Manchester.
Intramural championships and the raffle may provide a distraction, but head coach Julie Schroeder-Biek hopes that at least Senior Night will provide an incentive for a win.
"I hope [it does]," she said. "It should."
And the Belles need a win. After dropping a close match to Olivet on Tuesday, Saint Mary's has fallen to 1-8 in the MIAA and 3-13 overall. A string of recent losses has left the Belles in need of a boost.
"We need game confidence," Schroeder-Biek said. " They're all capable of [winning] and they're the ones, [the players] have to make it happen."
Manchester should provide a good opportunity for a win. The Spartans are 3-17 on the season, with an 0-4 record in HCAC.
When the two teams faced off last year, Saint Mary's came out with the victory Ñ barely.
In a five match game, an even match of skills left the Belles on top.
"It was a tough match," Schroeder-Biek said. "They work hard. I expect this to be a really tough match. They're scrappy."
Schroeder-Beik also referred to the Comets of Olivet as scrappy on Tuesday. The Belles will need to raise their level of intensity if they want to outplay a team that goes after everything.
"[During Wednesday's practice] we're going to work on maintaining intensity all the way through," Schroeder-Biek said on Tuesday night.
In addition to increasing intensity, the Belles will be counting on a secure roster for tonight's game.
Tuesday night's game got under way without Adrea Bella, who generally plays right side for the Belles. Her illness couple with numerous other line-up changes due to injury and illness have affected Saint Mary's play. Angie Meyers is out for the season with a torn ACL and the Belles need Bella. After sitting through Monday's practice and missing Tuesday's game, as of Wednesday, it looked like Bella would be back on the court.
"She needed a rest today and hopefully she'll be ready," Schroeder-Beik said.
Play gets under way tonight at 7 p.m. at Angela Athletic Facility.
All Sports Stories for Thursday, October 11, 2001
