Indiana University Athletics
IU Looks to Set Standard Early in Tennessee
8/27/2015 11:49:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
By Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLUE RAIDER BASH
Friday Aug. 28 | 1 PM ET vs. Bowling Green | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
Friday Aug. 28 | 8:30 PM ET vs. Cleveland State | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
Saturday Aug. 29 | 1 PM ET at Middle Tennessee State | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana volleyball isn't playing in a marquee conference matchup with an NCAA Tournament bid firmly on the line this weekend.
But they're acting like it.
The opening weekend of the season is all about setting a team standard, head coach Sherry Dunbar-Kruzan said. It's about setting the tone for the rest of the season.
That's why she and her staff will be dressing up this weekend when IU plays Bowling Green to open up the Middle Tennessee Blue Raider Bash. Dunbar-Kruzan said she wants her appearance to be a reflection of how serious she's treating the match, and she's hoping her players follow suit.
"How we as coaches approach the first match is how they approach the first match," Dunbar-Kruzan said. "It's not who's on the other side, right? That's how we want them to look at it. It doesn't matter who the opponent is. That's what we're trying to get them to understand in practice is every day it's a standard that you have to play at."
The "standard" has been a buzzword around Indiana practice in fall camp. It's not just an ambiguous phrase, either.
Dunbar-Kruzan said the standard means playing the same way in games as they do practice. It means making a certain number of passes and serving opponents out of system 50 percent of the time and making smart, aggressive shots among other things.
Playing to that standard year-round is what separates teams like Penn State, Dunbar-Kruzan said. They play the same no matter what time of the year it is or who they're opponent is or where they are.
After seeing glimpses of the standard of play over the course of the last few seasons, Indiana is looking to play to it immediately this season and not look back.
"We know we need to treat every game like it's a Big Ten game," junior outside hitter Allison Hammond said. "We want to get as many wins as we can now to better position ourselves later."
The Hoosiers haven't even played a game yet, but they're already well aware of what they need to do to get into the NCAA Tournament as evident in Hammond's stressing that every game is like a conference game.
Indiana has made it no secret that returning to the NCAA Tournament is a team goal this season. It's one they think they can obtain, but only if they play to their standard.
Dunbar-Kruzan said the first six days of practice were the best she's been a part of as Indiana's head coach, but then a few growing pains slowed things up a little.
Indiana briefly fell below their standard. She said it could have been due to fatigue, school nearing or moving into new apartments, but whatever it was needed to be fixed.
Dunbar-Kruzan said she liked the way her team bounced back in the days since. She's especially liked the energy level at practice, which is something she as a coach can't teach.
Now they need to carry it over into the games.
"I think you have to have a quiet confidence about you in these matches and believe in what you've been taught and believe in what you've been working on since January," Dunbar-Kruzan said. "When we look back, we want to hit these numbers we've set and the standards we have."
Whether or not Indiana can maintain the standard remains to be seen, but the Hoosiers will get their first chance soon.
For Indiana, the road to a return trip to the NCAA Tournament begins in Murfreesboro, Tenn., against Bowling Green. And in accordance to upholding the standard, the Hoosiers won't be overlooking the Falcons.
"Every game matters. Every win matters," Hammond said. "We're just ready to do whatever we can to get those wins because they mean just as much at the beginning as they do at the end."
IUHoosiers.com
BLUE RAIDER BASH
Friday Aug. 28 | 1 PM ET vs. Bowling Green | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
Friday Aug. 28 | 8:30 PM ET vs. Cleveland State | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
Saturday Aug. 29 | 1 PM ET at Middle Tennessee State | LIVE STATS | VIDEO | IU AUDIO
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana volleyball isn't playing in a marquee conference matchup with an NCAA Tournament bid firmly on the line this weekend.
But they're acting like it.
The opening weekend of the season is all about setting a team standard, head coach Sherry Dunbar-Kruzan said. It's about setting the tone for the rest of the season.
That's why she and her staff will be dressing up this weekend when IU plays Bowling Green to open up the Middle Tennessee Blue Raider Bash. Dunbar-Kruzan said she wants her appearance to be a reflection of how serious she's treating the match, and she's hoping her players follow suit.
"How we as coaches approach the first match is how they approach the first match," Dunbar-Kruzan said. "It's not who's on the other side, right? That's how we want them to look at it. It doesn't matter who the opponent is. That's what we're trying to get them to understand in practice is every day it's a standard that you have to play at."
The "standard" has been a buzzword around Indiana practice in fall camp. It's not just an ambiguous phrase, either.
Dunbar-Kruzan said the standard means playing the same way in games as they do practice. It means making a certain number of passes and serving opponents out of system 50 percent of the time and making smart, aggressive shots among other things.
Playing to that standard year-round is what separates teams like Penn State, Dunbar-Kruzan said. They play the same no matter what time of the year it is or who they're opponent is or where they are.
After seeing glimpses of the standard of play over the course of the last few seasons, Indiana is looking to play to it immediately this season and not look back.
"We know we need to treat every game like it's a Big Ten game," junior outside hitter Allison Hammond said. "We want to get as many wins as we can now to better position ourselves later."
The Hoosiers haven't even played a game yet, but they're already well aware of what they need to do to get into the NCAA Tournament as evident in Hammond's stressing that every game is like a conference game.
Indiana has made it no secret that returning to the NCAA Tournament is a team goal this season. It's one they think they can obtain, but only if they play to their standard.
Dunbar-Kruzan said the first six days of practice were the best she's been a part of as Indiana's head coach, but then a few growing pains slowed things up a little.
Indiana briefly fell below their standard. She said it could have been due to fatigue, school nearing or moving into new apartments, but whatever it was needed to be fixed.
Dunbar-Kruzan said she liked the way her team bounced back in the days since. She's especially liked the energy level at practice, which is something she as a coach can't teach.
Now they need to carry it over into the games.
"I think you have to have a quiet confidence about you in these matches and believe in what you've been taught and believe in what you've been working on since January," Dunbar-Kruzan said. "When we look back, we want to hit these numbers we've set and the standards we have."
Whether or not Indiana can maintain the standard remains to be seen, but the Hoosiers will get their first chance soon.
For Indiana, the road to a return trip to the NCAA Tournament begins in Murfreesboro, Tenn., against Bowling Green. And in accordance to upholding the standard, the Hoosiers won't be overlooking the Falcons.
"Every game matters. Every win matters," Hammond said. "We're just ready to do whatever we can to get those wins because they mean just as much at the beginning as they do at the end."
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