I was actually really impressed with the entire match against Kentucky. There's no shame in losing to that team, despite of the reverse sweep and missing multiple match points. They played well enough to win against a Kentucky team that nobody would be surprised to see make the national title game, and only mildly surprised to see win the title. Kentucky's backline defense is a thing of beauty and Eva Hudson is a monster. Their setter made 1st team all-conference, and they have a 2nd team all-conference libero. Just a crazy-stacked roster.
For a while, I've been feeling like this Texas team has been a year ahead of schedule, when you consider the freshmen and a re-tooled offense. We won't magically get better at the block just by letting a year pass, but I have to think that we'll see AVW, Cari Spears, and the whole blocking unit as a whole perform better with another year under their belt.
For the tournament, we're talented enough to beat anyone but have enough inconsistency that anything in the 2nd round or beyond could test us. Making the Final Four would be a massive accomplishment, but is very very possible.
I think the improvement in blocking since Jerritt re-tooled the coaching staff and its responsibilities bodes well for the offseason development. Of course, that all gets a lot more interesting with the ever-present portal and the wrinkles it'll provide.
I agree that we're a bit ahead of schedule. While Halter will be a big loss next year, bringing back so much experience can only bode well. As long as Callie Krueger and/or Emma Cugino are ready to play a bunch, I think we're loaded for bear (again discounting the potential impacts both in and out of the portal).
You're dead on with the inconsistency. This team can beat anyone but unfortunately also get dragged into the mud with anyone in the national tournament. The results of the SEC tournament show that they're capable of finding that extra gear, so hopefully that level of focus persists in December!
I was actually really impressed with the entire match against Kentucky. There's no shame in losing to that team, despite of the reverse sweep and missing multiple match points. They played well enough to win against a Kentucky team that nobody would be surprised to see make the national title game, and only mildly surprised to see win the title. Kentucky's backline defense is a thing of beauty and Eva Hudson is a monster. Their setter made 1st team all-conference, and they have a 2nd team all-conference libero. Just a crazy-stacked roster.
For a while, I've been feeling like this Texas team has been a year ahead of schedule, when you consider the freshmen and a re-tooled offense. We won't magically get better at the block just by letting a year pass, but I have to think that we'll see AVW, Cari Spears, and the whole blocking unit as a whole perform better with another year under their belt.
For the tournament, we're talented enough to beat anyone but have enough inconsistency that anything in the 2nd round or beyond could test us. Making the Final Four would be a massive accomplishment, but is very very possible.
I think the improvement in blocking since Jerritt re-tooled the coaching staff and its responsibilities bodes well for the offseason development. Of course, that all gets a lot more interesting with the ever-present portal and the wrinkles it'll provide.
I agree that we're a bit ahead of schedule. While Halter will be a big loss next year, bringing back so much experience can only bode well. As long as Callie Krueger and/or Emma Cugino are ready to play a bunch, I think we're loaded for bear (again discounting the potential impacts both in and out of the portal).
You're dead on with the inconsistency. This team can beat anyone but unfortunately also get dragged into the mud with anyone in the national tournament. The results of the SEC tournament show that they're capable of finding that extra gear, so hopefully that level of focus persists in December!