Q&A w/Talking Head: about the Pitt match (and looking ahead)
Dec 3, 2017 18:00:33 GMT -5
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Post by nyline on Dec 3, 2017 18:00:33 GMT -5
We've added a Q&A with Talking Head to DigNittanyVolleyball.com. Here's the link: www.dignittanyvolleyball.com/qa-with-talking-head-final-thoughts-on-pitt-and-a-quick-look-ahead/
And here's an excerpt:
And here's an excerpt:
DigNittany: So, what were your thoughts about the match against Pitt?
Talking Head: One of the posters on the DigNittanyVolleyball Forum — lionsfan, a really knowledgeable fan — did a really good job of explaining how good a team Pitt is — I don’t know if fans understood that, going into the match. I’m certain Coach Rose did, and so did his staff, but I’m not totally sure the players really understood either. But Pitt showed very quickly how fearless they are. They played a heckova match and they made Penn State earn every point. We got stronger as the match went on (with the exception of game 2). You’ve got to give credit to an excellent Pitt team that did a very nice job, and showed the depth of this year’s NCAA Tournament, which could be one of the better ones we’ve seen in a long time. It’s really competitive, all up-and-down the bracket. Which is nice.
DigNittany: We asked Coach Rose about the improvement in Penn State’s blocking between the first two games (3 total blocks) and the last two games (14 total blocks). He noted that Penn State had six service errors, and that service errors reduce the opportunities for blocks and digs. Which still leaves us with the question, what made the difference between the blocking in the first two games, and the blocking in the last two games?
Talking Head: I think there were a couple of things in play there. I saw that on service in the last two games, our best servers found the corners, down the line into the “5” or into the corner in the “1.” Where we were least successful was serving into the middle of the court. Pitt seemed to handle those balls. Once we got away from that in games 3 and 4, then our block just kind of took over. I would also say that both Ali Frantti and Simone Lee really did dive into the court and press over the net more effectively in the last two games than they did in the first two games. Overall, against a team like Pitt, which is a very good team, but smaller than Penn State, a lot of their kills were coming off our blockers elbows and forearms.
So that means we were blocking too high — which is what you have to do when you play in the Big Ten — and Pitt was finding the seams. Once we adjusted, and really penetrated across the net, we took away those angles and had some terminal good blocks. That means . . . ."
Talking Head: One of the posters on the DigNittanyVolleyball Forum — lionsfan, a really knowledgeable fan — did a really good job of explaining how good a team Pitt is — I don’t know if fans understood that, going into the match. I’m certain Coach Rose did, and so did his staff, but I’m not totally sure the players really understood either. But Pitt showed very quickly how fearless they are. They played a heckova match and they made Penn State earn every point. We got stronger as the match went on (with the exception of game 2). You’ve got to give credit to an excellent Pitt team that did a very nice job, and showed the depth of this year’s NCAA Tournament, which could be one of the better ones we’ve seen in a long time. It’s really competitive, all up-and-down the bracket. Which is nice.
DigNittany: We asked Coach Rose about the improvement in Penn State’s blocking between the first two games (3 total blocks) and the last two games (14 total blocks). He noted that Penn State had six service errors, and that service errors reduce the opportunities for blocks and digs. Which still leaves us with the question, what made the difference between the blocking in the first two games, and the blocking in the last two games?
Talking Head: I think there were a couple of things in play there. I saw that on service in the last two games, our best servers found the corners, down the line into the “5” or into the corner in the “1.” Where we were least successful was serving into the middle of the court. Pitt seemed to handle those balls. Once we got away from that in games 3 and 4, then our block just kind of took over. I would also say that both Ali Frantti and Simone Lee really did dive into the court and press over the net more effectively in the last two games than they did in the first two games. Overall, against a team like Pitt, which is a very good team, but smaller than Penn State, a lot of their kills were coming off our blockers elbows and forearms.
So that means we were blocking too high — which is what you have to do when you play in the Big Ten — and Pitt was finding the seams. Once we adjusted, and really penetrated across the net, we took away those angles and had some terminal good blocks. That means . . . ."
