Cornhusker fans shouldn’t be surprised if Nebraska’s volleyball team is a little sweaty as it steps on the court for the first time this season.
NU volleyball Coach John Cook said he’d have to work the nerves and excitement out of his team prior to their first match of the season against Michigan Friday night.
“Some of them might have to run about three miles before we play Friday night because they’re so amped up,” Cook said with a grin. “I’m not kidding. We might have to run some of them just to kind of wear them out a little bit and burn off some of the adrenaline.”
Cook said his squad has energy built up from a summer of rigorous conditioning, a rejuvenated young roster and a little unfinished business from last year. Most of that energy, though, comes from the age of his team and the fact that eight of his players have never played a college game, he said.
Senior Kori Cooper said the team is ecstatic about starting the season off at the Qwest Center.
“There’s nothing better than playing in the Qwest; maybe playing in the Coliseum,” Cooper said. “It builds the energy and the connection of the team out there”
That excitement didn’t just have Cook smiling during Tuesday’s press conference. The ninth-year coach has repeatedly said he believed his 2009 team would be special. Much of that admiration has come from the emotional carryover of 2008 and the added youth to the team.
With the No. 2-ranked recruiting class in the nation joining a young returning squad, Cook said the competition for starting spots has spiked the intensity level at practice.
“It comes from each player,” junior Sydney Anderson said. “We are so competitive that the coaches are going to be on us if we aren’t.”
NU’s upperclassmen have embraced the competition, and Cooper said the fight shown during practice has boosted each player’s ability and the team’s performance as a whole.
All that matters now, the middle blocker said, would be how the team finished the season, regardless of who comprised the starting rotation.
“You give it everything in practice, and what the coaches decide is out of your control,” Cooper said. “Everyone just does their best in practice. If you work hard enough you’re going to be on the court.”
Cooper said her fire has stemmed from a junior season cut short by knee injury, forcing her to watch the Husker’s emotional playoff run from the bench. But Cooper’s excitement is shared by the incoming freshmen.
Gina Mancuso watched the semifinal match against Penn State a year ago and said it gave her an appreciation both for what the returning players have gone through and also what it would take to play alongside them.
During the first week of practices, Cook said the work his team put in during the summer was as intense as he had seen in years. At this week’s press conference, his smile resonated those same sentiments about the competition in practice and the lack of a starting lineup.
“I think we’re pretty set on Kayla (Banwarth) at libero,” Cook said. “But we’ll go from there.”
When asked if Anderson would return to start at setter, Cook just smiled and repeated, “We’ll go from there.”
After fighting for starting spots throughout the week, the Huskers will enter the Qwest Center looking to finally take out their energy on someone else.
As co-captain, Cooper’s face lit up when asked if she was excited for the tournament.
“Heck, yes.”
davehoufek@dailynebraskan.com
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