USC prepares for Oklahoma Invitational
Women’s volleyball will ride a ten-game winning streak into Norman, Oklahoma, on Thursday to take on Oklahoma and Maryland in the Oklahoma Invitational. After racking up four three-set victories to win the USC Classic last weekend, the team will look to execute its game plan and open Pac-12 play at UCLA on Sept. 23 with a perfect record.
The Women of Troy are ranked third in the nation, behind Penn State and Texas, after starting the season at No. 22 last month. Much of their success in the early season has been thanks to senior outside hitter Samantha Bricio. Last week, the Guadalajara, Mexico, native became the first player in over a decade, and the second overall, to win three consecutive Pac-12 Player of the Week awards in the same season.
“Samantha always brings this silent intensity to our team,” junior middle blocker Elise Ruddins said. “She’s not super loud, but when she gets a kill it is … deadly.”
Head coach Mick Haley also appreciated Bricio’s spectacular form, and he praised her versatility and ability to score points both serving and blocking. At the same time, however, Haley stressed that other members of the squad will have to rise to the occasion when needed.
“There will come a time when Samantha will not be able to do that on a certain night,” he said. “Everybody else is going to have to step up.”
Bricio’s form has helped get USC off to a hot start, but Haley emphasized the need to keep improving as the season goes on.
“We’re trying to add pieces to our system and get players ready to come in, relieve other people and play multiple positions,” he said. “It’s constantly a work in progress, but the fact that we’ve been able to do this and be successful so far … has certainly been a boost to the confidence of the players.”
Ruddins agreed with her coach and was adamant that the team would not get caught up in its own success.
“Something that we always take pride in is just going on to the next game,” she said. “We always look for what we can improve on and focus one game at a time.”
The Women of Troy open the Oklahoma Invitational with a game against the hosts. The Sooners stuttered out of the gates, beginning the season 0-3, but have since turned things around. They are 5-1 in their last six and ride a three-game winning streak into their clash with USC.
USC will then face Maryland on Friday. The Terrapins have also enjoyed a good start to their season, as they enter the tournament with a 10-1 record. Their lone loss came against George Washington last weekend.
The Oklahoma Invitational is the final fixture on USC’s schedule before the start of Pac-12 play. Haley wants to make sure that his team seizes this final opportunity to kick into midseason form.
“We’re travelling, we’re playing back-to-back [days] against … real quality opponents,” he said. “So we’re just trying to go through how it will be following week when we open with UCLA and Stanford on the road.”
The Women of Troy will open the tournament in Norman on Thursday at 6 p.m. against Oklahoma before taking on Maryland on Friday at 2:30 p.m.