Women’s volleyball faces first challenge
The No. 22 Trojans will face two ranked opponents to start their upcoming season.
By DRAKE LEE
After a promising offseason that featured several new additions, No. 22 USC women’s volleyball will start the season by facing three formidable opponents this weekend in Texas.
“This is the first year … where we were able to train during the Spring and then build upon our culture,” said Head Coach Brad Keller in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “We were able to work on a lot of those small things that we don’t really talk about.”
Graduate libero Ellie Snook is one of the new additions and a transfer from Portland State. She was a three-time Big Sky Libero of the Year during her tenure with the Vikings.
Snook will share time with sophomore libero Gala Trubint. Last season, the San Diego local finished with an average of 3.78 digs per set, good for 6th in the Pac-12.
“In the offseason, I’ve really been working to become a leader, especially in the back row for a lot of my other passers,” Trubint said.
On offense, junior setter Mia Tuaniga will be responsible for organizing a Trojan attack without opposite hitter Emilia Weske and outside hitter Jordan Wilson, two of the team’s top three scorers last season.
In their place, senior middle blocker Lindsey Miller and junior outside hitter Katelyn Smith will likely receive more offensive opportunities. Miller’s 1.01 blocks per set was a team-leading mark, while her 128 kills were the fifth-most on the team. Smith was sixth on the team with 79 kills.
The Trojans retained graduate outside hitter Skylar Fields. An AVCA First-Team All-American last season, the former Texas Longhorn finished second in the nation in kills.
Fields will be back in her home state when she faces Houston Friday to begin the season. The Cougars went 30-4 and made it to the Regional Semifinals in the NCAA tournament last season.
“I’m super excited to go back home,” Fields said. “A lot of these girls haven’t been to Texas before, so I’ve been really excited to show them what the South is all about.”
Houston ranked 28th out of 334 Division 1 schools in kills per set last season. Cougar graduate outside hitter Abbie Jackson returns after leading the team with 472 kills last season. Meanwhile, senior libero Kate Georgiades was the American Athletic Conference Libero of the Year after racking 687 digs last year.
“[Houston is] really good at keeping the ball in play and making other teams earn it, and so that’s what makes it very, very difficult to play a team like that,” Keller said.
After facing Houston, the Trojans will take on No. 23 Rice. With a 27-4 overall record, the Owls made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament last season.
USC will see a familiar sight when they place Rice: graduate outside hitter Emilia Weske. She signed with the Owls as a grad student. The German native was third on the Trojans with 309 kills last season.
“I have a lot of respect for [Weske],” Trubint said. “She was like my big sis on the team last year … I’m even more motivated to get after it and get the team riled up against her.”
Aside from Weske, senior outside hitters Sahara Maruska and Danyle Courtley each had over 300 kills last season and will return for the Owls.
To round out the trip, USC will face Southern Mississippi Sunday. Although the Eagles are unranked, the team went 21-12 behind a historic sophomore season from now-junior outside hitter Mia Wesley. She hit 579 kills with the Eagles last season, the second-most in the school’s history.
USC women’s volleyball will start the season with a match against Houston Friday at 6:00 p.m. before playing Rice Saturday at 4:00 p.m. They will play Southern Mississippi Sunday at 9:00 a.m.
