A spike in motivation

Motivation; it is the driving force behind the 2010 Blue Devils women's volleyball season. Two years ago, SUNY Fredonia tore through all ten matches in SUNYAC pool play, set a new school record for wins in a season with 29 and advanced all the way to the sweet 16 round in the NCAA tournament.

Last season, the Blue Devils were just as competitive, winning 24 matches and losing 12. Unfortunately, Fredonia's aspirations of making a return trip to the NCAA tournament were cut short in the quarterfinals of the SUNYACS where they were ousted from contention by the Cortland Red Dragons.

"Unfortunately, it was difficult to deal with after going so far the year before," said junior setter and team captain Brittany Lis, referring to their loss last season against Cortland. "That is one motivation that we all keep in the back of our minds for this year."

During the offseason, the Blue Devils committed themselves to improving upon the immense success that they have enjoyed the past two years.

"Over the summer, there were a few of us who worked with Ryan Maloney, who has trained us throughout the season," said senior opposite hitter Jenna Tatu. "We did that three times a week and they were hour and a half sessions where we just worked on strength training."

This year, the Blue Devils are looking to eradicate the slow starts at the beginning of the season they experienced in the past.

"The mentality of our team heading into the season is to come out strong right away," Lis said. "In the past, we've often started out slow and not performed to our capable abilities."

Performing to their capable abilities should not be a problem for the Blue Devils, as most of the team chemistry still remains intact. There are 13 players total on the roster and ten returning from last season. The new freshman players, outside hitter Kaitlin Orcutt, left outside hitter Lauren O'Hara and outside hitter Hannah Manning have meshed well with their veteran teammates.

"I think the team chemistry might be a little better this year," Tatu said. "Everyone seems to be getting along and the new freshman fit in very well."

To make things easier on his players, head coach Geoff Braun likes to set short term goals for his team to meet throughout the season.

"We divide our season up into thirds to make the emotional roller coaster steadier with a shorter term," said junior middle blocker Chelsea Senn.

For the first part of the season, the Blue Devils are focusing on winning all their home matches, winning at least one tournament, having a winning percentage above .500 in the tournaments that they play in and also establishing their identity as a team.

In the long term, despite the fact that Fredonia has only officially set goals for the first third of the 2010 campaign, the players are striving towards hosting SUNYACS at home in Dods hall, and reaching  the NCAA tournament for the second time in three years.

Games to look out for:

As in any sport, playing at home is important. There are several home matches coming up for the Blue Devils. On September 7, Fredonia will play Alfred, On September 14 they will play Allegheny and on September 29 they will play Nazareth. All home games start at 7 in Dods hall. One of the biggest challenges for Fredonia this year will be Juniata College, who is currently ranked number 2 in the nation in division 3. The challenge is welcome, as the Blue Devils are looking to become as complete a team as they can possibly be.