Women’s Volleyball Gets Set For 2000 Season – Ohio State Buckeyes
6/27/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
With four returning starters including three sophomores, Ohio State will be a young squad but will not be lacking experience as the freshmen combined for 55 percent of the starts in 1999. The 17-12 mark from last season can be improved. With the postseason experience of OSU’s 11th consecutive NCAA appearance, the Buckeyes should be able to challenge the top teams in the Big Ten Conference.
Two seniors, Dana Stearns and Angelee Abbring, need to provide the leadership to this young squad. Stearns, a starter last season, is an accomplished middle blocker who ranks high in five OSU career categories. She averaged 2.77 kills and .79 blocks per game and had a team-best .315 hitting percentage. Abbring, a starter at outside hitter as a sophomore, showed she can put up big kill numbers with four 20-plus kill matches that season.
Three juniors, Erin Baker, Anne Botica and Nikki Cisco, have contributed in various ways to the program. Baker saw limited action last season but is capable of being a solid contributor off the bench. Botica played in 27 matches last season and in the past has made an impact when called upon. Cisco saw action in 28 matches playing the role of the defensive specialist averaging 1.28 digs per game.
Four sophomores, Katie Virtue, Suzie Stiling, Shelly Draeger and Sue Calligaris, look to be the core of the team. All four played a major role on the squad as freshmen and will be looked upon to continue to do so. Virtue was the starting setter except for three matches last season. Her play earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors and she was named to the Big Ten All-Freshmen team. Virtue also was named to the Asics/Volleyball Magazine Freshman All-American squad. She collected 1,370 assists for the season and her 13.30 per game average is the best career mark in OSU history. Stiling, a member of the Big Ten All-Freshman team, led the squad in blocking with 94 total blocks. Draeger, who started every match, averaged 2.62 kills per game ranking fourth on the team and served up 27 aces to lead the returnees. Calligaris had 15 starts in the 27 matches she played. She averaged 1.27 kills and .77 blocks per game.
Three freshmen, Heather Whalen, Erin Treadway and Marta Szczygielska join the squad for the 2000 season. Whalen guided her team to the Michigan Class C State Championship last March and was a first-team all-state selection. Treadway was the Division II Player of the Year as a senior reaching the state regional semifinals. An outside hitter, she played setter as a junior. Szczygielska, from Belgium, has extensive club experience. Her team has been a finalist for the last three years for the Belgium Cup and the Belgium Championship.
OSU’s non-conference schedule has the Buckeyes playing in tournaments at Temple and Western Michigan facing Temple, Seton Hall and Colgate at Temple and Western Michigan, Connecticut and Liberty at Western Michigan. OSU also will travel to Marshall for a match. Ohio State will host the Buckeye Invitational facing Toledo in the semifinals and either Illinois State or Kentucky the next day. OSU also will face Cincinnati at home. The tough Big Ten schedule features seven teams that played in the NCAA Championship last season including defending national champion Penn State.
