Nebraskan
Thursday, October 19,1989
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NU volleyball team to play No. 1 Hawaii
Hawaii coach says team
will come to games ‘cold’
By Darran rowier
Senior Reporter
It was 88 degrees Monday in
Honolulu.
After weather similar to that Sun
day in Lincoln, the temperature
dropped 40 degrees.
Hawaii volleyball coach Dave
Shoji knows his team will come to
Nebraska cold.
But he’s not referring to the
weather.
‘‘We know a little bit about Ne
braska, but basically we’re coming ir.
cold,” Shoji said. “I recruited a few
of their players like (freshman) Val
erie Vcrmculcn.
‘‘We know a little bit about some
of their individuals, but not all of
them,” he said.
Hawaii, 16-0 and ranked No. 1,
plays 14-0 and 4th-rankcd Nebraska
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end in the Baden Challenge. The two
teams meet Friday at 7:30 p.m. and
Saturday at 8 p.m. at the NU Coli
seum.
Admission is free to University of
Ncbraska-Lincoln students who
show their IDs.
Vcrmeulen, a 6-foot setter from
Wantagh, N.Y., turned down recruit
ing trips to Hawaii and Colorado
State after visiting Lincoln.
“After I came here I knew that this
is where I wanted to go,” Vcrmeulen
said. “I didn’t want to waste his
(Shoji’s) time going there. I didn’t
think there would be anything better
than this.”
She said she liked the atmosphere
and spirit that was expressed at a
Husker volleyball match she at
tended on her recruiting trip to Lin
coln.
“Everyone was down to earth,’’
Vermeulen said. “The team was nice
ana maac me ieel welcome.”
She said Husker coach Terry Pet
tit’s reputation as a setting coach also
was an attraction.
“He’s known for his setting,” she
said. “(You) can’t get a better setting
coach. I just saw it as my best oppor
tunity.”
Pettit said Nebraska and Hawaii
are matched evenly.
“Physically it’s a team that’s very
similar to ours,” he said. “Both
teams have talent in all their posi
tions. That makes it very interest
mg.
It also is interesting that both
teams have played 53 games this year
in compiling similar stats.
Nebraska comes into the match
with a .317 hitting percentage and
averages nearly 18 kills a game,
while its opponents arc averaging 12
kills a game and hitting .141.
Hawaii is hitting .321 and averag
ing nearly 18 kills a game, while
limiting its opponents to .168 hitting
ana ciose 10 13 Kills a game.
Hawaii amassed its perfect record
by posting wins over second-ranked
and prescason No. 1 UCLA, third
ranked Pacific, fifth-ranked Long
Beach State and lOlh-rankcd and
defending national champion Texas.
“There’s two ways to look at the
competition,’’ Shoji said. “Obvi
ously it prepares us to compete at a
lop level. But, on the down side
we’ve had to be up for matches just
about every week.
“It takes an emotional loll on our
players. I just hope we have some
thing left for Nebraska. It’s almost
impossible to get up*emotionally
three or four weeks in a row.’’
He said he is pleased with the way
the team has progressed and met each
challenge.
“Being undefeated I guess is a
sign we’re having a good season and
I’m happy with the way things have
gone,’’ he said. “But I didn’t expect
to be undefeated at this point.’’
Hawaii was 33-3 last year, but lost
to Texas in the NCAA finals. The
Rainbow Wahines won the Big West
Conference with an 18-0 record, the
first time a team has gone undefeated
William Lauer/Dally Nebraskan
Nebraska's Cris Hali shows her serving form.
m that conference.
Shoji said this year’s team is
comparable to last year’s.
But this one could be better, he
said.
“I think we have some strengths
this year that we didn’t have last
year,’’ he said. “We lost three good
players but I think we made up some
ground. I think the potential of this
team is better.”
Hawaii is led by two-time All
America selection Teec Williams
Sanders, who has 253 kills and is
hitting .313 in 45 games. Williams
Sanders, a senior outside hitter, also
leads the team in service aces with 12.
Junior middle blocker Karrie
Trieschman is the team’s leading
blocker with 44 assisted and 11 unas
sistcd. Trieschman averages three
kills a game, hitting .331.
.Sophomore middle blocker Malin
Fransson also averages three kills a
game, hitting .374. She leads the
team in digs with 144 and has 11
service aces.
Sophomore outside hitter Jami
Long has 119 kills and is hitting .294.
Sophomore setter Chcri Boyer has
643 assists in 46 games played.
Shoji said his team is experienced
anj balanced.
“We have three or four girls aver
aging three to four kills a game,” he
said. “We play a lot of people here,
even when the matches arc close. We
have a lot of depth.
“Our bench has really responded
and played well,” he said.
• •
Comhuskers ready tor Hawaii star
By Darran Fowler
Senior Reporter
Behind every good team, there is
at least one great player.
For the Hawaii women’s volley
ball team, that player is senior outside
hitter Teee Williams-Sanders.
Williams-Sanders will try to
showcase her talents when No. 1
ranked Hawaii battles No. 4-ranked
Nebraska this weekend at the NU
Coliseum.
The two teams play Friday at 7:30
p.m. and Saturday night at 8.
“She’s a good person and she’s a
great player, Nebraska sophomore
outside hitter Cris Hall said of Wil
liams-Sandcrs. “She’s going to be
tough to stop. But like everyone else,
she’s human. I’m anxious to see what
happens.”
Hall and Williams-Sandcrs were
teammates last summer while com
peting on the U.S. World University
Games team which was coached by
Nebraska coach Terry Pettit.
“Playing with her will help me
play against her,’ ’ Hall said. ‘ ‘ I know
where she hits the ball.”
Williams-Sanders stands 5-foot
11, but “she plays big,” Pettit said.
“She’s a really nice player,” he
said. “She’s explosive, but so are
(Huskers) Janet Kruse and Virginia
Stahr.”
Williams-Sandcrs said she
learned some defensive strategies
from Pettit during the national team ’ s
training camp in Colorado Springs.
“I thought he was a real good
coach,” she said. “He was really
nice.”
Pettit said Hawaii exploits the tal
ents of its star player.
Williams-Sanders, a two-time
NCAA All-America selection,
comes into the match averaging
nearly six kills a game. In 45 games,
she has tallied 253 kills and compiled
a .313 hitting percentage.
“She probably has a more signifi
cant role on their team offensively
than our players do on our offense,”
Pettit said. “She probably gets more
attacks than any one player on their
team.”
Wilhams-Sanders, who was mar
ried during the summer, attended St.
Joseph’s High School in Lakewood,
Calif. She said she has never been to
Nebraska, but she is looking forward
to the match.
Against Nebraska, Williams
Sanderr could become Hawaii’s ca
reer leader in kills. She is No. 2 on the
all-time list with 1,501, and needs 53
to establish the record.
She also is second in career blocks
See TEEE on 16
• -i
Player says NU must stop big plays
By Jeff Apel
Senior Editor
Illinois quarterback Jeff Kinney
had some definite advice for Ne
braska about its upcoming game
against Colorado.
“Try and stop the big play,” he
said.
Kinney, the son of the former
Nebraska quarterback by the same
name, watched earlier this season as
Colorado used big plays to defeat
Illinois 38-7 at Champaign, 111. The
Buffaloes’ arsenal of big plays in
cluded long passes to split end Jeff
Campbell and a flea flicker.
Kinney said he was impressed by
Colorado, which Nebraska will face
Nov. 4 in Boulder, Colo. He said the
Buffaloes possess a physical front
line on defense, and have an abun
dance of team speed.
Kinney said he knows the Ne
braska-Colorado game is going to be
tough. He said he knows how tough
the Buffaloes are because they left
him battered and bruised after he
faced them earlier this season.
‘‘It’s going to be a tough, physical
came,” he said. “Colorado is tough,
and so is Nebraska. Both teams are
Ph Kinriey said the Colorado game
has been the highlight ot his season.
He entered the game in the second
half in place of an injured Jeff
George, and proceeded to complete 3
of 5 passes for 21 yards.
Tne following week, after the
Fighting Illini posted a 41-2 win
against Utah State, Kinney was lost
for the season when he was diagnosed
as having a blood clot in his right
shoulder.
Kinney said he was disappointed
by the injury. The redshirt freshman
from Wheaton, 111., was the Fighting
mini’s second-team quarterback be
fore being hurt.
“I was just starting to get into the
onense, Mnncy said, uwasiougn
to get the No. 2 job, and it’s tough to
watch. But I just have to take it stride
by stride.”
Kinney said he was not recruited
by Nebraska. He said he chose Illi
nois over Iowa, Iowa Slate and Wyo
ming because he would fit into the
Fighting mini’s pass-oriented of
fense.
Kinney said his father’s accom
plishments did not influence his deci
sion.
Kinney said he never had any seri
ous intentions of going to Nebraska.
‘‘I knew I wouldn’t fit in to their
offense,” he said.
Volleyball team’s
rigorous schedule
works out nicely
Nebraska volleyball coach Terry
Pettit refuses to take credit for bring
ing in the top-ranked team in the
country to play the Comhuskers this
weekend.
Sure, he invited Hawaii to the
Baden Challenge.
But that was three years ago, and
he had no way of knowing the Rain
bow Wahines would come to Lincoln
No. 1.
That’s an example of how things
are falling into place for Nebraska
this year.
_I
Pettit’s 1989 schedule has worked
out wonderfully for the No. 4 Husk
ers.
Three opponents have been
ranked in the top 20 - No. 8 Stanford,
No. 11 Minnesota and No. 13 Colo
rado.
Another three ~ Kentucky, Pitts
burgh, and Iowa — received votes in
the collegiate polls this week.
Later this season, Nebraska will
play No. 7 Illinois and No. 10 Texas.
Pettit would like more.
“If we could play 30 teams in the
top 20 we would,’’ he said.
The schedule hasn’t been as tough
as it looks. Pettit either scheduled the
tough matches at home or gave his
players extra time to prepare.
Iowa visited the NU Coliseum.
Kentucky, Pittsburgh and thcn-No. 2
Stanford came to Lincoln for the
FirsTier Invitational.
The Huskers next played at Colo
rado, but had a free week to prepare
for the Lady Buffs’ unusual inside
out offense.
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to prepare for two-time All-America
selection Teee Williams-Sanders and
the other Rainbow Wahines.
While the schedule is demanding,
the Huskers wouldn’t have done as
well if the hard matches would have
been closer together.
Pettit said he would like to have a
week off before all the tough
matches. That usually is impossible
when trying to meet the requirements
of the Big Eight schedule.
Next year the team will spend
more time on the road, returning the
fa' or to teams who played in Lincoln
this season.
But that’s next season. This year,
things are working out well.
In fact, things arc working out
better than anyone could have ex
pected. Not that Nebraska’s schedule
is unusually tough. Hawaii played,
and beat, No. 3 Pacific twice last
weekend.
It’s just that when a team takes on
as tough a schedule as the Huskers do
every year, the team is supposed to
lose a few. But Nebraska is 14-0.
Pettit said he doesn’t look at it that
way.
‘‘I don’t say, ‘Well, we can afford
to lose 8 matches,’ or whatever,” he
said.
But unlike the football team, the
volleyball team doesn’t have to go
undefeated to win the national cham
pionship; the Huskers just have to put
together five wins in the NCAA tour
nament.
Pettit said the Baden Challenge
should help the team in Regionals. In
postseason play, teams have to play
top teams back-to-back. Nebraska
won’t have a tougher assignment
than playing Hawaii two days in a
row.
This series can give both teams
See SCHEDULE on 16
