BATON ROUGE – The No. 23 LSU volleyball team opens the 2010 season versus Pacific, Siena and host Texas A&M over the weekend as part of the Texas A&M Invitational.
The Tigers have produced 10 consecutive winning first weekends dating back to the 2000 season under reigning SEC and AVCA South Region Coach of the Year Fran Flory.
The defending SEC champions are one of only 20 programs in the nation to collect five straight NCAA Tournament appearances since 2005 and enter this season with nine of 14 players on the roster either freshmen or sophomores.
LSU (0-0, 0-0 SEC) started its preseason camp on August 10 highlighted by the annual Purple & Gold Scrimmage last Saturday where Angela Bensend ripped 10 kills and four aces. The Tigers have won 14 of 15 matches when Bensend posts double figure kills over the past three seasons.
“We want to see how we’ve progressed through our preseason camp with such a young team,” Flory said. “We believe we’re a pretty good passing and defensive team. We’re anxious to see how that matches up against some physical hitters on the other side of the net.”
Bensend is joined by returning starters Lauren Waclawczyk and Michele Williams. Waclawczyk anchored the back row and reeled in 425 digs at a 3.76 per set ratio to finish 10th in the SEC, while Williams, a 2010 All-SEC Preseason Team selection, contributed 244 kills, 124 blocks and 30 aces last season. Her 1.15 blocks per set were fifth-highest in the SEC.
Flory also has been impressed with Tania Schatow‘s preseason camp. The Michigan native has seen spot duty during her first three seasons but has produced 73 blocks over her 104 sets of action.
“Angela and Lauren have come in ready to lead and were selected team captions earlier this week,” Flory said. “Tania also came back very prepared. She’s as quick and physical as she’s been during her four years with us and we’re hoping she’ll have a strong senior campaign.”
Brittney Johnson is ready to take the reigns at setter and passed out 835 assists during her first three seasons. Her athleticism and versatility offer LSU’s attack multiple looks on the front row.
“Setting is so different than hitting and Brittney has been a hitter for most of her career. It’s a difficult position to play, but she’s prepared well this summer,” Flory said. “She has a grasp of what we want to do. We’re going to have to develop her decision making skills and make her delivery skills crisper. It’s match one of a long season and she’ll continue to get better.”
Sam Delahoussaye, Madie Jones and Meghan Mannari, a trio of sophomores, are poised for expanded roles in 2010. The Tigers also possess a very talented freshmen class sparked by Desiree Elliott, Avery Striebel and Nicole Willis, all of which garnered 2009 AVCA Under Armour High School All-America Second-Team status.
“We know that our team is a work in progress, and we’re probably not going to have the same starting lineup two weeks from today,” Flory said. “It’s a great starting point and that’s a credit to our returning players coming back ready to play. Our freshmen are going to get better. We’re going to bring them along and empower them to be great instead of having them jump in and lose confidence. “
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