There is no single element more important than momentum going into the postseason.
After a shocking weekend in which the Big Red spikers were disappointed by back-to-back losses in the Ivy League, the Red will look to get back on track tonight with a victory in Buffalo against the Bills.
Luckily for the Red, the Bills are a lowly 4-20 and have lost an unimpressive 11 straight matches. During this stretch, Buffalo has managed to take only four games.
On the offense, the Bills are led by junior Lariss Laclour, Keri Shiels, and Lindsay Matikosh, and these individuals have shown moments of offensive prowess throughout the season.
To counteract this squad, the Red will again need to follow the leadership of senior captain Robin Moore who has had a great season so far and looks to add a few more achievements to her legendary career on the courts. As has been the case all season, the Red will have to stay away from the unforced errors that led to its demise this past weekend. After two solid days of practice the Red called a team meeting to discuss its current situation and discuss possible solutions to getting out of the small funk that it currently find itself in.
Today, the squad is ready to storm into Buffalo, return home with a strong win and propel itself into this weekend’s Big Red Invitational, during which the squad will host St. Francis and Albany.
“We haven’t been playing up to our potential so it is a really important game [today],” Moore said. “No one is overlooking [Buffalo] because we have so many things to work on.”
Although the Red was unable to capture the first seed for the league tournament, the next two weeks will be crucial for the spikers’ preparation for the competition, taking place on Nov. 10th. For now, the Red will focus on itself and try to iron out the things that haven’t been working recently so that it can return to the success that it had at the beginning of October.
Archived article by Peter Bernstein