March 25, 2010

Final Stats

By Samantha Franz
Athletic Communications

It's easy to look back at the 2009 Oakland University volleyball season and blame their success on the current roster, After all, after posting eight wins in 2008, the Golden Grizzlies catapulted to 17-10 season, including a 10-8 mark in Summit League play, both record finishes at the Division I level. But as head coach Rob Beam will tell you, their success was years in the making.

"Our success is really a culmination of three years of building," said Beam. "The efforts by our alumni graduates played a big part in setting the table for a young and a relatively inexperienced group at the collegiate level. To win 17 matches speaks about all of the women who have been playing in our program for the last three years.

"A lot of our success this season also has to do with work ethic, chemistry and team work, as well as the values of our program. When all those things get put into place, you get good results."

The Golden Grizzlies set the tone for the season from the get-go, when they took down Big East power West Virginia on Aug. 28 in a 3-0 sweep at the West Virginia University Classic. OU went on to win the tournament, giving them a huge dose of confidence.

"Winning that tournament gave us that solid footing to say that we were really good," said Beam. "Beating West Virginia in three sets on opening night was a huge morale booster for our team."

Of course, it certainly helped that Oakland had strong leadership from its two seniors, Adrienne Leone, who became OU's first All-Summit League first team selection, and Nikki Pawson. Both Golden Grizzlies had seen a lot of ups and downs during their tenure with the program and used that experience to guide the young 2009 roster.

A native of Clinton Township, Mich., Leone was among the most effective hitters in The Summit League this season, turning in 312 kills and averaging 4.0 kills per set, second in The Summit League. Pawson, hailing from Blissfield, Mich., saw action in 41 sets and tallied an impressive .894 serving percentage.

"What made them such great leaders was the fact that their level of expectation has continued to rise and I give them a lot of credit for that because it's so easy to just settle with what is comfortable," said Beam. "They would work at what needed to be done. Nikki accepted position changes and Adrienne transitioned into a key component for our offense. They addressed the growing needs of our program and provided leadership around those areas."

What also made this year's team unique was its youth. Of the 14 ladies on the roster, 10 were underclassmen. But what the Golden Grizzlies lacked in age they more than made up for in skill and finesse, on and off the court.

"We recruited with a number of skills and position needs in mind and it wound up working out nicely," said Beam. "Both their personalities and their skills from the club and high school level translated really well at the collegiate level. The sophomore group also made a big difference. That one year of college can mean a lot when you have such a young team.

"The biggest thing however, is that everybody came in thinking that we were going to be successful this season. They knew they would be agents for change in the program and that was realized when all the pieces of the puzzle became complete."

With those fresh faces also came some pleasant surprises, as was shown in the contributions of freshmen Jillian Kulka and Brittany Holbrook, the latter who was named to The Summit League All-Newcomer team for leading Oakland in hitting efficiency and blocks.

"At camp, Jillian seemed like a hard worker with a great attitude, but I didn't know how well it would translate into playing time," said Beam. "She ended up literally helping us win matches with her services and defensive effort.

"As for Brittany, I was very confident that she would be a grow to be a great collegiate volleyball player , but the first two weekends in, she was leading the league in hitting efficiency. We didn't think that would happen right away for her, but she hit the ground running and has been outstanding for us."

Joining Holbrook on the All-Newcomer team was freshman Meghan Bray, who led the team with 335 kills this season. Her 3.02 kills per set ranked eighth in The Summit League, while she also ranked 10th in service aces.

Sadly, the Golden Grizzlies missed The Summit League Tournament by one spot after losing to UMKC 3-2 in the season finale and finishing fifth in the league. However, the sting of being so close has become the number one motivational tool for the Black and Gold heading into the spring season.

"Every weightlifting rep, every ball drill and every competition we play in practice is fueled by the fact we lost a tie-breaker to end the season," said Beam. "The team is eager to have that success again and everything we are doing is rebuilding toward a positive end result. It's much easier now that they have been disappointed, because they are so driven and very focused. That's the biggest change from last season to this one; they were so close to making the league tournament this year, so everything they do means a little more."

After hosting the Oakland University Spring Fling, the Golden Grizzlies will continue their spring training with tournaments at Eastern Michigan and Northwood, as well as a matchup with Bowling Green.

"With the spring schedule shaping up and a majority of our players returning, these competitions are crucial to training the team for the fall," said Beam. "We are able to do so much more system work and development because many of those that will be big contributors for us in the fall are present. Every day, we're working hard to clean everything up and make the details exactly right, which will be a big key for us to have a successful fall season."

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