Friday, October 12, 2001
[ WAHINE VOLLEYBALL ]
Rally scoring slow Midway through rally scoring's first season in women's collegiate volleyball, coaches say the hand-me-down from the men's international game has been a tough fit.
to gain acceptance
In the system's first year, women's
coaches have trouble finding positivesBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comThe scoring format was adopted to eliminate the endless sideouts and fit matches into a more predictable time block. And it was expected that with more on the line with each serve, there would be a greater appeal to fans.
"The intention of it was to control the length of the game and I'm finding that we're still playing the same variance," BYU coach Elaine Michaelis said.
"In some cases we've kept regular score just to see the difference. Most of the rally score games end a little bit sooner but not significantly. I don't think having a consistent time frame is worth changing our game."
While point-per-play scoring does quicken games, matches overall have been longer. Hawaii has averaged 90 minutes a match this season.
And even Hawaii's lopsided victories against Houston and Rice last week took more than an hour to play.
The matches quickly became boring because rally scoring virtually eliminates the drama of a comeback. Most teams can't catch up once they're down five or more points.
On the other hand, it does keep less competitive teams in the match longer.
"It allows an average team to stay with a good team just because all they have to do is keep the ball in play," Michaelis said. "If you have any element of risk involved in what you do, then they will be able to hang in there. Eventually you'll make a mistake when they're just kind of a ball-control team and they don't have an aggressive style of play."
While rally scoring puts greater emphasis on execution and making fewer mistakes, it also rewards teams with unearned points off service errors. Unlike football and basketball, where teams have to work together to put points on the score board, rally scoring rewards teams for doing nothing.
"We scored 80 points this year without moving," Long Beach State coach Brian Gimmillaro said. "They (other teams) served the ball out of bounds. It develops a more conservative game and fans don't want to watch a game they think they can play. They come to watch a game where they're amazed about the ability of the people playing."
While the majority of coaches on the men's collegiate side embraced rally-scoring after last season, the jury is still deciding for women's volleyball.
Many coaches don't favor the format but understand that it could be good for the sport.
"Every sport needs to look at ways to improve the game," Hawaii coach Dave Shoji said. "Most sports have changes in the rules that are mostly geared to spectators to try to create more excitement. A lot of the older coaches would like different scoring. It was a radical change. But if it's going to help the sport, I think we'd all agree that we want to do it.
"I know early in rally scoring, we lost matches ... critical matches. ... I think when you tend to go five games that means the teams are even so it's almost 50-50 on that last game.
"We've been more successful later. I don't think there's any reason. I don't think, over the years, we've learned how to play the game."
While coaches are still adjusting to rally scoring, some already see its positives.
"I'm getting used to it very quickly and enjoying it," UCLA coach Andy Banachowski said. "It's a different way to play the game so it's presenting new challenges.
"Everyone has said that it can favor the lesser-skilled team. I think it's made the matches closer. As a coach, you're sitting on the bench watching the game go on but you're never feeling comfortable because you give up a couple of real points in there, the other team is right back in the match. It's really increased the intensity level while making the matches closer."
Note: All large bags brought into the Stan Sheriff Center will be subject to search. The athletic department encourages people to leave bags at home. The arena will be open 90 minutes before match time to accommodate delays.
When: 7 p.m. today vs. UTEP; 4 p.m. Sunday vs. SMU GAMEDAY
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: Live, KFVE
Radio: Live, KCCN 1420-AM
Internet: uhathletics.hawaii.edu
Starting Lineups
HAWAII (10-4, 3-0)
Ht. KPG Aces Digs S Margaret Vakasausau (Jr.) 5-8 0.31 5 2.40 MB Nohea Tano(So.) 5-11 1.17 1 1.03 MB Lauren Duggins (So.) 6-0 1.83 8 2.67 OH Maja Gustin (So.) 6-3 3.63 10 0.85 OH Kim Willoughby (So.) 6-0 6.35 13 3.39 Opp Tanja Nikolic (Sr.) 6-0 2.71 11 2.19 DS Hedder Ilustre (Jr.) 5-7 0.00 1 1.89
UTEP (1-3, 5-7)
Ht. KPG Aces Digs S Krista Gronert (Sr.) 5-9 0.95 3 2.40 MB Jacqui Nosan (Sr.) 6-2 3.07 2 1.00 MB Ana Karina Detzcl (Jr.) 6-2 2.21 8 1.39 OH Jennifer Abbruzzese (So.) 6-0 3.59 14 3.07 OH Ana Beatriz Fontes (So.) 6-0 2.17 10 2.12 Opp Nicki Mosher (Sr.) 6-3 2.21 2 0.50 DS Sarah Davis (Jr.) 5-9 0.13 13 1.89
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii
