Aug. 24, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. -- As the 2009 volleyball season draws near, there is a feeling of anticipation in Evanston. Northwestern returns nearly its entire roster from 2008, giving the Wildcats one of their most experienced teams in head coach Keylor Chan's tenure. Along with a pair of new assistant coaches and a re-energizing spring break trip to Italy in March, Chan and the `Cats are ready to get the 2009 campaign underway.
"We're ready to get out on that court in the fall," Chan said. "We had a very good off-season and a lot of different girls really stepped up and made some major strides. We are going to have a good team this year, and I'm excited to see the girls live up to what they can be."
COACHES
Chan returns for his 10th season at the helm of the Wildcats with an overall record of 122-154 during his time at Northwestern. He is well within striking distance of an impressive career milestone, as with an overall record of 140-169, Chan needs just 10 victories to reach 150 in his head coaching career.
There will be a pair of new faces aiding Chan on the Wildcat bench this season, with Kirstine Jensen and Aaron Smith being brought in as NU's new assistant coaches in the off-season. Jensen, a four-year letterwinner for Ohio State, spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach at Northern Illinois. Smith, a 2007 graduate of Penn State, spent a year playing professional volleyball overseas before serving as the volunteer assistant coach at Wake Forest last season.
OUTSIDE HITTERS
The outside hitters will be the most experienced position on the floor for the Wildcats in 2009 with four players returning that saw significant playing time last season. Senior Ariel Baxterback is coming off her best season in 2008, a year in which she recorded personal-highs in nearly every statistical category. Coming off a pair of knee injuries, Baxterbeck notched 133 kills and 23 blocks up front, and should be even more dangerous now that she is pain-free.
Redshirt junior Brittani Gray remains one of Northwestern's most potent attackers, killing a team-high 288 balls in 2008 while adding 46 blocks. She has worked hard in the off-season on improving her hitting percentage, and Chan is looking to Gray as one of his go-to point scorers.
Sophomores Alexandra Ayers and Madalyn Shalter both saw valuable playing time in their freshman campaigns and should continue to play critical roles for the `Cats in 2009. Ayers tied for fifth on the squad with 133 kills to go along with 17 blocks on the year. Shalter makes the move to the right side after serving as a back-up setter in 2008 and should build on her 52 kills and 18 blocks. Natalie Taylor also saw quite a bit of playing time during the off-season and Chan expects her to push the upperclassmen for playing time in the fall.
Freshman Susan Oxnard is one of the 'Cats' newest additions and will add some depth to an already stacked position in the fall.
MIDDLE BLOCKERS
Traditionally, the middle blocker position has been one of the strengths of the Northwestern program and this season should be no different. Redshirt junior Sabel Moffett looks to anchor the Wildcats' offensive attack after recording a career-best 280 kills with a .264 hitting percentage in 2008. She also led the team in both solo blocks (22) and total blocks (115) and should continue to be a headache for NU opponents.
Junior Naomi Johnson has been moved back to the middle after filling in on the outside for the past two seasons. Chan is looking for big things out of Johnson as she returns to her natural position, looking to build on her career-best 153 kills in 2008. She also enters the year needing just one block to reach 100 for her Northwestern career.
Kathryn Chrystal will also see her first collegiate action as a Wildcat after taking a redshirt season last year. She proved to be one of NU's most consistent players during off-season workouts.
SETTER
Junior Elyse Glab has emerged as one of the top setters not just in the Big Ten, but nationally as well, and is poised to have another big year for Northwestern. After dishing out 1,101 assists in 2008, she already sits seventh all-time in program history with 2,310, and has been working closely with Chan in the off-season to instill some new options into the Wildcat offensive attack.
LIBERO/DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS
Perhaps the biggest strength of the 2009 Wildcats will be in the backcourt at the libero/defensive specialist position. A great deal of that confidence comes from senior Kate Nobilio who enters the year as the program's all-time digs leader (1,665). She has ranked among the nation's leaders in digs in each of her previous three seasons as a Wildcat, and will be looked to as the on-court leader for Northwestern in 2009.
Nobilio will have a trio of underclassmen looking to her to gain valuable insights. Sophomore Mary Grace Gallagher should factor into the backcourt rotation this season after gaining some valuable playing time in the off-season.
Chan also brought in a pair of freshmen to add some depth to the position. Julie Chin is coming off an impressive career at nearby Naperville North High School where she finished as the school's all-time digs leader. Maria Turner will join the Wildcat roster this fall and could also emerge as one of the team's top serving threats.
THE SCHEDULE
As is typically the case, the Wildcats will face a challenging blend of both non conference and Big Ten Conference foes. The 2009 campaign gets underway the last weekend in August with a battle of Wildcats in Lexington, Ky., as Northwestern faces SEC runner-up and NCAA tournament participant Kentucky in the season opener. NU also meets up with Florida International and Western Carolina as part of the Kentucky Classic.
The Wildcats then head to Indianapolis, Ind., for the IUPUI Hampton Inn Invitational where they will face a pair of 2008 NCAA tournament teams in Miami (Ohio) and Western Kentucky. The `Cats will meet the host Jaguars in the Saturday night prime time match.
Northwestern returns to the southeast for its final road tournament of the non conference schedule, heading to Charlotte, N.C., to compete in the Comfort Suites 49er Tournament. The Wildcats open with a match against Presbyterian Friday before facing James Madison and host Charlotte in a Saturday doubleheader.
September 18 and 19 marks the 28th annual Wildcat Classic at Welsh-Ryan Arena, with Akron serving as the `Cats' opening opponent on Friday, Sept. 18. Saturday pits Northwestern against a pair of NCAA tournament foes, as the Wildcats host Long Island and Cincinnati in the final regular season tune-up.
The 2009 Big Ten schedule opens with a bang, as Northwestern hosts two-time defending national champion Penn State in the conference opener on Sept. 25. Ohio State then makes its annual trip to Evanston on Sept. 26.
Following a two-game Michigan road swing, the Wildcats host Purdue on Oct. 10. The Boilermakers finished 2008 ranked 17th with a 24-8 record and advanced to the round of 16. Indiana then visits Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sunday, Oct. 11, followed by Minnesota, who finished 10th nationally at 26-6.
NU then embarks on a four-game Big Ten road swing, visiting Iowa, Wisconsin, Purdue and Indiana before hosting Michigan State on Nov. 6. The Wildcats took a thrilling three-set victory over the Spartans at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Nov. 1, 2008, and have won three of the last four against MSU in Evanston. Michigan, who also advanced to the round of 16 after a 24-8 2008 campaign, takes on NU Nov. 7.
After another road trip to take on the Buckeyes and Nittany Lions, Northwestern returns to Welsh-Ryan Arena for the final three home matches of the season, beginning with Wisconsin on Nov. 20 and then Iowa on Nov. 21. The Wildcats close out the home slate hosting rival Illinois on Wednesday, Nov. 25, as the Illini ended 2008 ranked 14th following a 24-7 campaign and becoming the fourth Big Ten team to advance to the NCAA's round of 16.