PUEBLO, Colo. - Ask any coach of any athletic team - ‘this
year' is never a ‘rebuilding year.' Such an assessment only
comes when all that season's games have been played. With the
ThunderWolves' 2007 volleyball season officially over with a 7-20
overall record and acknowledgements of ‘rebuilding season' in
tow, eyes are looking forward to 2008 with high hopes and the
learning experience that was the sometimes disappointing, yet
sometimes encouraging, 2007 volleyball season.
There were several factors that pointed to the Pack's 2007 campaign
as being a rebuilding season from day one. Consider the
ThunderWolves' new coach, Chris Jonson, who came in with the
expected to-do-list of a new coach: implement a new system,
acclimate players to the coach's personality and expectations, and
most of all, win from day one. The latter was a tough order to
fill, considering that the ThunderWolves were only returning two
starters, Lindsey Wilson and Caitlyn Jewell, from the 2006 team
that went 15-11 and was considered one of the tougher teams in the
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Coach Jonson, who came from the
staff of RMAC foe, Metro State, wasn't even familiar with the
ThunderWolf players who were slated to see a lot of playing time in
2007.
"Coming in, I knew last year's team, but not so much the girls that
were here," Jonson said. "Implementing the system with brand new
girls was difficult. It went smoothly at times but it had its ups
and downs."
Unfortunately for the Pack, the downs ended up outweighing the ups.
Despite several struggles throughout the season, the ThunderWolves
reached its high water point in a Sep. 28 win at Regis. Coming in
with a 4-10 record to face the Rangers, confidence was a hard thing
to come by at that point in the season. But against Regis, an
eventual qualifier to the RMAC volleyball tournament, the
ThunderWolves played its most crisp volleyball of the season,
sweeping the Rangers 30-23, 30-28, and 30-23.
"We played extremely well that night," Jonson said. "We walked out
there feeling pretty confident, and that set the tone for the type
of team we could become."
Unfortunately for the Pack, they won only two matches throughout
the rest of the season. In several cases, the ThunderWolves had
teams right where they wanted them, but buckled under the pressure
of scoring an upset victory.
In an Oct. 6 matchup with Metro State, an eventual 0-3 loss, the
ThunderWolves held late leads in both the first and second games,
only to see them melt away. It was a loss that was indicative of a
young team trying to learn how to win - at times, the Pack was
playing some of the best volleyball in the conference, while at
others, they looked downright ordinary.
"I think it's part of adjusting to a new system and new way of
doing things," Jonson said. "When things go smoothly, you have no
trouble buying in. When they don't, you tend to go back to what's
comfortable for you. It's human nature. As a result, our discipline
and fundamentals lacked at times, and we paid for it."
The ThunderWolves were able to end their season on a high note,
triumphing in a gritty five-game win over Western State on Nov. 3,
25-30, 30-18, 27-30, 32-20 and 15-12. In that match, the Pack were
able to come from behind, seize control in close games, and stave
off any advance Western State tried to make.
"We had a lot more confidence in that game," Jonson said. "We could
have very easily lost that match, but we stayed confident and
overcome any adversity."
"If we solidify that type of confidence, come next season, we'll
win a lot of matched that we lost this year," he said.
The foundation is there for ThunderWolves in 2008. Despite losing
only two seniors, Lindsey Wilson, their best all-around player this
season, and Jenna Garcia, a libero that set the school's single
game record for digs in the final game against Western State, four
starters will return. Caitlyn Jewell, who was nearly unstoppable in
the Pack's final games of the season, will be back as the key
attacker and top blocker. Setter Katie Lauridsen, middle blocker
Bryana Burns, and outside hitters Taren Frazier and Melissa Jones
will also be back next season, each with two or more years of
eligibility left. Lauridsen and Frazier were sophomores, Jones is a
freshman, and Burns is a redshirt sophomore with two years
remaining.
"We have a good strong foundation now," Jonson said. "They have a
good, solid base of what's expected now. We are going to get after
it in spring workouts, and by next season, things will be much more
natural and much more smooth."
