Central Michigan University Athletics
Chippewas Entertain Western, NIU in MAC Volleyball Matches
10/9/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Jared Porter, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- The Central Michigan volleyball team begins a four-match conference home stand with matches this weekend against Western Michigan (10-7 overall, 2-2 conference) and Northern Illinois (11-7, 4-0).
The Chippewas split a pair of MAC matches last weekend, defeating Toledo, 3-0, on Friday and falling to Ball State, 3-1, on Saturday. CMU is 7-9, 2-2.
After Wednesday's practice, coach Erik Olson said he has been challenging his team to give 100-percent effort in improving each day.
"We're trying to get better," Olson said. "I think there are different parts of your brain that you use when you're trying to get better. This group is a very competitive group, so when they think too much, they play slow and bad. That happens against some opponents, and I've felt the last couple of weeks that our intensity needed to be a little better.
"We were doing a defensive transition drill (Wednesday), and there was a learning component to it. We would rep it out and then bridge it to live play. However, we weren't giving our best effort when we transitioned to live play. This is a very competitive team, but we need to maintain consistency in playing with high energy. I reminded them today and I'll keep doing so moving forward."
The Chippewas host rival Western Michigan on Friday. The Chippewas and Broncos are among three teams tied for third in the MAC West. Western lead the MAC in hitting percentage (.233) and ranks second in assists per set (12.4).
"Our mindset doesn't change when we face (Western Michigan)," Olson said. "It's easy to get caught up in the rivalry aspect of it, but at the end of the day, it's just another match. Whether we beat the best team in our conference or we beat the worst, they all count the same. Each match matters the same amount when you look at the big picture."
CMU will finish weekend play with a matchup against West-leading Northern Illinois on Saturday night. The Huskies lead the conference in service aces per set (1.76) and rank third in hitting percentage (.226).
"To our team, it's one match at a time," Olson said. "It's still early in the season, but at the same time, it's an important weekend because there are certainly a lot of ties right now in the conference. We just have to take care of business this weekend and stay focused on our next opponent.
"I have no idea what to expect going into a season. Did I think we would start 0-6? No, absolutely not. I had to re-evaluate everything when that happened. But one thing I can say is that we have drastically improved and we have a lot of things going for us. I like that we're healthy at this point in the season, which is something we haven't had going for us in past years. I think we hold our own fate and it comes down to us being us."
The Chippewas will play host to Bowling Green and Miami (Ohio) next weekend in MAC matches. The Falcons are 3-13, 0-4; Miami is 9-7, 2-2.
