Losing players equates to losing wins

This week was rough. After the "golden" high of Monday night's pummeling of Portage Christian wore off, reality sunk in. It it was pretty deep, I'm sorry to say. Tuesday brought a horrifying loss to LaThuggiere (LaLumiere), and Thursday brought more of the same as the Lady Lions had another win ripped away from them by First Baptist of Mishawaka. They failed to keep the win HOME. Let me fill you in on something here. New York City has a vast and expansive skyline, filled with many skyscrapers, much like the Lady Lions roster. But when you lose two key players, some issues begin to surface and manifest themselves. As large as the New York skyline is, of course it did not go unnoticed when the Twin Towers fell. That brings me to my next point. The Lady Lions suffered two devastating blows this week in the form of losing the heart, strength, and anchor-esque presence of Junior Az'a Braner at the net. Next was the continued lack of presence of injured Junior Trinitie Oetman, who beings veteran leadership, and rock solid stability to a Lady Lion team looking for someone slightly older who brings experience to a younger team. The Twin Towers have fallen at the V-rena. But as the smoke clears, and the rubble is left, what is there left to be salvaged from all of this? Great question, folks. I'm going to go ahead and report to you as accurately as Peyton Manning throws a football. It's not just some dude's opinion, like a certain someone who blogs about Calumet Christian Volleyball...

As much as I want to be the eternal optimist, it is getting more and more difficult with each passing game. But don't confuse me with the haters, I report cold hard facts as I see it. And the facts are looking gloomy based on this week's results. First Baptist of Mishawaka rolled in on Thursday night, looking to draw blood. The Lady Lions were looking to avenge the poor play of just two nights earlier at LaThuggiere (LaLamuiere). First Baptist came out guns firing as they took the first two sets. But Coach Sassman was able to rally her players to take the next two sets with authority, as the Lady Lions pushed it to five. We have been no strangers to five setters at home this year, as more often than not they have been the case. This episode ended no differently than a lot of the others. The Lady Lions came out in the fifth looking promising, as they took the first few points. But First Baptist fired back, and began reeling off against the seemingly helpless Lady Lion defense. The next few points made me want to run out of the V-rena crying. Just as soon as the set had begun, there it had ended. The heartbreaker was sealed, as something as simple as a dropped ball was left alone because it appeared to be heading out of play. That is how that week came to a close...

I was fortunate enough to get past the hordes of media personnel on Friday, as I came into the Lady Lions practice looking for some player insight. I decided to approach Junior Katie Delisio, who by the way has done a magnificent job bringing veteran leadership, stability, and enthusiasm to this relatively young squad. I did not want to take too much of her time, so I decided to cut straight to the point. There was some hesitancy at first, as not all reporters are willing to pose the hard questions like me. I wanted to know what she thought were some of the causes for the recent struggles. After a short pause, she told me she thought there was a lack of focus among the team. After asking her to elaborate a little bit, she briefly paused, and admitted that she thought the team's mindset was negative. And what does bad mindset come from? It comes from a lack of family, obviously. And there were are again, back to family. I think Matt Painter has finally a got a piece of what he had coming to him, as his star forward Robbie Hummel once again sustained an injury during practice. It will keep him out for the duration of the 2010-2011 season. And what exactly is it? It is a torn ACL! Someone must have forgotten to inform Painter that what goes around comes around. I'll tell you what. I was on campus in West Lafayette during late June of this past summer, and I almost could not believe the things I was seeing. Mackie Arena was/is still a freak scene. Were I to name all of the things Painter has going on around there, this post would be flagged, and this entire blog as it exists would be possibly be considered to be removed as we know it. But I will let you know that Painter has got his bases covered, much like President Obama has secret service men covering the White House. Except Matt Painter's "eye in the sky" is far more advanced and much less amateur than the secret service. Last time I checked, the NCAA does not allow heavily fortified intelligence services to guard your arena. Sounds a little suspicious to me. Moving on to the next subject!...

The Lady Lions will have a chance for a tune up this Monday, as Christian Haven rolls in to the V-rena. Hold Your breathe though, because a loss here would spell real trouble. All hope is not lost though, as the conference tournament has yet to pass. And until a winner is crowned there, I refuse to give up on the Lady Lions. Until the last match point of the last game of the season is played, nothing is set in stone. This is the time to solidify a season that has as many ups and downs as Millennium Force at Cedar Point. It's going to start with keeping it HOME on Monday, followed by keeping the right mindset, fueled by strength and intensity, going into the SSCC tournament. I'm all in now! Join me into the plunge, fellow fans.

The one and only VCA volleyball beat writer,
Danny Mosco.

P.S. I'm going to begin giving you a photo of the day from now on, as best i can, to visually stimulate your volleyball appetite.


An image of Mackey Arena from the external.