The ACU Volleyball team is just two days away now from kicking off their 2014 season at the Hampton Inn Waco North Baylor Invitational. This Big 12 University will be a tough match for the Wildcats as Baylor has twelve returning players, four of which are seniors. The Wildcats on the other hand are a fairly young team as they return ten players only two of which are seniors. ACU also welcomed Jason Bibler to the team as the new head coach for the Wildcats. When Bibler was asked how he has prepared his team both physically and mentally for the season he said,
“I think we are pretty focused mentally. We have been talking about the mental aspect of the game since we started and I think the girls understand what is expected of them. Physically we have been going really hard in practice for a reason. We need to be able to stay at the same tempo and go fast the entire match. It’s one of our strengths, so we need to capitalize on that.”
Newcomer sophomore, Brooke Ray, agreed with her coach as to how he’s prepared the team, “We’ve spent a lot of hours in the gym and just as a team together. We’re starting to click as a team and that’s really important.” Though this is Bibler’s first year as the Wildcat’s head coach, he did serve as an assistant coach for the past three seasons and knows the team well. He believes both his upper and lower classmen will play an important role for the team this season, “Our upperclassmen are a big part of what we are doing right now. A majority of them have been starting the last couple of years so they definitely have a lot of experience, which helps. Our younger players will make an impact too. Some of them will see quite a bit of playing time and they are all pushing the older girls, which makes us better in the long run.”
The team will travel to Waco, TX on August 29, 2014 as the Wildcats kick off their season opener against Baylor University at 7pm. This will be the first game of the Wildcat’s 2014 season and the second game for the Bears in their tournament. Head Coach Jason Bibler believes his team is ready as long as the girls stay focused, “Biggest thing going into the weekend is to keep our tempo fast and play with a lot of energy. We need to be start and finish a match going fast and playing hard.”
Sophomore Brooke Ray confirmed that the Wildcats are going into this game with a confident approach, “We’re hopeful and positive. We’ve been practicing really hard which is how we expect to play. We’re going to go out there, play our best and see what happens.”
