When head coach Carl Ferreira announced he was going back to a traditional one-setter offense after last season’s 4-2 flex scheme, senior Julie Gerlach and junior Sydney Chute were most affected.
Because the new offense has room for only one setter on the floor at all times, Gerlach and Chute have been slated to battle for the starting spot. Before Pacific-10 Conference play began, Chute seemed to hold the position tightly, but now Gerlach has come back strong.
“We started the year with Sydney as our No. 1 setter when we changed our offense,” Ferreira said. “(When Chute suffered) an ankle injury, Julie got in and has done an excellent job.”
New to the team this year are junior middle blockers Lindsay Closs and Stephanie Martin, two players Ferreira called “All-Americans.” Their addition contributed to a slow start for Chute at the beginning of the season, he said.
“She struggled a little bit getting used to All-American caliber hitters,” he said. “All of a sudden you’re surrounded. You get in the flow of running an offense, and she struggled a little bit.”
Coupled with her ankle injury, Chute’s poor play allowed Gerlach to emerge and become a contributor in the new offense. After 13 team matches, Gerlach has 188 assists, or 6.27 per game. Chute has 308 assists, or 9.94 per game, and has played in 31 games compared to Gerlach’s 30.
But last weekend was another story for the duo. Gerlach played a majority of the match against Washington, posting 27 assists and three kills. Chute played a small portion of the third game, coming in with six assists of her own. The next night, Chute played the entire match against the Cougars, recording 24 assists and five kills.
Ducks fired up after
post-game talk
Against Washington State, the Ducks looked to be an entirely different team than the one that took the court against Washington. Was it something in the water? All bets say no.
Following the team’s dismal performance against the Huskies, Ferreira and the rest of the Ducks tended to business in the form of a 90-minute post-game talk.
“It was a lot of heart and soul searching,” Closs said. “It was a lot of getting stuff out, and it made a difference.”
“I wanted to hear what they had to say,” Ferreira said. “Probably about 75 percent of the discussion was (the players). It was kind of an airing-out situation.”
When asked if he used the session to point out flaws in the team’s play, Ferreira said, “When you’ve got a group that’s wounded, you don’t step on them. It’s not them feeling bad about themselves and you going in there and lashing out at them. That doesn’t accomplish anything.”
Ducks last in Pac-10
After two weeks and four Pac-10 matches, the Ducks are tied for last place in the conference at 0-4. Other than Oregon, only California (3-5 overall, 0-3 Pac-10) can lay claim to not recording a win as of yet. However, after Friday, one team will have at least one. Oregon travels to the Bay Area this weekend to take on Stanford (Thursday) and Cal (Friday).
“I definitely didn’t expect to be in this situation,” Ferreira said.
Last season, the Ducks defeated only Washington and Oregon State en route to a 2-16 Pac-10 season. With Washington having already passed through Eugene, the much improved Beavers (9-3, 3-1) loom ahead. The Ducks travel to Corvallis on Oct. 10 to take on the surprising Oregon State team.
“Trust is something that’s earned, respect is something that’s earned,” Ferreira added. “Competitive trust and competitive respect, especially in the Pac-10, is something you’ve got to hold on to.”
Wild week in the Pac-10
The third week of Pac-10 play may be one to remember. With Stanford (9-1, 3-0) and USC (8-1, 3-0) tied for the conference lead, each match becomes more important.
The match of the week will take place in the Bay Area. But it won’t involve the Ducks.
The upstart and surprising Beavers travel to Palo Alto, Calif., and take on national powerhouse Stanford. The Cardinal are ranked fourth in the USA Today/AVCA Coaches Poll, but lost to a tough Long Beach State squad last week.
The Beavers feature Pac-10 player of the week Laura Collins. Collins, a sophomore, helped Oregon State sweep Washington and Washington State. The setter racked up 100 assists over the weekend, including a career high 60 against the Cougars.
