Volleyball looking for a turn-around

In Suzanne Garland's first year as volleyball coach at Emory University in 1991, her team's record was 3-29. In 1995, the team qualified for the NCAA Division III tournament.

That's good news for Oberlin's volleyball team. Garland is the new head coach of the Yeowomen team that finished a dismal 4-26 a year ago and was winless in conference matches.

And it's even better news for Oberlin that Garland finds her new team far more talented than the first edition of her Emory team.

"I have been very pleasantly surprised," Garland said. "We only have eight on the roster, but I'm encouraged by their skill level."

The eight players face a vigorous opening tournament this weekend as 15 other teams come to Oberlin to play a tournament less than two weeks after the start of preseason training.

Junior hitter Carissa Bennett is one of five returning players. "It's daunting because it's going to be our first match, but it is exciting because you can see all the other teams. We can see where we want to be," she said.

Sophomore Katie Ruth, also a hitter, was among the conference leaders last year in 115 kills.

"I'd like to win eight games, double what we did last year," Ruth said.

This year is the second in a row the team has had a new coach. Garland's arrival is exciting for the players. "She's an excellent coach," Bennett said.

Players have said they've already seen improvement in the way they work together.

Five of the six starters have played for Oberlin before. Besides Ruth and Bennett, there are seniors Karen Rosenbaum, Nell Hanson and Naeli Jeon.

First-year Jill Brockelman will also start. Rounding out the team are first-year Mie Anton and sophomore Hillary Lee.

The small size of the team could be a problem. "Fatigue is going to be a really big issue for us," Bennett said.

The coach believes the team is on its way to a turn around. "It sounds like so much of a cliché," Garland said, "but we're going to focus on running our plays and the wins will follow."