ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell volleyball team enjoyed its annual preseason picnic before opening its first week of practice as it begins preparations for the 2010 season. Second-year head coach Sarah Bernson will have less than two weeks to get the team ready for its season opener as the Big Red hosts the Cornell Invitational on Friday, Sept. 3 and Saturday, Sept. 4 at Newman Arena.



The Big Red enters the 2010 season with an interesting mix of upperclassman and talented newcomers. The team will look to mesh 11 returning letter winners and six newcomers as it attempts to replace three starters that were lost to graduation.

Cornell is coming off a 2009 campaign in which the squad went 6-19 overall and finished sixth in the Ivy League with a mark of 3-11 in conference play.

“Last year we were young and injured and I think this year we're transitioning to becoming a veteran team,” said Bernson. “Even though this is my seventh season at Cornell, it's still just the beginning of my second season as the head coach. I did install a new system when I took over, so I expect a smoother offense now that we are in the second year of my system. Honestly, just the improvement that we had over the spring was incredible, so I hope that trend continues.”

Outside Hitters
The Big Red has the most depth and veteran leadership with its outside hitters. Leading the way will be returning letter winners Alessa Cekauskas, Erin McCarthy, Deveney Pula and Meagan Tatum, while freshmen Sierra Young and Kelly Marble will push for playing time.

“Alessa and Erin are the only two seniors on the team and they've both played since they were freshmen, so they bring a lot of leadership and experience to the position,” said Bernson.

Cekauskas was named the team's Most Improved Player after the 2009 season in which she saw action in 23 matches, playing in 71 sets. She finished the season ranked second on the team in kills per set (2.15) and was one of the best hitters with a kill percentage of .149. She finished the year with 153 kills, 81 digs, 15 blocks and three service aces.

McCarthy has played a lot of volleyball for Cornell during her career, but was sidelined most of last season due to an injury. A co-captain for the 2010 season, the Big Red is expecting her back at full strength for her final year. During her career, she has seen action in 165 sets, registering 2.38 kills per set, and has accumulated 299 career digs to go along with 48 total blocks and 29 service aces.

“Erin's focus and attention to detail has made her a dependable leader for the program and that is why she was named one of our two captains, along with Meagan Tatum,” said Benson. “She has been a contributor since she was a freshman and a reliable performer, as her statistics have continually improved while in the program.”

Pula made significant contributions to the team as a freshman, seeing action in all 25 matches and playing in 80-of-88 sets. She led the team in kills (2.95 per set) and ranked among the best on the team with a .149 kill percentage. Both of those numbers jumped against Ivy League opponents, as she registered 3.23 kills per set and a .154 kill percentage. Pula also ranked second on the team in both digs (200) and service aces (14).

“Deveney was our kill leader last year, but she will be a more consistent hitter this year and improve upon her hitting percentage, which will be a huge benefit to our program,” said Bernson.

The team's other co-captain for 2010, Tatum, played a great deal as a freshman, but has seen her playing time limited ever since due to a lingering injury. During her career, she has played in 32 matches, averaging 2.16 kills per set. For her career, she has racked up 74 digs, 25 total blocks and 12 service aces.

“Meagan is a motivational and encouraging pillar of our team leadership,” said Bernson. “She is always involved and optimistic about her teammates and the program. Her ability to communicate with every personality is a key connecting point between the players and the coaching staff.”

Young was a three-time letter winner at the Benet Academy, where she led her team to back-to-back IHSA sectional championships in 2008 and 2009, as well as an IHSA state runner-up finish in 2008. As a player, she earned all-conference, all-area and all-state honors. Young played her club volleyball with Sports Performance and helped her team to a first place finish at the 2010 JVA World Challenge.

Marble lettered three times at Saint Thomas Aquinas High School, serving as team captain as both a junior and senior. She was named the 2010 Class 6A-5A-4A Volleyball Player of the Year by both the Sun Sentinel and the Miami Herald and was named the La Ley Sports Outstanding Female Senior for Fall Sports by Broward County. She was a two-time Miami Herald first-team all-county selection, as well as a 2009 Florida Athletic Coaches Association All-Star. Marble led her team to the Florida High School Regional finals in 2009 after a pair of championship semifinal appearances in 2007 and 2008. A two-time junior Olympics participant, she also played her club volleyball for Boomers Volleyball Club and is a member of the USAV High Performance Program.

“Sierra has great credentials and comes from a great program, while Kelly is incredibly competitive,” said Bernson. “Both will provide great depth and will benefit by learning from our upperclassmen.”

Setters
The Big Red will benefit highly from the return of all three setters from the 2009 season, all of which saw playing time during the year. The incumbent starter, Jordan Reeder returns for her junior season, while sophomores Lucy Zheng and Sydney Campbell will create a competitive atmosphere in practice and push Reeder for playing time.

Reeder took over the starting setting duties during her sophomore season, seeing action in 22 matches and playing in 72 sets. She finished the year ranked fifth in the Ivy League in assists per set (7.97), posting 574 helpers on the year. Reeder posted double-digit assists in every match, with a career-high 55 in a five-set thriller against Penn on Nov. 7.

“Last year was Jordan's first full year as a setter, ever, because she also hit in high school” explained Bernson. “She grew a lot as the season wore on and she became more confident and consistent.”

As a freshman, Zheng served as the back-up setter, seeing action in 14 matches and playing in 26 sets. She finished the year ranked second on the team with 141 assists (5.42 per set), to go along with 38 digs, eight blocks and six service aces. She posted double-digit assists four times, led the team in assists on two occasions and handed out a career-high 36 assists vs. Brown on Oct. 17.

“Lucy is probably the best blocker of the three and she is very competitive,” said Bernson. “Her consistency in her sets will determine how much she plays this year.”

Campbell saw action in nine matches as a rookie, playing in 20 sets. She finished the year with 67 assists, averaging 3.35 assists per set. She reached double-digit assists in three matches, including a career-high 19 vs. Hartford on Sept. 26.

“Sydney makes great setting decisions,” said Bernson “She stayed over the summer to work out, and that helped her a great deal, but it is her transition game that will factor into how much she plays.”

Right Side
Kelly Hansen is the lone returning letter winner in Cornell's group of right side hitters and she will be looked upon to lead the squad and provide leadership to the freshmen duo of Janel Forte and Brittany Fox.

Hansen overcame an early-season injury in 2009 to play in 12 matches, including 11 outings against Ivy League opponents. Despite her limited role, she still put up impressive numbers, averaging 1.63 kills per set while hitting .152. Hansen also posted 25 blocks on the season to rank second on the team with 0.71 blocks per set. She finished the year with 57 kills, 17 assists, 14 digs and two service aces.

“Kelly is a big strong presence, as well as our most vocal player on the court,” said Bernson. “After a full year of playing on the right at the college level she's really adapted well and this year we're hoping to get her a larger variety of sets to take advantage of her ability.”

Forte was a three-year letter winner at L.D. Bell High School, earning all-district honors three times. She helped her team to a district championship as a freshman and served as team captain as a senior. Forte was named to the 2008 Arlington ISD Tournament all-tournament team. As a member of Texas Advantage Volleyball, Forte helped her team to a first-place finish in the 2009 Lonestar Classic. She also made two junior Olympic appearances.

“Janel was a middle blocker in high school and played right side with her club team, but we actually recruited her as an outside hitter,” explained Bernson. “Her experience and athleticism allows us to use her on the right side and provide us with some much-needed depth.”

Fox lettered four times in volleyball at three different schools before graduating from Rochester Lourdes Catholic High School. She served as team captain as a senior and was a two-time All-Conference selection. Fox swept her team's awards as a senior, earning MVP, as well as the team's Top Hitter, Top Blocker and Top Server awards.

“Brittany works very hard and got some great experience playing right side with her club team,” said Bernson.
“Having both Janel and Brittany available on the right side will allow us the ability to run a 6-2 this year.”

If needed, the Big Red coaching staff also feels confident that either Reeder or Zheng could jump into the right side rotation, as both have experience from hitting in high school.

Defensive Specialist/Libero
With the graduation of the Ivy League's all-time career digs leader Megan Mushovic, the Big Red's libero position will be up for grabs. Fortunately, Cornell returns two players with experience at the defensive specialist and libero positions in junior Risa Ka'awa and sophomore Taylor Nieman.

Last season, Ka'awa was the team's primary defensive specialist, seeing action in 21 matches. Over the course of 66 sets, she averaged 2.21 digs and finished the season with 146 digs, 12 kills and seven service aces. She had four matches in which she posted double-digit digs, including a career-high 18 vs. Penn on Nov. 7.

“Risa brings the added element of being an attacker for us out of the back row,” said Bernson. “And that's where we like her, but her passing really came a long way this past spring so she could make the move to libero.”

Nieman saw significant playing time as a freshman, seeing action in 23 matches, playing in 77 sets. She finished the year with 124 digs (1.61 per set), posting double-digit digs twice. She led the team in digs in one match as she posted a career-high 14 vs. George Mason on Sept. 5. Nieman also tallied nine service aces and two kills on the year.

“Taylor had outstanding club experience prior to Cornell and she built on that with the playing time she saw as a freshman,” said Bernson. “It took her a year to adjust to the college game and we expect her to just keep growing.”

“In the end, we may not have one libero all season long. We may adjust from game-to-game depending on if we need a back row attacker or not. Right now, the libero position is completely up in the air and it's all going to come down to passing.”

Middle Blockers
Cornell was hardest hit at the position of middle blocker, losing both of its starters, Juliana Rogers and Jessica Misse, to graduation. While the team returns three players with experience in Madeleine Przybyl, Alice Cope and Ana Vanjak, the staff will also look to develop freshmen Rachel D'Epagnier and Ainsley Lovejoy.

Pryzbyl saw the first action of her collegiate career during the 2009 season, appearing in 18 matches and playing in 47 sets. She was the leading blocker on the team and ranked seventh in the Ivy League with .79 blocks per set, while only committing one block error on the season. Pryzbyl also averaged 1.28 kills per set, a number that increased to 1.32 in conference action.

“Madeleine spent the spring focused on being a middle blocker and we expect her to lead the squad,” said Bernson. “She's not the largest in stature, but her speed, quickness and jumping ability should allow her to have success.”

Cope saw significant playing time as a freshman, seeing action in 20 matches, playing in 54 sets. She ranked fifth on the team in kills per game (1.26) and posted an impressive .195 hitting percentage. She registered double-digit kills on two occasions, tallied a career-high 12 kills vs. Fairleigh Dickinson and led the Big Red with 10 kills against St. Johns. Cope finished the year with 68 kills, 34 blocks, 22 digs and 11 assists.

“Alice saw some time at middle as a freshman,” said Bernson. “She has a great volleyball pedigree and thanks to her experience last season, she should be in the mix.”

Vanjak saw action in six matches as a freshman, playing 12 sets. She posted three kills, three blocks, two digs and one service ace on the year.

“Ana is one of our bigger players at 6-3 and she's coming back from an injury that is limiting her playing time,” said Bernson. “It also took her a year to adapt to the U.S. game, but we feel that she's ready to compete for playing time this year.”

D'Epagnier was a three-year letter winner at Southern Lehigh High School. As a team captain during her senior season, she led her squad to a PIAA District 11 championship and became the first volleyball player in school history to be named PIAA All-State. She was the team's MVP as a senior and was also named her school's Scholar Athlete Award winner. D'Epagnier was also named a Morning Call All-Area first team selection, after a second-team selection as a junior. She also played for Synergy Volleyball Club.

“Rachel is a nice size at 6-2,” said Bernson. “She is a very fluid player because she has a background in dance, but she also improved her strength a great deal over her senior year, so that will help her transition as a freshman.”

Lovejoy was a four-time letter winner at Palo Verde High School, where she was a two-time all-conference selection. She helped her team to two Sunset Conference Region semifinalist finishes, one Sunset Region finals appearance and one Sunset Conference finals appearance. Lovejoy also won a NW Sunset League championship as a senior. She won four scholar-athlete awards, as well as her team's Lady Panther Award as the squad's best all-around player.

“Ainsley is a player a lot like Madeleine Przybyl,” explained Bernson. “She is a quick and agile presence at the net.”