Volleyball team looking to new heights

  It's back to business for the Volleyball team at the University at Albany.

   The Great Danes are back on the court preparing for another season after a long break. While their first practice was on Aug. 11, most of the team has been training throughout the summer months. With all of their preparation, the team was excited to get to play.

   "It feels great," said coach MJ Engstrom, who was named the America East Conference's Coach of the Year last season. "They've been working really hard."

    With the team is coming off a regular season championship in its conference, the Great Danes aren't satisfied and are training hard to take it further.

   "There are a number of things that everybody needs to improve on," Engstrom said.  

   According to Engstrom, improving upon existing skills and making better judgments are at the top of the team's agenda.

   "We feel like we need to aim higher right now," she said.

   Apart from winning the regular season title last season, the Great Danes have also accomplished other impressive feats. The team is currently riding a win streak spanning two consecutive regular seasons. The Great Danes have also been winners of four out of the last six postseason conference tournaments. Despite all of these accomplishments, the team is still pushing to improve.

   "Everybody has a goal coming into the gym and getting better," said Engstrom.

   This upcoming season may hold some challenges for the Great Danes. The team is set to start off the season by competing in three national tournaments, including national powerhouse teams including University of Florida, Colorado State University and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.

   With such a high-level of competition, the team will have to focus on playing team ball and working as a unit, Engstrom explained.

   "We can't afford to make a lot of mistakes," she said.

   The Great Danes will be depending on the leadership of their role players to have a successful season. Brooke Stanley, the team's only senior and who was last season's recipient of the conference Player of the Year award, and Laurie Gonzalez, a junior and two-time Defensive Player of the Year, will be anchoring the team.

   Gonzalez was also a member of the Women's National A2 team, a team made up of all college players from across the country, which won a bronze medal earlier in the summer. Gonzalez was one of 175 players to tryout for the team, earning her place for the second straight year.

   "I think we've been able to play together," Gonzalez said of the Danes. "We're pretty close and we get along."

   "It's wonderful. We've gotten to the point where I think the leadership on this team is one of our strengths," Engstrom said.

   While having good team chemistry is necessary, the Great Danes know that winning is the biggest necessity of all.

   "I want to win against big teams this season," Stanley said. "I want Albany to make a name for itself."

   In addition to the seasoned players on the team, the Great Danes will be welcoming four incoming freshman. Rounding out the freshman class will be Vanessa Sheffield, an outside-hitter, Tamara Weems, a middle-blocker, Kaley Jacobson, a setter, and Lindsey McCloskey, an outside-hitter.

   The Great Danes have high expectations to fulfill. The team recently finished second in the America East Conference preseason poll, with defending champion Binghamton University leading the way. While the team may have its own expectations, the Great Danes are also aware of the obligation they hold in representing UAlbany.

   "I'm sure they expect us to win," said Stanley.

   The Great Danes will compete against the Yale Bulldogs in their home opener on Sept. 25 at the University Gymnasium.  Other games include matches against Providence College, New Hampshire, Stony Brook, Hartford and Binghamton.