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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Steven McRoberts Weekly Press Conference #12
11/11/2019 | Volleyball
Ole Miss Volleyball Head Coach Steven McRoberts met with members of the media on Monday as part of his weekly press conference. Coach McRoberts discussed the Rebels' schedule as it continues to be filled with top teams and reflects back on the home weekend...
Opening Statement:
"Just another tough week. [We had a] really good match on Friday night against the No. 12 team in the country in Florida. We were up two sets to one and just kind of stumbled a bit there at the finish to lose in five. It was the first time in ten years that our team has taken Florida to five sets and 30 years since we've beaten them. I'm really proud of the effort and I just had this feeling going in that we would win. I told the team this after the match, and that's the feeling I continue to have with this group. Every time we go into a match I haven't given up this hope and I don't feel like there is any quit in this team. It's a frustrating run that we're on right now."
On Sunday's match against South Carolina:
"South Carolina yesterday was maybe arguably the worst match we've played this season. We just felt flat. It's almost like a 'tale of two teams'. We had this 14-match winning streak and probably won two or three in there that we shouldn't have if you looked at the stat sheet. We we're just playing with a lot of confidence and we ran into a team in South Carolina that did the opposite early. They lost some trying to find themselves and now they're on a five-match winning streak in which they haven't lost a set. So you have two teams where we're a little bit more fragile from a mentality standpoint trying to get off this slide and win a match. Then you have a team coming in that's super confident and I think that was the difference yesterday."
On looking back at a quality schedule:
"Reflecting back on our season more than anything, I think it shows how difficult it was to win 14 in a row with a good schedule. We did some things that hadn't been done in a while, receiving votes in the Top 25 poll, first time to win at Missouri, beating a good Tennessee team to open SEC play. I think we're going to have a Top 30 schedule once the season ends out of 335 teams. We've done a lot of great things and we get so caught up because right now we're on that run where it's just been tough…"
"We lost four out of seven in the fifth set, two other times in four, including two sets at 25-23 against Kentucky. We lost to a good NCAA-quality Georgia team who we are turning around and playing this Friday at home. I know I've said this a few times, but when you get into the SEC, there's just not a breather. There's such a fine line between winning and losing and it's about some detail things that we and I need to get better at. We still have a lot to play for against a lot of good teams. Four of our last five are against teams that are going to make the NCAA Tournament."
On possible fatigue setting in:
"We want our seniors to go out playing well. We have a good group that brings it to practice every day, they're fighting hard. We have two home matches left, Georgia this Friday night, [and] then it'll be nice to have the rest of the weekend off. We've got some recruits coming in this weekend. It'll be nice to share the weekend with them and then get a breather. Florida had 10 days off before they played us. It just seems like we had an early break and now we've been going nonstop…"
"On the broadcast yesterday, it was stated that we've played 16 more sets to this point than South Carolina, which is four or five more matches. Our legs are starting to fade on us a little bit, I think, and losing all those close ones hurt … It's a tough stretch when we end the season with four matches in eight days. We have a big stretch coming up, and we're going to keep plugging along. It's no fun standing up here on Mondays after losing another couple matches, [and] my players can say the same thing. They're not happy with the way that they're playing and disappointed like the coaches are. The effort is there, attitudes are good, and we're just going to keep trying."
On staying close in matches and finding wins:
"South Carolina was the first time we've been swept since our very first match of the season. Eight of our 10 losses are to RPI Top 50 teams. I think when we lost to Tennessee… they're around a 60 and Alabama is around an 80. Our biggest struggle has been an offensive thing. Defensively, we're leading the league in digs and were third going into the weekend in blocks… it's been a huge change for us this year and we've done a good job. We held Florida to around a .200 hitting percentage, but we hit .100. That's what we have to figure out. I think the confidence needs to come on the offensive side of things. But… looking at the scores everything is close. At some point, this is year six, and you hope this gets flipped and the momentum starts to go the other way. It's just a fine line in this league between the teams that are confident offensively and teams that aren't."
Opening Statement:
"Just another tough week. [We had a] really good match on Friday night against the No. 12 team in the country in Florida. We were up two sets to one and just kind of stumbled a bit there at the finish to lose in five. It was the first time in ten years that our team has taken Florida to five sets and 30 years since we've beaten them. I'm really proud of the effort and I just had this feeling going in that we would win. I told the team this after the match, and that's the feeling I continue to have with this group. Every time we go into a match I haven't given up this hope and I don't feel like there is any quit in this team. It's a frustrating run that we're on right now."
On Sunday's match against South Carolina:
"South Carolina yesterday was maybe arguably the worst match we've played this season. We just felt flat. It's almost like a 'tale of two teams'. We had this 14-match winning streak and probably won two or three in there that we shouldn't have if you looked at the stat sheet. We we're just playing with a lot of confidence and we ran into a team in South Carolina that did the opposite early. They lost some trying to find themselves and now they're on a five-match winning streak in which they haven't lost a set. So you have two teams where we're a little bit more fragile from a mentality standpoint trying to get off this slide and win a match. Then you have a team coming in that's super confident and I think that was the difference yesterday."
On looking back at a quality schedule:
"Reflecting back on our season more than anything, I think it shows how difficult it was to win 14 in a row with a good schedule. We did some things that hadn't been done in a while, receiving votes in the Top 25 poll, first time to win at Missouri, beating a good Tennessee team to open SEC play. I think we're going to have a Top 30 schedule once the season ends out of 335 teams. We've done a lot of great things and we get so caught up because right now we're on that run where it's just been tough…"
"We lost four out of seven in the fifth set, two other times in four, including two sets at 25-23 against Kentucky. We lost to a good NCAA-quality Georgia team who we are turning around and playing this Friday at home. I know I've said this a few times, but when you get into the SEC, there's just not a breather. There's such a fine line between winning and losing and it's about some detail things that we and I need to get better at. We still have a lot to play for against a lot of good teams. Four of our last five are against teams that are going to make the NCAA Tournament."
On possible fatigue setting in:
"We want our seniors to go out playing well. We have a good group that brings it to practice every day, they're fighting hard. We have two home matches left, Georgia this Friday night, [and] then it'll be nice to have the rest of the weekend off. We've got some recruits coming in this weekend. It'll be nice to share the weekend with them and then get a breather. Florida had 10 days off before they played us. It just seems like we had an early break and now we've been going nonstop…"
"On the broadcast yesterday, it was stated that we've played 16 more sets to this point than South Carolina, which is four or five more matches. Our legs are starting to fade on us a little bit, I think, and losing all those close ones hurt … It's a tough stretch when we end the season with four matches in eight days. We have a big stretch coming up, and we're going to keep plugging along. It's no fun standing up here on Mondays after losing another couple matches, [and] my players can say the same thing. They're not happy with the way that they're playing and disappointed like the coaches are. The effort is there, attitudes are good, and we're just going to keep trying."
On staying close in matches and finding wins:
"South Carolina was the first time we've been swept since our very first match of the season. Eight of our 10 losses are to RPI Top 50 teams. I think when we lost to Tennessee… they're around a 60 and Alabama is around an 80. Our biggest struggle has been an offensive thing. Defensively, we're leading the league in digs and were third going into the weekend in blocks… it's been a huge change for us this year and we've done a good job. We held Florida to around a .200 hitting percentage, but we hit .100. That's what we have to figure out. I think the confidence needs to come on the offensive side of things. But… looking at the scores everything is close. At some point, this is year six, and you hope this gets flipped and the momentum starts to go the other way. It's just a fine line in this league between the teams that are confident offensively and teams that aren't."
Monday, November 24
Sunday, November 23
Sunday, November 23
Saturday, November 22