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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Photo by: Petre Thomas/ Ole Miss Athletics
Volleyball Season Preview: Outside Hitters and Defensive Specialists
10/19/2020 | Volleyball
Rebels to take on top-10 Aggies Thursday at 6:30 p.m. CT
OXFORD, Miss.— Two days remain until Ole Miss volleyball is back the court for their first match of the of the 2020 season, taking on Texas A&M on Oct. 22 at 6:30 p.m. CT.
To take a dive into this season's Rebels, OleMissSports.com takes a deeper preview into how the team will look heading into the fall 2020 season under first-year head coach Kayla Banwarth.
OUTSIDE HITTERS
After one of the strongest seasons by a freshman ever at Ole Miss, Anna Bair returns and looks to capitalize off of a strong 2019 season where she was named SEC Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks. Bair's 271 kills rank second in program-history amongst freshmen. Lauren Thompson will also be back on the outside after appearing in 24 matches as a sophomore and totaling 40 kills on the year.
"Across the board with all of our players, we're teaching them new techniques and new ways to play the game," said Banwarth. "Hopefully these new things help them raise their levels even more."
Incoming freshmen GG Carvacho and Sam Schnitta arrived in Oxford early last spring and had the opportunity to get time in the gym and with the team before workouts were shut down due to COVID-19.
"This year has been a little weird obviously, but normally incoming freshmen only get two weeks to train with the team before we start playing matches," said Banwarth. "The class this year that didn't graduate early have had almost two months to train. Then, the fact that you add another five months to Sam and GG being able to train with us and learn our system and get used to the girls is super beneficial. It's something that will translate to their game right away."
DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS
With a position Banwarth is quite familiar with after a standout career at libero as a three-and-a-half-year career as a starter at Nebraska, the Rebel head coach is looking forward to what this young group has to offer on the court.
Junior Avery Bugg brings the most experience to the group after appearing in all 29 matches in 2019 with 10 matches in double-digit digs. Three underclassmen round out the group with sophomore Maggie Miller and freshmen Amber Bischel and Emily Hawes.
"Behind the setter position, the libero spot and the back-row slots has been the other really gnarly position competition," said Banwarth. "We're returning Maggie and Bugg who are both really talented, great presence on the court, both excellent ball handlers. Then, we're adding these two freshmen, Emily and Amber that are super fiery and really fun to be on the court with."
"I'm still trying to put the pieces together in the puzzle and how we're going to fit all these awesome players into our lineup in a way that's going to help us win the most matches."
Ole Miss continues its preparation for its eight-match fall season, beginning with a pair of matchups with Texas A&M Thursday and Friday in Oxford. Both battles between the Rebels and Aggies will air nationally on the SEC Network.
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissVB,Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball, and on Instagram at @olemissvb. You can also follow head coach Kayla Banwarth on Twitter @KaylaBanwarth2.
To take a dive into this season's Rebels, OleMissSports.com takes a deeper preview into how the team will look heading into the fall 2020 season under first-year head coach Kayla Banwarth.
OUTSIDE HITTERS
After one of the strongest seasons by a freshman ever at Ole Miss, Anna Bair returns and looks to capitalize off of a strong 2019 season where she was named SEC Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks. Bair's 271 kills rank second in program-history amongst freshmen. Lauren Thompson will also be back on the outside after appearing in 24 matches as a sophomore and totaling 40 kills on the year.
"Across the board with all of our players, we're teaching them new techniques and new ways to play the game," said Banwarth. "Hopefully these new things help them raise their levels even more."
Incoming freshmen GG Carvacho and Sam Schnitta arrived in Oxford early last spring and had the opportunity to get time in the gym and with the team before workouts were shut down due to COVID-19.
"This year has been a little weird obviously, but normally incoming freshmen only get two weeks to train with the team before we start playing matches," said Banwarth. "The class this year that didn't graduate early have had almost two months to train. Then, the fact that you add another five months to Sam and GG being able to train with us and learn our system and get used to the girls is super beneficial. It's something that will translate to their game right away."
DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS
With a position Banwarth is quite familiar with after a standout career at libero as a three-and-a-half-year career as a starter at Nebraska, the Rebel head coach is looking forward to what this young group has to offer on the court.
Junior Avery Bugg brings the most experience to the group after appearing in all 29 matches in 2019 with 10 matches in double-digit digs. Three underclassmen round out the group with sophomore Maggie Miller and freshmen Amber Bischel and Emily Hawes.
"Behind the setter position, the libero spot and the back-row slots has been the other really gnarly position competition," said Banwarth. "We're returning Maggie and Bugg who are both really talented, great presence on the court, both excellent ball handlers. Then, we're adding these two freshmen, Emily and Amber that are super fiery and really fun to be on the court with."
"I'm still trying to put the pieces together in the puzzle and how we're going to fit all these awesome players into our lineup in a way that's going to help us win the most matches."
Ole Miss continues its preparation for its eight-match fall season, beginning with a pair of matchups with Texas A&M Thursday and Friday in Oxford. Both battles between the Rebels and Aggies will air nationally on the SEC Network.
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissVB,Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball, and on Instagram at @olemissvb. You can also follow head coach Kayla Banwarth on Twitter @KaylaBanwarth2.
Players Mentioned
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