A year ago, Illinois State volleyball coach
Sharon Dingman shifted
Abby Lewis to right-side hitter and
Megan O'Connell to the left side and her team got hot. Now, she has switched lifetime left-side hitter
Staci Boyce to middle blocker and is looking forward to good results, starting with this weekends Missouri Valley Conference home matches against Evansville and Southern Illinois.
Staci is one of the best athletes on our team, said Dingman, whose Redbirds are 5-4 overall, 1-1 in the Valley before Fridays 7 p.m. match with Evansville at Redbird Arena . We needed to find a way to get her on the floor.
The switch came, in part, because starter
Christy Beyers still has some tough days as a result of her knee surgery last season. Plus, it gets Boyces quickness and powerful arm swing on the floor without taking top hitter OConnell or steady defender
Erin Jones off the floor.
Christys knee limits her, said Dingman. Now, we can get Staci on the floor without sacrificing the ballhandling we need from Erin Jones.
Boyce had her coming-out party as a middle in Saturdays win against Drake. She had 12 kills and a career-high six blocks. A quick player with a powerful swing, Boyce felt confident hitting the ball out of the middle. Shes learning the other demands of the job, like blocking from a different perspective.
You have to be able to read the other teams hitters and know where to go to block much more, said Boyce.
This weekend, Boyce and company will show their new look to Evansville (3-7 overall, 1-3 in the Valley) and Southern Illinois (3-8, 1-1). The Friday match salutes the parents of Redbird players. The Saturday match is Pack the Arena Night, an annual promotion which usually draws 3,000 or more.
The promotion doesnt matter to Boyce. She and her teammates are anxious to play at home for just the second time in five weeks.
Were looking forward to playing in front of our home fans, said Boyce, a sophomore.
The Aces and Salukis are a pair of teams looking to move up into contention for one of the six slots in the State Farm-Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
UE has some tough weapons in outside hitter Samantha Butler and 6-foot-4 middle Jennifer Kiefer. The Salukis have one of the leagues best all-around players in Kristie Kemner.
