Entering her 14th season as a Division I volleyball head coach, Sharon Dingman appreciates the value of preseason polls for fan and media interest. But that doesnt mean the Illinois State coach agrees with the outcome of the 2004 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Coaches Poll.
Frankly, I was a little surprised, said Dingman, after seeing her team picked fourth behind preseason co-favorites Northern Iowa and Wichita State, plus third-place SMS, which had just two more points than the Birds. But, then, the most important thing is not what the other coaches in the league think; its what the three coaches and 14 players who wear Redbird volleyball uniforms think. And those people think we can win the conference championship.
Dingmans squad lost just one starter from a 19-14 team in 2003 which overcame a 5-10 start with a 14-4 finish, including a thrilling five-game win over Northern Iowa, ranked No. 12 in the nation at the time. Emily Kabbes, one of six preseason all-conference selections, returns to anchor the middle for ISU. Hard-hitting outside players Laura Doornbos and Savannah Knowles also return to take sets from Kelly Rikli, who, along with Doornbos, was a second-team all-Valley choice last year. Thanks to a rule change, third-year starting libero Paige White will get to serve this season.
The Valley is an offense-oriented league, said Dingman. So, to win, you have to be able to kill the ball. But, just in my four years at Illinois State, the league has become much more athletic and much more physical. And it promises to be even more so.
This year, the Birds open the season against another 2003 ranked team, No. 15 Illinois, at 7 p.m. Sept. 1 in Champaign. Then, Illinois State plays Denver, Wright State and Iowa in the 2004 Barker GMC Classic Sept. 3-4 in Redbird Arena.
In the 12 seasons since the Valley went to a double round-robin in the regular season, the league champion has never had more than two losses. Dingman thinks that could change this year.
Looking at the poll, with two teams tied for first and the closeness of the third- and fourth-place teams, I think this could be a conference race where the winner has three or four losses instead of the usual one or two, said Dingman.
SMS is the defending champ, having snapped Northern Iowas string of five straight championships. ISUs last title was 1997. Dingman wasnt surprised at the coaches preseason all-conference choices.
Those selections make perfectly good sense, said Dingman. Those players all were first team all-conference players who werent seniors last year.
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