Melanie Schaffmaster was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after the Gophers swept Michigan State in a pair of 3-0 wins to open the 2021 season. ((credit: University of Minnesota Athletics))
MINNEAPOLIS - It's four months later than originally planned, but that’s life amid sports in the COVID-19 pandemic. The University of Minnesota volleyball team is in Nebraska and gearing up for the NCAA Tournament.
The Gophers (15-2) arrived to their hotel earlier this week, immediately went into quarantine and have had daily testing. They hit the court for their first practice on Wednesday. Thursday night, they’ll face the Georgia Tech/Lipscomb winner for the right to advance.
Normally held in December, the tournament was delayed four months due to the pandemic. They’re looking to build off a run to the 2019 Final Four, before losing to Stanford. Minnesota enters the tournament as the No. 3 overall seed.
"It’s win or go home, so we just need to make sure that we’re on our game, giving it all. We’re not waiting for the opponents to decide how we’re going to show up. As soon as we step on the court, we’re ready to battle," Stephanie Samedy, the Big Ten Player of the Year, said earlier this week.
"Different" was a word that came up frequently as the Gophers talked about getting ready for the NCAA Tournament. They won four straight matches to end the regular season, losing just one set in the process. But they also haven’t played a match since beating Iowa on April 3.
Thursday will mark 12 days since their last match, but coach Hugh McCutcheon isn’t worried about rust.
"At the end of the day, we’re just going to play volleyball and that’s something we do most days. I don’t think they’ll forget how to play or compete. We’ll look forward to getting on the court on Thursday and away we go," McCutcheon said.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament was cut to 48 teams, with 30 conference champions and 18 at-large bids. The Gophers were one of the top 16 teams to earn a first-round bye. The tournament will be played exclusively in the CHI Health Center and Convention Center in Omaha.
Last week, the NCAA took some heat over court conditions and set up at the convention center, and the lack of locker rooms for teams. There also were no plans to have broadcasters for the games. During the NCAA basketball tournament, there was public outcry over the stark difference between workout areas and spaces for men’s teams, compared to women.
McCutcheon downplayed the volleyball criticism, saying they’re just trying to get the tournament in.
"There’s no doubt that there’s some unique aspects to the way that we’re trying to run this tournament. I would temper that comment with the fact that we’re in some pretty unique times. Do I feel that the NCAA is devaluing our sport or trying to do something against volleyball? No I don’t," McCutcheon said. "I just think in the middle of all this, we’ve just got to operate on a very real assumption that people are trying to do the best that they can."
The reality is they aren’t going to let conditions be an excuse. Last fall, there were guarantees they would have a season. They found a way to make a Big Ten season work, and despite multiple pauses, the Gophers are one of six Big Ten teams in the field.
"I’m really pumped, I think the whole team is really pumped. We’ve been waiting all year for this basically," Adanna Rollins said.