Volleyball: Panthers depart from usual routine to face Robert Morris

Lately, the Pitt volleyball team has fallen into the habit of holding practices during the… Lately, the Pitt volleyball team has fallen into the habit of holding practices during the week and playing two conference matches over the weekend, but that pattern will be disrupted tonight when the Panthers travel midweek for a nonconference match against Robert Morris.

Freshman starting setter Lindsey Zitzke said that playing games gives Pitt the ideal opportunity to improve because unlike practice, a game offers live action.

“The match on Wednesday will be good … since live competition is the best way to practice,” Zitzke said.

The Panthers (13-7, 3-3 Big East) enter the match against the Robert Morris Colonials after a 1-1 weekend where Pitt fell 3-0 to Notre Dame and defeated DePaul 3-1.

“We have gotten used to the weekend only competition, as our first three weeks of Big East play have been structured in that way,” head coach Toby Rens said. “Still, sometimes change can be a good thing and I always look forward to playing local teams like Robert Morris. It is good for the sport to foster such rivalries.”

After falling to Bryant on Saturday and Central Connecticut State on Sunday, the Colonials will look to end a losing streak when they welcome the Panthers on Wednesday.

The Colonials (8-12) compete in the Northeast Conference, where they have traditionally played at the conference’s top level. Robert Morris finished in second place with an NEC record of 13-3 last season.

“Robert Morris always seems to be competitive in the NEC,” Rens said. “They have had some tough matches this season, but we are prepared for a tough contest.”

Junior outside hitter Lindsey Monger leads the Colonials. The Collegiate Volleyball Update recently named Monger a national weekly performer. Shortly after, Monger was also rewarded with the NEC Player of the Week award.

Monger has built a strong career at Robert Morris, where she has tallied over 500 kills and 500 digs. She is averaging over three kills and three digs per set this year.

However, the Panthers are more focused on their own game plan than their opponent’s strategy.

This issue contributed to Pitt’s 3-0 loss to Notre Dame this past weekend. Sophomore middle hitter Brenea White said that she felt her team was more concerned with the Fighting Irish’s play than their own, causing the Panthers to lose communication and make unforced errors.

“When we started to fall behind against Notre Dame, we lost sight of our own game plan and let Notre Dame take control,” White said. “We definitely need to work on maintaining our focus and keeping up on court communication, especially when we are down.”

The Panthers seemed to make progress in that area when they defeated the DePaul Blue Demons one day later.

In that victory, the Panthers received balanced contributions on both offense and defense, something that the team has strived for all season.

“We always look to distribute the ball and get a wide range of players involved,” Rens said. “I was pleased with the results from that standpoint against DePaul and I hope it continues to develop.”

Senior Kiesha Leggs, junior Jasmine Dittrich and sophomore Mechael Guess each recorded double-digit kills in that match. Junior Margy Acton led the way on defense with 22 digs while both Zitzke and junior Alexa Campbell contributed nine each.

Despite the winning performance against DePaul, the Panthers still need to improve in certain areas, and the match against Robert Morris will offer an opportunity to make those adjustments before Big East play resumes. The Panthers are currently tied for sixth in the conference.

“I would like to see us work on our passing game, especially out of the serve receive rotation,” Rens said. “That part of the game is so important to running the rest of the offense.”

Serve receive rotation involves positioning the players on the court when they are preparing for the other team to serve. A quality pass in the serve receive rotation can aid the setter.

Zitzke agreed and acknowledged that when the Panthers are able to get passes on target, she can do her job better.

“Everything starts with a good pass, so that is definitely something we will work on Tuesday at practice and again in the Robert Morris match Wednesday night,” Zitzke said.

After facing the Colonials midweek, the Panthers will return to Big East action when they travel to Morgantown to take on the West Virginia Mountaineers on Saturday.