Volleyball: Tough schedule prepares Panthers for Big East play

With a record of 6-11 (1-1 Big East), it may seem as though the Pitt women’s volleyball team… With a record of 6-11 (1-1 Big East), it may seem as though the Pitt women’s volleyball team has had little success in their early season play.

But that record is deceiving, as it fails to take into consideration the high caliber of the teams the Panthers have faced in the early going so far this year.

“We had a pretty rigorous preseason schedule,” senior middle hitter Imani Harper said. “We played teams that were ranked in the top 20 in the nation, and others that fit comfortably in the top 50.”

The Panthers fell to then-No. 21 Dayton and No. 9 Washington in three sets while taking one set from the match loss to No. 14 Tennessee.

But with the beginning of Big East Conference competition, both Harper and head coach Toby Rens believe that preseason experience will be beneficial.

“By playing highly competitive teams, we put ourselves in a great position for conference play,” Harper said.

“The tournament schedule allowed us to play teams that could expose our weaknesses so we could see where to make improvements,” Rens said.

Some of those improvements included serving and blocking, aspects of the game addressed in this week’s practices before Big East matches against Rutgers and Seton Hall.

“As a team, we all know that serving and blocking are integral parts of the game,” Harper said. “We want to see improvement in both of those areas.”

Their importance was further emphasized in Pitt’s first two Big East matches.

The Panthers have started conference play with a 1-1 record after defeating DePaul 3-1 and then falling to Notre Dame in three sets.

Pitt committed 13 service errors in the matches and was out-blocked by Notre Dame.

In the match against DePaul, Harper recorded a personal-best 21 kills while fellow senior Amy Town added 17 kills from the outside hitter position.

Harper’s performance also led to her place on the Big East Volleyball Weekly Honor Roll, which selects five athletes each week who have shown superior performance.

“I have been impressed with Harper’s play this year,” Rens said. “Her blocking adds another dimension to our team, and as a senior, her leadership is valuable as well.”

This was Harper’s first appearance on the Big East Honor Roll.

The Panthers will play both Rutgers and Seton Hall on the road, marking their third and fourth consecutive away matches.

Rens acknowledged that playing at home does have its advantages, and the Panthers will return to the Fitzgerald Field House after facing Seton Hall.

For now, though, the focus is on the Rutgers match on Friday and the Seton Hall match on Sunday.

Rutgers (7-8, 0-2) will be looking for their first Big East victory while Seton Hall (6-11, 1-1) will be coming off of their first win over Louisville in school history. The Pirates defeated the Cardinals, picked to finish second in the Big East, in a 3-2 match.

Seton Hall is led by senior Sarah Osmun, an outside hitter who joined Harper on the Honor Roll after her performance against Louisville. In the match, she set a school record for kills.

Only two matches into the Big East season, the Panthers are already feeling the intensity of the competition, but a sense of preparedness prevails.

“The team has been coming together as a group,” Rens said. “Playing in tough tournaments brought out some great communication and team unity.”

For Harper, conference play will give her team members an opportunity to show that they have won more from their preseason tournaments than the wins and losses would suggest.

“I think that there are tough teams that we will face in Big East play, but I am more confident that Pitt will come out on top,” Harper said. “We train and practice too hard not to.”