Stanislovaitis provides spark off bench in pair of weekend victories
It looked grim for the Syracuse volleyball team. Trailing, 9-8, in the second set to South Florida, arguably the toughest opponent that the Orange has seen thus far on its home court, SU received some help from one of the most unlikely candidates.
Down a point and in trouble early, junior outside hitter Mindy Stanislovaitis provided Syracuse with some much-needed energy, as she smoked a kill in between two lunging Bulls defenders. Following the point, the Orange never looked back.
Syracuse won a huge match on Friday night by a score of 3-1, and Stanislovaitis played a major role in the team’s victory. The junior played in all four sets, tallying seven kills and 17 attacks and had an impressive .294 hitting percentage. The outside blocker put continual pressure on the Bulls defenders all night.
USF couldn’t handle SU’s depth, as the Orange consistently adapted to the South Florida attack and showcased its depth – a team strength thus far this season. In the first set, senior middle blocker Sarah Morton wasn’t her usual self, delivering only one kill.
Following the first set defeat, SU head coach Jing Pu was forced to mix up the lineup in an effort to give South Florida a new look. That is where Stanislovaitis comes in.
‘Our depth is amazing,’ Morton said. ‘It brings a whole different level to our team. It allows for players to have bad games because our reserve players can come in and we don’t lose anything. Mindy is one of those players, and she came in today and she did a great job at giving us an extra boost.’
Thus far in 2009, senior outside hitter Annabelle Pellerin has been extremely effective, again forcing Stanislovaitis to watch most of the action from the sideline.
Over the past several weeks, Stanislovaitis has been making a case for more playing time by showcasing her abilities in practice. Assistant coach Carol LaMarche alluded to her progress over the course of the season as a main factor as to why she played in four sets on Friday.
‘Mindy keeps getting physically better and better,’ LaMarche said. ‘In practice, Jing and I are always talking about who is having good days and who is having bad days, and Mindy has consistently been having better and better days. We’ve been happy with her progress recently and we keep telling her to be ready, be ready. It’s great that we can have her come in off the bench and be effective.’
In addition to Stanislovaitis’ penchant for striking the volleyball for kills, LaMarche said that her style of hitting is an added benefit for the squad.
‘She has a nice high contact,’ LaMarche added. ‘She hits high off of the hand, rather than a straight down trajectory, which gives opponents something different to look at and something different to handle.’
Stanislovaitis’ effort not only helped Syracuse grab an extremely big win, but it also made an impression on her coaches.
On Sunday, when SU outlasted Georgetown, 3-1, Stanislovaitis started in the first three sets for the Orange. She wasn’t as effective as she was on Friday night, but the junior still posted four kills and had 10 attacks.
Though Stanislovaitis has not been able to produce for the Orange as much as she would have liked this season, she believes that a game like this can get her back on the right track.
‘It felt really good to get in there,’ Stanislovaitis said. ‘I haven’t been playing much this year, but it felt good to come off of the bench, play well and do what I have to do. It was a big confidence booster.’
