At first glance, the 10 service errors on the Michigan volleyball team’s stat sheet from its match against Eastern Michigan don’t necessarily reflect well on the Wolverines — especially when the Eagles had three fewer errors in Tuesday night’s match.
But those 10 service errors weren’t indicative of a deficiency in Michigan’s gameplan, but rather, a deliberate choice. The Wolverines’ aggressive serving strategy may have led to a few more errors than their opponent, but it also helped them put additional points on the board in their 3-0 victory over Eastern Michigan.
“Anytime in volleyball, when you’re serving, you want to have a nice mix of in, but you also want to stay aggressive,” Michigan coach Erin Virtue said. “We want our servers to feel confident behind the line, and then know what part of the game we’re in and the rhythm of it.”
Michigan’s servers decided to set the rhythm of the game early on. At the top of the first set, sophomore setter Ellie White launched two powerful serves that the Eagles’ defense had no answer for, registering back-to-back service aces. A few plays later, graduate outside hitter Allison Jacobs tacked on one of her own.
The Wolverines adopted the same approach for their serves all match long — powerful, thundering shots that pinned Eastern Michigan in their own half of the court and left them needing to drop deep to dig the ball out and attack. The 17 attack errors the Eagles committed, in contrast to Michigan’s nine, showed that the Wolverines’ hard-serving approach had the effect on their opponent they hoped it would.
“One thing we talk about in our gym is service pressure a lot,” White said. “Just finding that happy medium between how much power we should use, we practice that all the time. Serving is just a huge part of our game, and pressure goes along with that.”
In addition to the pressure it put on Eastern Michigan’s defense, Michigan’s aggressive service also enabled an easier plan of attack for its own offense. The Wolverines’ serves deep into the Eagles’ half of the court gave Eastern Michigan limited time and range to parry, making it challenging for the Eagles to drive in longer shots. When Eastern Michigan did counter, it often resulted in the ball dropping right behind the net and into the path of a Michigan player positioned closer to the net, right there for the kill.
For the first two sets, the Wolverines dominated on offense, offsetting the six combined service errors. However, in the final set, the flipside of Michigan’s risk-taking flashed shades of insecurity. The Wolverines found themselves embroiled in a turbulent set, being down at points for the first time all game, and the four service errors that turned into points could’ve been more detrimental if Michigan’s offense didn’t make up for it.
But ultimately, the pros of the Wolverines’ gameplan outweighed the cons — the four points surrendered in the third set couldn’t weigh down Michigan’s ability to outscore its opponent, garnered from the power of its serves.
“There’s really these big parts of the game you have when we’re serving,” Virtue said. “And then when we’re inside out and we’re receiving, Ellie, (junior setter) Morgan Burke, (redshirt freshman setter) Camille Edwards, and (assistant coach Kassie Kadera), they have a they have a plan for every rotation that we’re in, and I thought they executed that plan really well as a unit, our center unit and offense tonight.”
Though that plan came with an inherent amount of risk, the choice for the servers to go on the offensive ultimately paid off, and secured the Wolverines a decisive victory over the Eagles.
The post Michigan’s aggressive gambles in service pay off in victory over Eastern Michigan appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
Leave a Reply