After Syracuse upended Sacred Heart in three sets Friday night, junior middle blocker Samantha Hinz wove her way through a crowd around the scorer’s table in search of the scorekeeper.

‘You had seven blocks,’ the scorekeeper shouted to Hinz.

‘That’s all I wanted to hear,’ Hinz said before maneuvering her way back out of the crowd and toward the Women’s Building locker room.

Blocks may not be as glamorous as kills, spikes and digs to the casual volleyball fan, but to Hinz and her teammates, they’re a critical statistic. SU’s interior defense flattened its opponents with demoralizing blocks throughout Big Orange Tournament last weekend, keying the team’s 3-0 start.

Hinz said that the strength of this year’s team is at the net.

‘I’m 6 feet 1 inch, and so is (sophomore middle blocker) Lindsay (McCabe), so we can usually get a hand on shots around the net,’ Hinz said. ‘We make it tough for teams we play to shoot through us.’

Sacred Heart, a 2010 NCAA tournament team and the Orange’s first opponent of the season, found out the hard way Friday.

The Pioneers were visibly frustrated from the start of the first set, as SU’s 6-0 opening run came courtesy of four blocked shots at the net.

The result was exactly what assistant coach Kelly Morrisroe intended when she drilled team defense into her players’ heads throughout summer practice: a convincing win.

‘I told the girls that they should get ready to block and deflect some shots this season,’ Morrisroe said. ‘There’s nothing, and I mean nothing, that’ll flatten an opponent quite like a block.’

SU seems well-equipped to continue flattening opponents this season. Hinz and McCabe had 30 blocks last weekend, and Morrisroe said McCabe has blocked shots almost 10 feet tall with her long wingspan.

‘She’s blocked a 9-foot-9-inch shot, but I think she can do better,’ Morrisroe said. ‘From a shot-blocking standpoint, this is really the most athletic team I’ve been around.’

But blocking shots is also about more than athletic intangibles. Timing is needed to anticipate shots, and accurate blocks stay within the field of play.

McCabe displayed both attributes in a momentum-swinging block against Youngstown State on Saturday. With Syracuse down two sets to one and trailing in the fourth set, McCabe timed a leap perfectly, stuffing a shot on the right side of the court and placing it left to where no YSU player could return it.

McCabe said it was the perfect block for another reason. It woke up her teammates.

‘There was no way that they could get it, but it was timely, too,’ McCabe said. ‘We needed a shot in the arm.’

Perfect blocks aren’t possible without backup. Often, two front line players will leap at the same time and try to block a shot together.

McCabe and Hinz like to team up for a block. But solo blocks are more difficult to execute.

There’s an unspoken competition during some matches. McCabe versus Hinz, competing with one another yet also working together to deflect any and every shot they can get their hands on.

‘We race to see who can get the most blocks, and it can get a little crazy sometimes,’ McCabe said.

Freshman Andrea Fisher might make the competition a three-player race after blocking 11 shots in three games, including a resounding rejection in the first match against Sacred Heart.

Bench players want in on the block party, too. Freshman middle blocker Kelsey Bates made her first appearance of the season late in the third set against Siena Saturday night, but that didn’t stop her from blocking two consecutive spike attempts.

Morrisroe said her defense is tailor-made to help her interior players relieve tension — but mostly block shots.

In its own violent way, Hinz said blocking is therapeutic.

‘You have no idea how good it feels to block a shot back at someone,’ said Hinz. ‘It’s the best de-stresser in the world.’

nctoney@syr.edu

 

Published on August 29, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Nick: nctoney@syr.edu | @nicktoneytweets