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Seniors Alijah Gunsaulus (L) and Dana Brown look to end their college careers with a bang in 2015

Volleyball

2015 Volleyball Preview: Youth Must Be Served

CARSON -- Coming off a subpar season after welcoming seven freshmen into last year's mix, Cal State Dominguez Hills volleyball head coach Jen Adeva looks for her incoming class of seven freshmen and one junior to infuse a palpable energy to her nine returners, hoping that this mix will lead to a rise for the program that finished tied for 11th last year, five games out of the 10th spot.

Here's coach Adeva, on this year's team and the 2015 season, set to begin tomorrow.



Led by a pair of seniors in 2nd-team All-California Collegiate Athletic Association outside hitter Alijah Gunsaulus and setter Dana Brown, who established the record last year for set assists in a career, as well as six now sophomores who gained vast experience in the ultra competitive world of Division II and CCAA volleyball, and Adeva remains positive that this group will continue to improve to set the bar for consistent excellence as the season progresses, and find their identity in the process.

"After a short one week of preseason practice I expect us to keep improving technically," Adeva begins after the final double-day practice session on August 21.  "As we continue to learn systems and as the team gets to know each other and build its chemistry on and off the court, I also expect us to be competitive right away.

"Again, it's early in the season, but I am looking forward to seeing the players develop their team identity and find out what their vision is."

In addition to the new faces on the court, Adeva welcomes first-year assistant coach Chris Webb to her staff, who, with current assistant coach Rick Arce, will look to vastly improve strategy and game preparation after Webb honed his coaching skill at UC San Diego, UC Davis, San Francisco State, UC Santa Barbara and Saint Mary's College.

Here's a closer look at this year's Toro squad.

 
BRINGING THE HEAT

Perhaps no one in this league possesses an arm swing as heavy and potent as 2nd-team All-CCAA selection Alijah Gunsaulus, a weapon the senior will look to do damage with against the opposition this year.  Despite missing four matches during the middle of the season, Gunsaulus still led the Toros in nearly all offensive categories, hammering down 3.46 kills per set en route to a .245 hitting percentage.  In fact, her kills average placed her 5th in league play, seeing at least seven less sets of action than the other CCAAers in the top 10.

Overall, Gunsaulus led team with 277 kills, 3.75 points per set and in total points, with her hitting percentage good for 18th in the CCAA.  She also posted 16 matches with at least 10 kills, going for a career-high 25 kills against power UC San Diego (Sept 20).

Sophomore Bridget Heins will look to capitalize on her experience from last year after seeing action in 26 matches as a true freshman and tying for third on team with 89 kills on the year and finishing fourth in points per set, all while notching at least 4 kills in 10 matches and going for a season-high 11 kills against Azusa Pacific (Sept 5).

"Alijah, with her smarts and finding ways to score, again will be pretty good this year while Bridget has shown some really good stuff and is hitting the ball hard and high and more consistently," says Adeva.

 
IN THE MIDDLE

Clogging up the middle will be a trio of 6-footers in 6-2 sophomore Mo Castro, 6-1 sophomore Claire Autry and 6-0 true freshman Cecelia Lucas.

Castro saw action in 19 matches last year and finished 12th in the conference in blocks per set, and posted 144 points to finish fourth on the team, while Autry saw action in 26 matches, finished 44th in kills per set in the CCAA and had at least 5 kills in 17 matches.  Lucas, meanwhile, was a three-sport athlete as a prep and was named MVP for Rio Mesa HS as a senior, all while earning a pair of 1st-team all-league honors.

"We got to see Mo put up some good numbers and I can see her improving quite a bit and have a breakthrough season," begins Adeva.  "Claire had significant playing time last season and having that experience I think she's going to do pretty well while Cece is a dynamic freshman who's very athletic and is learning our system quickly.  She'll be fun to watch and I think she is going to earn some time on the floor once she gains experience."

 
THE LAST LINE OF DEFENSE

The defensive specialist position is up for grabs with a quartet of freshmen newcomers looking to solidify the last line of defense with each's impressive list of awards including Cathryn Lopez earning Defensive MVP honors at Norco HS as well as a pair of all-league honors, Briana Boyd collecting four all-league selections at Willow Glen HS, Sarah Greenland playing for renowned coach Brian Ingino and Hannah Ponce competing under Brooke Soon.

"We have four new liberos this year and they've really been competing," begins Adeva. "I think Boyd has done a nice job as well as Cat Lopez.  They all have really but I think it's going to come down to another week and a half of practice before we get on the road and let them duke it out for that position and we'll have to wait and see."

 
SETTING THE TABLE

The 2015 season will be the fourth and final campaign for senior Dana Brown.   Since entering the Torodome as a freshman in 2012, Brown holds the CSUDH career record with 2,879 set assists entering 2015, and currently sits 5th in set assists in a season.  Additionally, she is tied for top spot in set assists in a season in the rally scoring era (post-2001), holding three of six top efforts in a match, with her career-high 63 sets coming in an epic five-set win against Azusa Pacific as a sophomore, adding 11 digs for one of the team's two double-doubles (Gunsaulus, 23D, 14K).

Finishing 7th in set assists and 8th in aces in the CCAA last year, the Bellflower native went for a season-high 53 sets against APU (Sept 5), eclipsing 40 sets 5 times and 30 sets 4 times.  Brown also posted a season high 17 digs against CSU San Bernardino to open the season (Nov 15) with 6 double-doubles on the year.  Needing to fill a role as a hitter, she also put away 80 balls, good for the sixth best total on the team.

"Dana has the most experience and she was mainly in a setting role," begins Adeva, of her lone 4-year senior.  "She hit a little bit last year and I'm not sure if we want to put her back in that role, but having that possibility is great for us as it makes our offense more dynamic."

Sophomore Riley Kiger also rose to the occasion last year, and is looking to see significate time as setter after seeing action in 21 matches and finishing 21st in the CCAA in set assists per game.

"Riley has been doing a great job this week in terms of running the offense and while we're still figuring out what we're going to run and in what situation, those two give us great depth in the position."

 
FRESH FACES

Welcoming as many new faces this year to join the crop of last year's freshman was part of Adeva's master plan, and thus far, it's looking good.  "The big picture was to have a program that consistently fights for a championship, and at some point it takes a lot of young players to create that foundation.  Was that our plan?  Yes.  Will it be executed?  We'll see."

Leading the newcomer charge is the lone junior in Vanessa Phyakeo, a San Diego native who led Grossmont JC to a runner-up finish as a freshman before a 3rd-place finish one year later.  Freshman Breanna Golsch earned four letters while leading Alta Loma HS to a 33-3 record and 10-0 mark in league play as a junior to reach the state title match, with Lucas also one to look out for.

"We have a lot newcomers this year, and I've seen some good, athletic things with Vanessa Phyakeo, a versatile outside hitter who can go outside," begins Adeva.  "Golsch is a good ball control outside hitter, with ball control definitely contributing to our team's progress."

 
WHAT BROWN HAS DONE LATELY

Being the lone four-year member of the team, setter Dana Brown has been the model Toro, seeing the highs of the program during a freshman campaign that saw the squad earn the most league wins in program history, to the lows of winning just three of 26 matches last year.

Through it all, Brown has stayed true to her course, already having walked last May and needing just a few units to complete her degree come December.

"Dana is one of the most hardest working players I have been lucky enough to coach," Adeva says with purpose.  "Dana is probably one of the most experienced players in this conference having almost played in every single match in her 3 years here, and her team-first mentality is a great example for the younger players.   For her being a three-year starter and beginning her final year, she is extremely motivated to win and always has been."

 
A LEARNING CURVE

With the amount of freshmen newcomers last year, hard times were to be expected.  But the season didn't break the Toros, and Adeva feels the struggles have made them stronger and a more tight-knit unit that's learned valuable lessons, opening the door for more learning experiences.

"Every time we compete or every practice opportunity we have on the court is a learning opportunity," Adeva says resolutely.  "We learned how tough the CCAA is and how you have to earn every point, and gained the experience having a lot of young players who went through the fire.  Every player on my team wants to win and get better and I think that's what's gonig to carry over to this season.  We are looking to get better every time we get on the court and play good volleyball, so every time we have a practice, or play an opponent, we are going to keep getting better.

"And now, I believe, they know what it takes to win."

With Brown and Gunsaulus leading the charge, Adeva is optimistic that this squad will adapt sooner than later, and not endure the struggles found in 2014.  "Every practice and match is a teachable moment for me, my staff and the team, and consistency is something we will continue to work on to improve.

"We are pretty young this year, but I think youth gives us more optimism and the eagerness to get better," she continues.  "Everyone is competitive and wants to win, but their focus to improve, work hard and play good volleyball every time they have the opportunity to do so is the motivation that will keep us focused all season."

 
FINAL THOUGHTS

With the 2015 season just days away from the first of two tournaments in which the team will play eight matches in four days, Adeva and her staff point to the team's work ethic as a strength, one that they hope will provide the spirit needed to compete, and compete well.

"The team's work ethic and willingness to learn new concepts and systems is one of our strengths, and heading into the season with only four upperclassmen, experience is what we need to work on and we should get a lot of it in the first two weekends of tournaments.

"I'm excited about seeing us compete against another opponent," Adeva says with excitement, concluding the interview that was taken on August 21.  "We have 9 practice days left until we can compete against an opponent in our uniforms and after seeing us improve rather quickly during double days, I'm really excited to see what we do this week of practice."

 
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Players Mentioned

Claire Autry

#24 Claire Autry

OH/OPP
6' 1"
Sophomore
Dana Brown

#5 Dana Brown

S/OPP
6' 0"
Senior
Alijah Gunsaulus

#7 Alijah Gunsaulus

OH
5' 10"
Senior
Bridget Heins

#9 Bridget Heins

OH/MB
6' 1"
Sophomore
Breanna Golsch

#17 Breanna Golsch

OH
5' 9"
Freshman
Briana Boyd

#3 Briana Boyd

DS
5' 1"
Freshman
Cathryn Lopez

#1 Cathryn Lopez

DS
5' 3"
Freshman
Hannah Ponce

#2 Hannah Ponce

L
5' 5"
Freshman
Sarah Greenland

#13 Sarah Greenland

L
5' 5"
Freshman
Vanessa Phyakeo

#4 Vanessa Phyakeo

OH
5' 10"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Claire Autry

#24 Claire Autry

6' 1"
Sophomore
OH/OPP
Dana Brown

#5 Dana Brown

6' 0"
Senior
S/OPP
Alijah Gunsaulus

#7 Alijah Gunsaulus

5' 10"
Senior
OH
Bridget Heins

#9 Bridget Heins

6' 1"
Sophomore
OH/MB
Breanna Golsch

#17 Breanna Golsch

5' 9"
Freshman
OH
Briana Boyd

#3 Briana Boyd

5' 1"
Freshman
DS
Cathryn Lopez

#1 Cathryn Lopez

5' 3"
Freshman
DS
Hannah Ponce

#2 Hannah Ponce

5' 5"
Freshman
L
Sarah Greenland

#13 Sarah Greenland

5' 5"
Freshman
L
Vanessa Phyakeo

#4 Vanessa Phyakeo

5' 10"
Junior
OH