Time is Running Out for Syracuse Volleyball to get its First ACC Win
Time is Running Out for Syracuse Volleyball to get its First ACC Win
By Rahill Jaiswal | @RahillJaiswal
With just four games remaining this season, Syracuse Volleyball is still searching for its first ACC win of the season. The Orange sit at 2-22 and 0-13 in ACC play this season. So the question continues to be asked. Will SU get a conference win this season?
It is not going to be easy. Syracuse finishes the season against some of the toughest teams in the ACC. The Orange have to play Number 7 Pittsburgh, Florida State, and number 11 Georgia Tech. SU has already played all those teams earlier in the season and lost to them all in straight sets. Syracuse will also play Boston College, who they lost to last weekend.
While SU has played great at times this season, they haven’t been consistent enough over three sets. The Orange have played some close sets against some great teams this season. However, they haven’t been able to get over the hump. Syracuse has been plagued by a lot of different things this season. The Orange have struggled with injuries, which has led to fatigue in matches. Syracuse has also had to have players play out of position. An example of this has been Freshman Greta Schlicter. Coming into the season the German native thought she was going to play her natural position, libero. Fast forward to now, and she is forced to be one of Syracuse’s outside hitters. While Schilcter has played well this season, this is not plausible when you play some of the more established programs.
The Orange have also had to put lots of pressure on outside hitter Cherlin Antonio. After having a great first half of the season, the transfer has struggled in the last few matches. The Junior wasn’t able to hit double-digit kills in back-to-back matches against Duke and Miami. Also, Antonio has not played the last five matches for Syracuse. Antonio has carried the offensive load for most of the season. However, this has led to teams making a consecrated effort to take her out of matches. Not only that but she is also being asked to serve and assist at a high level. This is a lot to put on one player. We will see if Anontio even suits up for the last 4 games of the season. If she doesn’t, Syracuse might not have a chance to get another win. The Orange are already without Arinia Joubert who was ruled out for the season a couple of weeks ago by Coach Bakeer Ganesharatnum. Without two of its best attackers, it is going to be very hard for Syracuse to score at a consistent level. The Orange are going to need to lean heavily on Zharria-Harris-Waddy and Leila Smith. Both of the two middles have been the heartbeat over the last few matches and are going to need to continue playing at a high level.
SU is back in action at home on Friday against Boston College. The first serve is for 6 p.m.
