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RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Commonwealth University looks to extend its season-high five match winning streak when James Madison and George Mason come calling this weekend. The Rams, (20-8, 8-2 CAA), who are a half game behind Delaware in the CAA race, welcome the Dukes of JMU Friday at 7 p.m. VCU defeated James Madison, 3-0, Oct. 3, in Harrisonburg, Va. However, the Dukes are riding a season-best four-match winning streak. On Saturday, the Rams will look to even the score with the Patriots, who defeated VCU, 3-2 Oct. 2 in Fairfax, Va. Mat Shelton of VCUAthletics.com recently caught up with Rams’ Head Coach James Finley to take a look at this weekend’s events. VCUAthletics.com: The team grabbed two big wins this past weekend against Towson and top-ranked Delaware, and now you control your own destiny. Where are the girls right now in terms of focus and being able to finish this out? Coach Finley: I think there’s a real sense of determination with this team. What we’re working on right now is trying to make sure that people aren’t putting undue pressure on themselves. The girls are coming to practice, working hard, and we’re talking a lot about this time of the year with the pressure of school and playing. So we really don’t need to put added pressure on ourselves. We’ve done our job to get us to this point, now it’s just worrying about what’s on our side of the court, executing, and working together. I think that’s what has helped us be successful so far.
Coach Finley: I’ve been telling her that she’s terrible and that she’s gotta pick it up (laughs)! VCUAthletics.com: Whatever works for you… Coach Finley: No I’m teasing. We just talked about her staying focused and taking care of her responsibility, to not put pressure on herself to do more than what she needs to be doing. Usually when a player starts performing like she is, they start taking on too much responsibility around them, which then affects their own performance. We just ask for her teammates to do their job and let her do hers. Naturally when that happens your teammates look for you to put a ball away in crunch time, but because we’ve had such a balanced attack she hasn’t had to be that person all the time. That I think has helped her as a freshman. Mariel (Frey) has come up big, Ivana (Rich) put the game away against Towson, and it was really nice that that didn’t have to come back to Micha. So I think that’s really helping her stay relaxed. She’s having a lot of fun. She smiles a lot, laughs a lot, and it’s good to see those kind of things. VCUAthletics.com: You guys had to have a lot of fun this past weekend. Even though you were on the road you grabbed two monster wins (no pun intended). On Halloween night, you had to be having a good time on the ride home, any funny stories you can share from that trip? Coach Finley: (laughs) Nothing I can share! VCUAthletics.com: Huge game against George Mason this Saturday night, definitely the biggest left on the schedule. What do you do differently this time around to avenge the loss in Fairfax from Oct. 2? Coach Finley: The biggest thing is we need to execute. Mason’s a good team, they lead the conference in blocks, they are No. 1 in hitting percentage and can really generate offense. We didn’t block very well when we played there and were pretty non-existent offensively. We had three different players that normally generate points for us but didn’t. So for me, more than anything else it’s about what we’re doing on our side of the net. If we execute our game plan and do what we’re supposed to do, I feel confident that we can come out with a victory. First thing we need to do is concentrate on JMU or the Mason game isn’t going to have as much meaning to it. VCUAthletics.com: If you get through this weekend unscathed you’ve got two of the bottom four teams left on the schedule. How do you avoid those “let down” type of games that seem to haunt teams after big wins? Coach Finley: You know that’s a good question because for me, when we beat Delaware on Friday I was probably the most nervous, wrecked, stressed out of any coach…more worried about Towson. Before we went I knew we had a chance to beat Delaware and I was telling my staff how petrified I was about Saturday. I talked to the team on Saturday when we were going to Towson and just talked to them about this situation that happens over and over and over in sports. You know, football you’ll have a big win against a top-ranked team and then the next week you’ll lose to a non-ranked team because you just can’t have that same intensity and emotion. And part of that happens all the time in volleyball on Friday/Saturday, playing that second game when you’re fatigued and you’re trying to stay focused and keep that same intensity. It’s probably the most difficult thing we do. I think it is very different now though if we get through this weekend because of what’s on the line. I think for the girls at that point my hope would be that they’re ready to make a statement. VCUAthletics.com: As far as a sense of excitement around the team, are the girls all pretty pumped up or are they all just focused and dialed in? Maybe both? Coach Finley: There’s a degree of excitement, a little bounce around and stuff like that but I haven’t let them get too excited. We haven’t accomplished our goal yet…still a lot of work to do. |
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VCUAthletics.com: Michala Kvapilova grabbed her fourth CAA Rookie of the Week award this past week. What kind of conversations have you had with her about the level she’s playing at currently and how she can continue that type of play and even get better?All rights reserved.
