After jumping out of the gate with three wins and winning five out of six matches to start the season, youth and inexperience set in for the Bradley women’s volleyball team.
The team went on to lose 16 consecutive and 23 out of 24 matches to finish with a 6-24 record, which is technically better than their 2014 season when the team finished 2-28.
Bradley started the season in August by winning the Toledo Rocket Invitational and getting off to a hot 3-0 start, but the young team with only three seniors and three juniors could ill afford to lose any of its limited experience of leadership.
In the second match of the season, junior starter Melissa Hoerber went down with a concussion, which proved to be a tough blow for the Braves.
“We would’ve liked to finish the year how we started, but we weren’t able to do that,” head volleyball coach Jenny Mauer said. “Losing Melissa in the second game hurt, but we had other players who were capable of filling in.”
Seniors Jessica Teel, Lea Sack and Cordelia Murphy didn’t quite go out the way they wanted, but they do have something to hang their hat on.
“The seniors will certainly be missed,” Mauer said. “They were my first full recruiting class, and they did a great job of creating a culture that we can continue to build on in the years to come.”
Despite the early success, the Braves faced a lot of adversity this season.
“When things started getting tough, we didn’t respond the way we needed to,” Mauer said. “We showed our youth and didn’t play with confidence. Those are things that can be fixed, but it starts with our girls knowing that they have the ability to go out and succeed, they just need to do it.”
Playing in the brutal Missouri Valley Conference didn’t help matters for the young Braves, as four MVC teams made the NCAA tournament.
“Playing in a conference that always sends four teams to the NCAA tournament is a tall order,” Mauer said. “We know every night is going to be a battle, but that should make us excited to go out there and compete.”
One positive take away from the past season was freshman outside hitter Erica Haslag, who led the Braves in kills and points on the season.
“Erica had a solid year, and we’re definitely excited to see what she can do in the coming years,” Mauer said. “It will also be nice to get Jessie Tulacka back after being sidelined from injuries the past two seasons. If she keeps working hard during her rehab, she’ll be a big addition for next season.”
With only losing three seniors and all of the younger women getting valuable experience in the 2015 season, the Braves have no choice other than looking ahead to 2016, where they hope to improve on this past season.
“We know what we need to do on a daily basis, but we just need to put it together and go do it,” Mauer said. “It starts in practice every day, and putting in the work. We’re confident next year will be better.”
