USC Freshmen Put Volleyball Team on Fast Track

April Ross, Katie Olsovsky and Toni Anderson represented what the future of USC women’s volleyball would be when they landed on campus.

The three were part of a lauded freshman class that was considered the school’s best since a group of newcomers led the Trojans from club team status to the 1976 AIAW championship. Instantly, thoughts of the first NCAA title in 19 years flowed throughout the program.

USC interim coach Jerritt Elliott, the man largely responsible for bringing in this influx of talent, thought it would take at least a year before he could believe the Trojans were ready to become a Final Four-caliber team. After all, these freshmen were still freshmen, even if two were high school All-Americans and one was the national player of the year.

After nine matches, it may be time to reassess that goal. USC hasn’t dropped a single game en route to its current No. 1 ranking in Volleyball Magazine and No. 4 spot in the USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Assn. poll.

Included in that 27-for-27 run is a stunning 15-4, 15-8, 15-2 wipeout of 11th-ranked Stanford this past Thursday at Maples Pavilion.

Elliott is now a believer.

“I think we’re ahead of schedule,” he said. “Before, I thought we could be a top 10 team with the possibility of going to the Final Four. But for the first time, there’s not a clear-cut favorite. Seeing how we match up against some teams, it’s made me understand that we’ve got a chance at going to the Final Four this year.”

Much of their success can be attributed to a favorable early-season schedule that has included only two ranked teams. At the same time, the Trojans have been taken to game point just three times.

The kids have played a large part. Ross and Olsovsky start at outside hitter and middle blocker respectively. Anderson alternates with sophomore Tracy Lindquist at setter. Defensive specialist Nicole Davis and reserve blocker Kelli Lantz also have made contributions.

The transition from high school to college volleyball has been so smooth that it has hardly been a topic of discussion.

“This process really started a year ago,” Elliott said. “We invited them to a lot of games and we did other things all within NCAA rules to make them feel as if they were part of the program.

“The one thing is these kids came from good clubs and good high schools where they received good coaching. The most important thing is from a physical standpoint, they had the talent to succeed. The question was whether they could adjust from a mental standpoint and they’ve done just that.”

Elliott also made sure there was no semblance of hierarchy on the team. He is also quick to point out that veterans such as seniors Janae Henry and Antoinette Polk and junior All-Pacific-10 middle blocker Jennifer Pahl have been the ideal leaders.

Henry said maintaining high-quality practices often leads to a similar performance in matches. It was the case against Stanford, a landmark victory in that USC had not won in Palo Alto since 1977.

“Our last practice here before that match was one of our best,” said Henry, who had 11 kills in helping end the Cardinal’s 45-match home win streak. “I really believe (a good practice) carries over to your next match. When we have a bad practice, it leaves a very bad taste in your mouth.”

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Mick Haley hasn’t had much time to follow his new team as he is currently leading the U.S. Olympic women’s volleyball team into the medal round in Sydney. But Elliott has done his best to keep the Trojans’ incoming head coach abreast of their success.

“I’ve talked to his wife [Carrie] a few times and I know she called him after we beat Stanford,” Elliott said. “He’s got access to the Internet. He’s probably surprised at what we’ve done.”

Haley will join the Trojans after the Olympics. He is expected to have a limited role this season, deferring to Elliott.

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It was a rough weekend for the women’s volleyball teams at Long Beach State and Pepperdine. The 49ers lost to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for the first time since 1987 and fell to UC Santa Barbara with both matches going five games. Pepperdine lost its first two matches of the season at No. 2-ranked Hawaii. . . . Paola Palencia and Ipek Senoglu, Pepperdine’s No. 1-ranked doubles team nationally, advanced to the finals of the National Intercollegiate Clay Court Championships over the weekend at Pikesville, Md. Palencia and Senoglu were upset in the final by the Wake Forest duo of Bea Bielik and Janet Bergman, 1-6, 7-5, 6-2.

COLLEGE DIVISION

Caltech’s Eric Anderson, J.R. Heberle and Kenny Higa helped lead the men’s cross country team to a second-place finish at the Cal Lutheran Invitational on Saturday.

Anderson took fourth place overall with a time of 30 minutes, 15.9 seconds over 8,000 meters as Cal Lutheran’s Tom Ham won at 29:47.4. Heberle (31:48.9) finished seventh and Higa (31:56.9) was ninth.

In the UC Riverside Invitational, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps’ men’s team took third, host UC Riverside fourth and Pomona-Pitzer fifth.

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La Verne defensive back Jonathan Johnson had three interceptions in the Leopards’ 48-7 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. Johnson returned one 25 yards for a touchdown.