2008 Woodie Awards
New coach brings clean slate for women's v-ball
Conor White
Issue date: 9/13/07 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 1
This past weekend, Sacred Heart's women's volleyball team faced its first true challenge of the young season, taking on competitive programs Maine, RIU, and Yale at the Yale Invitational.
Sacred Heart struggled against such strong teams, dropping all three of its matches by scores of 3-1, 3-0, and 3-0. The individual games were competitive but Sacred Heart too often found themselves on the losing side.
"We played very tough competition but from now on the competition level should be pretty even and it will be fun to see how we perform," said senior captain Christine Duffy, Massapequa, N.Y.
At the helm for the Pioneers this year is new head coach Rob Machan, who came to Sacred Heart after a two-year stint at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California. Prior to that, Machan spent five seasons at the University of Southern California, where he helped the Women of Troy seize two straight National Championships and four NCAA Final Four appearances in five seasons.
"My time in California was a once in a lifetime experience," said Machan.
Coach Machan was born in Syracuse, N.Y. and moved to California when he was a child. When Machan heard about the women's volleyball head coaching position that was open at Sacred Heart University, he jumped at the chance to come back east.
There were only a few places Coach Machan wished to relocate his family from California and Connecticut was an ideal spot. Machan was immediately impressed by Sacred Heart's dedication to the program, and took the position.
Along with Machan's excitement to join Sacred Heart, the team is optimistic about what the new head coach will bring.
"Coach has been asking all of us to change many different aspects of our game and it's been fun seeing how the new style really helps the team as a whole. Rob Machan is great. He knows so much about the game and is passing that knowledge onto us. He expects us to perform at a high level at all times and expects nothing less. I couldn't have asked for a better head coach to make my last season fun and enjoyable," said Duffy.
From that, Machan appears to be a hit with his players. The Sacred Heart women, who have struggled in recent years, now appear to be on the upswing with their new coach who has come from a tradition of excellence in every sense of the word. While the end result may not be there in 2007, the progression no doubt will be.
"The team overall is showing great progress. It has been interesting to see the transformation from the beginning of preseason to how we're playing now," said Duffy.
If the team can recognize its own progress in just a few short weeks, then a full season should improve the team tenfold. Coach Machan explained that the team is working diligently and they are better now than they were three weeks ago and they'll be better in three weeks than they are now.
"They're going to play hard, they're going to do well," said Machan. "They're going to put something out there that's fun to watch."
Sacred Heart struggled against such strong teams, dropping all three of its matches by scores of 3-1, 3-0, and 3-0. The individual games were competitive but Sacred Heart too often found themselves on the losing side.
"We played very tough competition but from now on the competition level should be pretty even and it will be fun to see how we perform," said senior captain Christine Duffy, Massapequa, N.Y.
At the helm for the Pioneers this year is new head coach Rob Machan, who came to Sacred Heart after a two-year stint at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California. Prior to that, Machan spent five seasons at the University of Southern California, where he helped the Women of Troy seize two straight National Championships and four NCAA Final Four appearances in five seasons.
"My time in California was a once in a lifetime experience," said Machan.
Coach Machan was born in Syracuse, N.Y. and moved to California when he was a child. When Machan heard about the women's volleyball head coaching position that was open at Sacred Heart University, he jumped at the chance to come back east.
There were only a few places Coach Machan wished to relocate his family from California and Connecticut was an ideal spot. Machan was immediately impressed by Sacred Heart's dedication to the program, and took the position.
Along with Machan's excitement to join Sacred Heart, the team is optimistic about what the new head coach will bring.
"Coach has been asking all of us to change many different aspects of our game and it's been fun seeing how the new style really helps the team as a whole. Rob Machan is great. He knows so much about the game and is passing that knowledge onto us. He expects us to perform at a high level at all times and expects nothing less. I couldn't have asked for a better head coach to make my last season fun and enjoyable," said Duffy.
From that, Machan appears to be a hit with his players. The Sacred Heart women, who have struggled in recent years, now appear to be on the upswing with their new coach who has come from a tradition of excellence in every sense of the word. While the end result may not be there in 2007, the progression no doubt will be.
"The team overall is showing great progress. It has been interesting to see the transformation from the beginning of preseason to how we're playing now," said Duffy.
If the team can recognize its own progress in just a few short weeks, then a full season should improve the team tenfold. Coach Machan explained that the team is working diligently and they are better now than they were three weeks ago and they'll be better in three weeks than they are now.
"They're going to play hard, they're going to do well," said Machan. "They're going to put something out there that's fun to watch."
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