Florida Volleyball Notebook: August 16, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 | Volleyball
Sitting at the controls of the Florida volleyball program, 20th-year head coach Mary Wise sometimes wishes her remote included a pause button.
The Gators, who are now more than one week into their two-week training camp period, are just five days away from taking the court at the annual Orange and Blue Scrimmage on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Wise, who has been pleased with the progress of her team during its preseason practices, says her only wish is that, with five new players on the 2010 roster, she had more time to work with her team in gym in a training-camp-like format.
“We're at the point where we wish we could just click that pause button,” Wise said. “In the last week, we've introduced a lot of new concepts and, when almost one-third of your team is new, it's hard to get it all in during that time. But, the effort and the concentration of our team still remain very high.”
Wise, whose team participated in its first full scrimmage on Saturday afternoon, has been particularly impressed with her squad's defensive play.
“Our defense is definitely ahead of our offense right now,” Wise said. “A lot of that is because we have put more time into going over and implementing our defensive systems. There have been some really bright spots so far, but there have also been some signs of needing that pause button.”
Admission to Saturday's Fan Day and Orange and Blue Scrimmage are free and open to the public.
The Gators begin their 2010 campaign Aug. 28-29, when they travel to Omaha, Neb., to participate in the prestigious AVCA Showcase, where they will face Big 12 Conference foes Iowa State and Nebraska.
For all of the latest information on Florida volleyball, please log on to www.GatorZone.com/volleyball. Follow Florida Volleyball on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorZoneVB and Coach Mary Wise on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorMary.
REMINDER: FAN DAY – AUGUST 21
Florida volleyball will host its annual Fan Day and Orange & Blue Scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 21 in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Gates open at 12:30 p.m. and autographs with players and student-athletes begin at 1 p.m. The intra-squad scrimmage will take place at approximately 2 p.m.
SEC PRESEASON INFORMATION RELEASED TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY
The Southeastern Conference will announce its Preseason All-SEC Team Tuesday, Aug. 17 and its SEC Preseason Poll on Wednesday, Aug. 18. Full information will be available at GatorZone.com following the conference's official announcements.
FIRST GATOR HOTLINE WITH MARY WISE SET FOR AUG. 23
The first Gator Hotline with Mary Wise show for the 2010 season will take place Monday, August 23 at 6 p.m. at Beef O'Brady's on Archer Road. The hour-long show also will air live on WRUF-AM 850. Fans are encouraged to attend and also can dial (800) 392-8255 to ask their questions of Coach Wise live on the air. Tom Collett will host the show along with former Gator All-SEC selection Missy Whittemore.
END OF REPORT
