Hokie Club
BLACKSBURG – In her 32 months as Virginia Tech's volleyball coach, Jill Wilson admits that she absolutely loves the passion of the Hokies' fan base.
She loves the atmosphere surrounding Lane Stadium in the falls. She loves Blacksburg's weather, which provides a desired contrast to the heat and humidity that she endured during her previous stop at LSU.
And of course, she loves her team – and she may love them even more in November when some of her younger players get some experience under their belts.
"I do think we will be our best in November," Wilson admitted.
Now entering her third campaign as the Hokies' head coach, Wilson has been steadily molding this program into what she wants it to be, adding depth, and more importantly, athleticism. Last year, the Hokies improved by six wins from her first season, going 14-16 overall, with a 5-13 conference record. She hopes to see a similar jump this season, albeit with a less proven roster.
Her primary task entering August practices centered on replacing two outstanding seniors who departed after last season – Jaila Tolbert and Rhegan Mitchell. Tolbert departed with more than 1,000 career kills from her right-side hitter position, while Mitchell, a setter, left with more than 3,500 career assists.
Replacing Tolbert may be the more arduous task. She was a two-time All-ACC choice and left an imprint on the program with her leadership on and off the court.
"Can't replace a Jaila," Wilson said. "She was a true example of what a student-athlete is – a coach's dream in all areas, on and off the court. Her impact has affected a lot of our players.
"So even though you lose a great player in Jaila, I feel like we have a more developed team because of the example that her and Rhegan, too, left. It kind of trickled to so many different people that I think we'll be more balanced and not as one-dimensional as we were with her. Everybody knew she was going to get the ball. Not only did they learn leadership from her, but now we're going to have more options."
Tech does return some proven outside hitters, led by junior Kaity Smith and seniors Ester Talamazzi and Melody Caloyannides. Smith led the team in kills last season with a 376, while Talamazzi finished with 245, good enough for third on the squad. Talamazzi also led the Hokies with 34 service aces.
Wilson also expects a big sophomore season from Tessa Wyner, and she moved Marisa Cerchio from middle blocker to right-side hitter. Cerchio's attack percentage of .264 in 2018 ranked first on the team (minimum 100 total attacks).
"I think that's a really good fit for her," Wilson said. "I'm anxious to see her progress over the summer in that new position, with her being our best blocker. I think Tessa Wyner is going to surprise a lot of people. She was a little bit of an unknown recruit because she was from a smaller club and a little under-recruited. She's probably one of the highest-flying athletes on our team and one of the hardest workers. A lot of people aren't aware of her, but they're going to be very surprised with her. I think she made the biggest step last year."
As for replacing Mitchell, that task won't be easy. Mitchell played in 107 matches in her career, starting 95 of them. She basically coordinated Tech's offense for three seasons, missing a portion of her redshirt sophomore season with an injury.
The process of replacing her starts and pretty much ends with two sophomores – Talyn Jackson and Sarah Jane Lynch. Both played some last season, with Jackson finishing with 171 assists.
"It's up in the air," Wilson said. "They both bring different things, and I think they balance each other real well. I've told them the competition is wide open. They're both very talented, and they're both very smart, which, for someone running the offense, is very important. They have a very good mutual bond with each other that Rhegan taught them. That's Rhegan's legacy of teaching them that the setters have to be unbreakable together. Talyn has a little more experience because she came a semester early [she enrolled in January of 2018] … but that competition will definitely be wide open."
At the libero spot, two seniors headline the position – Carol Raffety and Abby McKinzie, two of the Hokies' team captains. Raffety played in all 30 matches last season, and her 421 digs led the team. McKinzie recorded 51 digs in a limited role.
Raffety received an invitation to a tryout for the U.S. National Team back in February and was chosen as an alternate. She needs just 369 digs to move into second place on the school's all-time list for career digs.
"Early in her career, Carol would be so competitive with herself," Wilson said. "She has high expectations for herself. She was so strong willed that she would get so frustrated with herself, and we'd have to calm her down in some of those high-stress situations. She's really matured through that and worked on that part of her mentality, but has never lost that competitiveness. She's just learned how to channel it a lot better to where she's still being consistent. The libero can't be up and down, and she's really worked on that part of her game."
The Hokies' roster features four seniors and four juniors, which gives the team some experience. But Wilson is high on the four freshmen who reported for August practices. The group initially brings depth to the roster, but the coaching staff expects several of them to move into more prominent roles as the season advances.
Many Tech fans are familiar with one of those freshmen – Blacksburg High product Anabel Zier. The 6-foot-2 Zier earned Class 4 all-state honors as a senior and led the Bruins to the 2017 state championship her junior year. She finished her career with more than 1,000 kills.
"She's going to be one that's going to be very impactful with a number of points, but isn't going to be someone you always pay attention to because she's on the quiet side," Wilson said. "I'm really proud to have signed our first Blacksburg player. I think that's important for our community, and she's very talented. She has an extreme passion to be here – she has her whole life – and you can't put a price on that."
The Hokies open their season Aug. 30 with a match against USC Upstate in the Miami Invitational in Oxford, Ohio. The nonconference slate was designed to get the younger players ready, while positioning the team for the ACC schedule.
Two seasons ago, Wilson inherited some good players, but lacked all the pieces, and now, the Hokies appear to have much more depth and athleticism. At the end of this season, Tech hopes to be where every team wants to be – fighting for a postseason berth.
"I think we will look so different from August to November," Wilson said. "I think we'll be playing our best volleyball in November, which is what you want. I think we have some big decisions to make as far as our lineup goes, so I don't think our lineup will be the same at the beginning at pre-conference tournaments as it will late. I think we're going to see a lot of freshmen and sophomores taking off again as they gain experience.
"My goal is that we're improved from last year … I don't want this to be a fast and immediate situation where we jump up there and then dive back down. I want this to be a steady increase every single year to where this program is sustainable — and the expectation is that we reach a certain point and remain there at a minimum every single year."