Cougars still looking for a win
Jan. 10, 2009 - Regina Leader-Post
By Tim Switzer
The search goes on.
The University of Regina Cougars men’s volleyball team is still looking for its first victory of the season after it fell to 0-11 Friday with a 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-23) loss to the No. 9 Thompson Rivers Wolfpack at the Centre of Kinesiology, Health and Sport.
“We get up by a couple points and we need to play with more desperation,” said outside hitter Kevin Frey. “A lot of it is individuals’ motivations. Coming into the game every time, it’s in the back of your mind, ‘Are we going to win one?’ That’s probably the hardest thing for us to do as players is get back on the horse and get back at it.”
The Cougars seemed to have no trouble playing with desperation in Friday’s first set fighting back from a 22-16 deficit to tie the game at 22 before falling.
But the U of R’s lack of a killer instinct was never more evident than the end of the third set. Regina had a 23-21 lead only to give up the final four points of the match.
“They didn’t play very well and we let them have the win,” said Cougars head coach Greg Barthel. “It was there for the taking and we didn’t respond well enough.
“I hope the guys are disappointed as well because they should recognize this is one we could have won and we weren’t prepared from the beginning.”
The Cougars last won a match on Nov. 9, 2007, the only victory in Barthel’s two-season tenure at the helm of the team.
“Winning is a learning process especially in tight situations,” the head coach said. “Being to make the plays in those instances comes with experience.”
This season the Cougars are certainly getting experience playing the top teams in the country. Playing Top 10 teams is the norm for Canada West teams, but this season has been especially tough on the U of R. To this point, each of the Cougars’ games have been against opponents currently ranked in the CIS Top 10.
“We know it’s tough and you can complain all you want about it, but that’s Canada West,” said Barthel.
With that the case, it’s up to the Cougars players and coaches to figure out how to get a victory out of the season. Regina’s best opportunities likely come in the next two weeks when it visits the Manitoba Bisons (3-7) and play host to the Saskatchewan Huskies (0-10).
“It’s always nice to have guys to lean on and I think we’re just islands out there on the court,” said Frey. “We need to have a solid foundation and be able to say, ‘OK, I made a mistake,’ and know the guy beside you is gong to rip a ball on the next play. We need to focus more as a team, not as individuals.
“It’s definitely not effort, we just second guess ourselves. We practise two hours a day, we’re on the road on weekends and we give it 100 per cent. It’s definitely not effort. It’s just getting that first win. After that, it’s going to be a snowball effect.”