STARKVILLE — Mississippi State volleyball coach Jenny Hazelwood gets asked a variation of the same question every day.
Whether its fans, administrators, or her players, the question is when is MSU volleyball going to turn the corner? Her answer has been same for everyone: It’s happening now.
MSU finished the 2013 campaign with a 12-20 record, its sixth-consecutive losing season, but Hazelwood points to the fact that the Bulldogs likely will have their third-highest Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) in school history when the final figures are released. The NCAA had MSU ranked 139th out of 322 Division I schools through the month of October.
“I would hear our players constantly say to each other that they didn’t want the attitude to get like last year or the year before and our gym was always good,” Hazelwood said. “They were always growing and getting better. You can see having players in the top 10 of the league in every individual statistical category means we are developing more complete players.”
MSU ended a 24-match losing streak in Southeastern Conference play the weekend of Oct. 18-20 with its first back-to-back sweeps of league opponents in school history. The victories against South Carolina and Tennessee symbolized progress for Hazelwood, who had six sophomores and seven freshman on her 15-player roster.
“Early on in the preseason tournaments, you had to realize very quickly what kind of youth we were dealing with,” Hazelwood said. “I remember day two of each preseason tournament and knowing that my team was mentally and physically gassed after winning that first match. You want them to go through that because how else are they supposed to learn?”
After one of the best rookie seasons by a MSU hitter in program history, Kimmy Gardiner earned a SEC All-Freshman Team honors Monday. Gardiner finished the season leading all SEC non-seniors with 4.03 kills per set, which was third-best overall.
“Kimmy has aspirations to play volleyball beyond Mississippi State, so what she does from this moment on will determine how far she can take her future goals,” Hazelwood said. “She and (sophomore libero) Roxanne (McVey) are players I could see as a people you build a program around.”
Gardiner also led all underclassmen with 4.49 points per set and was fourth overall in the category. She had 10 double-doubles, good enough for sixth-most among NCAA rookies.
“I’m honored to be listed among this great class of athletes,” Gardiner said. “As young as we were this year, they could have chosen a number of people off our team, so I think this represents our team effort all season long.”
Hazelwood has now guided a player to SEC All-Freshman team selections for the past three years, including McVey, the record-setting libero, who will be a junior leader next season.
The reason Gardiner feels the league could’ve chosen many of the seven freshmen on the roster is MSU ended its season with a 3-1 victory at Tennessee, the program’s first in Knoxville, Tenn., since 1995, the year before Hazelwood began playing at MSU. The victory came after Gardiner broke a finger on her right hand that forced her to miss the final four games.
“In the big picture, these young players continued to believe and buy into the program,” Hazelwood said. “It could’ve been real easy without Kimmy to fold up the season and go home. They didn’t do that, and I’m proud of what they accomplished in that season finale.”
Following a roller coaster ride in her first two seasons, MSU sophomore outside hitter Taylor Scott earned SEC offensive player of the week honors Monday after posting a 24-kill performance against Tennessee, including nine kills in the clinching set. With 10 digs, Scott had her 12th double-double of the season, and 19th of her career. Earlier in the week, Scott had 16 kills and nine digs against Alabama for a 6.50 points per set average.
“Tee Scott was phenomenal down the stretch and, quite frankly, she took her game to another level when our go-to player for kills (Gardiner) was out with a injury and somebody had to step up,” Hazelwood said. “That’s very encouraging because it shows these are girls don’t want to be satisfied with where they are. I don’t have to motivate them, and that’s so satisfying as a coach.”
Scott and McVey were the cornerstone recruits Hazelwood brought in last year. She believed they could help transform a program that has only won 19 percent of its conference matches all-time (84-350).
“Playing a bunch of freshmen when you’re building a program is normal,” Hazelwood said. “Hopefully when you’re doing your job, you’re bringing in talented freshmen that are going to beat out older players. We’re getting high-level recruits right now, and the recruiting momentum has never been higher.”
Hazelwood tinkered with her lineup and played two setters — sophomore Katlyn Mataya and freshman Suzanne Horner — at the same time with The lineup was considered a luxury for Hazelwood after going through a 0-20 season in SEC play two years ago.
“I feel like down the stretch with both of them we were able to develop a groove and quick communication,” Hazelwood said. “Suzy is super hard on herself, but the more we could keep her relaxed, she was fantastic. I’ll take a kid having a off match because she’s trying to do too much. The fact that there’s two of them allows both of them to understand we’re communicating the same with both.”
MSU loses only on player, senior Dani McCree, so Hazelwood knows offseason training will be critical if MSU wants to have its first winning season since 2006. For the first time in her tenure at MSU, which has produced a record of 48-104, Hazelwood has a roster that doesn’t need freshmen to come in and play right away.
MSU secured Payton Harris and Ericka Timberlake, a pair of Texas standouts, for next season, and Hazelwood feels they will be able to compete for early playing time. Harris is a standout libero/defensive specialist from Houston, Texas, who has been a key contributor for four years at Cy-Fair High School. In that time, her team was 72-0 in district play and earned 15-5A district champions.
“We’re bringing in another talented group of freshmen, but we have a locker room that is more set to allowing them to be brought along slowly instead of being asked to do everything,” Hazelwood said. “If they earn a starting spot, great. However, I fully expect this group of returnees to she their responsibility as making sure they maintain their starting spot.”
Follow Matt Stevens on Twitter @matthewcstevens.
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