In the first half of the Big Ten season, things didn’t always go so well for the Spartan volleyball team.
Inconsistent play, youth and inexperience pushed the team to a 4-6 start in conference play.
But the red-hot No. 22 Spartans (18-7, 11-7 Big Ten) will bring a different team to the floor this weekend as they meet No. 21 Illinois at 8 p.m. Friday and Indiana at 8 p.m. Saturday at Jenison Field House.
The two matches close out the regular season for the Spartans.
The teams last met on Oct. 12 and 13 when the Spartans downed Indiana 3-1 and were swept 3-0 by the Fighting Illini, spawning a three-game losing streak.
But the team recovered in the second half of the season and is now in position to earn a NCAA Tournament berth. It is coming off of the biggest weekend of the season with wins over No. 12 Ohio State and No. 16 Penn State.
“I think we are a completely different team now than the team that got swept,” senior outside hitter Erin Hartley said. “I’m just really excited to get back out on the court after last weekend.”
She said the team’s recent success has taught it some important lessons.
“Last weekend when Ohio State and Penn State pushed back, we did stay calm and we did keep our composure, something our team hasn’t done in the past,” Hartley said. “We actually believe we can win every night.
“The team’s getting an attitude - we can beat anybody on any night.”
And sophomore setter Nikki Colson said that attitude is coming at the perfect time.
“I think the attitude comes from realizing we really are a good team, and we are worth being respected,” she said.
“At times in the past we played very well and other times we played really badly - hot and cold.
“But we want to finish this weekend and the season on a hot streak that we’ve been on for a while now.”
But to end the season on a high, the Spartans have to upend the Fighting Illini (19-7, 12-6) and the Hoosiers (8-18, 5-13).
“Against those two teams, we didn’t play well the last time,” Colson said. “We want to come out and prove that we are the team we proved to be last weekend, and we want to come out in game one and make a statement that we aren’t playing around.”
Spartan head coach Chuck Erbe said things are finally falling into the right places.
“We are definitely consistent right now,” he said. “Everybody’s playing well and everyone is filling their roles - the serving has been solid, the passing has been solid and the defense has been tough.
“It feels like we are finally learning how to really play the game.”
