| SPORTS
| SEPTEMBER 28, 2005
Head of the Game
The men’s volleyball club
sports team warms up in preseason under senior captain’s leadership
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| The Shorthorn: Drew Campbell |
| Junior libero Johann Terc returns
a volleyball Monday night at UTA men’s volleyball
club practice. The team, which competed nationally last
spring, is entering its fourth season of play. |
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By Patrick
Golightly
Contributor to The Shorthorn
For Raphael Pazzini, the UTA men’s volleyball club president,
the sound of volleyballs rattling around Room 113 in the Physical
Education Building is proof of a dream come true.
The senior captain continues to oversee the team he brought to life
four years ago.
His team went from the basement of the Southern Intercollegiate
Volleyball Conference in 2003 to earning a trip to the National
Tournament in Minnesota last spring.
He said the team has more than just a chance of contending for the
title this year; they have a legitimate shot at winning.
“We will compete with the best teams in the country,”
he said.
The club will get its first chance to play this year when it scrimmages
Texas Christian at 9 p.m. Thursday in the Activities Building.
The fall is preseason for the club, but Pazzini said fans should
attend this match because it’s at home. In the spring, the
team travels to play major foes: Texas Tech, Texas and powerhouse
Texas A&M.
“Right now, without the gym access, we can’t have home
tournaments, and it’s harder to let people see us play,”
Pazzini said.
The team scheduled its first home game before tryouts to gain interest
from potential players. Pazzini said recruiting is important because
club sports can’t give scholarships.
“The problem with club sports is that you’ll get a good
team fielded with good talent, but when the talent is gone in two
years and you haven’t recruited any new guys, you’re
back to square one,” he said.
With almost a dozen upperclassmen on the roster for this season,
Pazzini has no worries about veteran leadership. Senior outside
hitters Jason Pondrom and Tetsuo Shiihashi will provide strong veteran
offense, and junior middle blocker Hugo Valdez is looking to anchor
the defense, the captain said.
Without a designated coach, junior middle blocker Ahmed Valdez coaches
the squad during drills while practicing himself. He doesn’t
doubt that it’s a sacrifice but said it’s one that has
to be made for the group.
“You have to give up some things because you have to step
in and correct other people’s mistakes,” Ahmed Valdez
said. “I’m giving up a bit of myself to the team, but
it’s to build us as a whole.”
Junior setter Motokazu Dohi runs the offense from the floor. The
5-foot-7 Dohi makes sure the ball is placed where it needs to be
for the hit and directs players if they get out of position.
With more than half the team composed of international students,
communication is short and to the point to prevent confusion. Ahmed
Valdez said the players have come together well despite their lack
of common lingual ground.
“We’re very close,” he said. “It’s
a bit hard to explain yourself sometimes because you can’t
go into detail on drills, but we don’t ever have any problems.”
The team, which practices twice a week in the Physical Education
Building, hopes to continue to achieve success. The club believes
it will continue to grow for the future.
“Most people think it’s a slow game, but it’s
extremely fast paced, and I love every minute of it,” Pondrom
said. “As for anyone who doesn’t think so, the only
way for them to know for sure is to come out and play.”
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