Volleyball's California Contingent Plays An Important Role As Team Heads Into The 2011 Post-Season

Tufts' Kendall Lord leads NESCAC in assists

MEDFORD - It was 81 degrees and sunny yesterday in LaJolla, California, near San Diego.

Meanwhile, three-thousand miles to the east, Tufts junior Kendall Lord has been cautiously walking across campus trying to avoid snow and ice that Mother Nature left following a rare October storm.

From LaJolla, Lord is one of nine "California Girls" on the Tufts volleyball team. With them, Coach Cora Thompson's squad finished the regular-season 24-4 and begins post-season play as the #2 seed at the NESCAC Championship this coming weekend. However, the question needs to be asked of anyone who chooses to leave Southern California to go to school in New England, where almost half of the academic year is during the winter months.

What were you thinking?

"Coming from San Diego, I didn't even know that seasons existed," Lord said. "I thought that low 60s was cold. I love the snow. I think it is so beautiful and it completely transforms the landscape.  Ice is a different story. Ice is slippery and deceptive.  Me and ice are not on the best of terms. It has hurt me one too many times."

Actually, many Californians have made the same decision to come to Tufts. Along with Lord on the volleyball team are senior tri-captains Audrey Kuan (Los Altos, CA), Cara Spieler (Santa Barbara, CA) and Lexi Nicholas (San Diego, CA), sophomore Virginia Clay (Santa Clara, CA), and first-years Juliana Goodbar (Berkeley, CA), Hayley Hopper (Carlsbad, CA), Izzy Kuhel (Brisbane, CA), Cameron Longyear (Manhattan Beach, CA), and Alexis Okasinski (Hillsborough, CA). Coach Cora Thompson is happy that they chose to brave the elements and play at Tufts.

"One of the benefits of recruiting players from California is that they start playing at a very young age due to the popularity of the sport out there," Thompson said. "They play a very high level of competitive volleyball all year round between their high school and club seasons. In addition, it certainly helps our recruiting when there is a lot of initial academic interest in Tufts University from great students who happen to be accomplished volleyball players. California is significantly represented here at Tufts in the general student body coming in as the third-most represented state behind Massachusetts and New York."

The Jumbos, who finished 9-1 in NESCAC, will face #7 seed Williams College in the quarterfinal round of the conference championship hosted by Bowdoin at 5 pm on Friday. Of their four losses this fall, two came in five sets against UMass Boston and Endicott, another was in four sets against regional power Springfield - who they would defeat later in the year - and the only three-set lost came against conference #1 seed and tournament host Bowdoin. They're now looking to put it all together and challenge for conference and NCAA regional crowns.

"We have been working up to this weekend for the whole season," Lord said. "We are so prepared and have played one of the toughest schedules in TUVB history. The key to this weekend is playing our game.  We need to focus on keeping up the tempo on our side of the court and playing proactive volleyball, not reactionary volleyball. We have all the skills to compete. We just need to have the composure and the confidence to execute."

Lord leads NESCAC setters with 10.61 assists per set, which ranks 19th in NCAA Div. III. Both and she and Kuan, fifth in the league with 4.51 digs per set, were All-Conference Second Team selections last year. Spieler is one of the better two-way players in NESCAC with 2.70 kills and 3.10 digs per set. A big infusion of first-year talent has boosted the team as well. Kuhel leads NESCAC in blocks, and is 24th nationally with 1.22 per set while also hitting efficiently. Hopper and classmate Kelley Brennan (Burr Ridge, IL) are two of the top first-year hitters in the conference.

The combination of veteran leadership and new players has proven to be the right mix in 2011.

"The biggest difference for me this year is being one of the three senior captains and being immensely outnumbered by the freshmen," Kuan said. "In past years, I've always been able to rely on older players to take control, but this year, the three of us have had to step into that leadership role. The experience has been so exciting and it's amazing how much better our team has gotten since day one. Every team has different challenges, but this year's team has such great chemistry. That great connection among teammates has really helped us to excel and overcome many hurdles."

The NESCAC champion will earn an automatic berth into the NCAA Championship. Should the Jumbos not win the league title, they have a good shot at earning an at-larget berth into the NCAA's. Ranked fourth in New England, Tufts is seeking its fourth consecutive NCAA Championship berth and its sixth overall.

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