Women’s volleyball finds winning approach with versatile double-setter system
UCLA women’s volleyball junior outside hitter Jenny Mosser said having any of the three setters in the Bruins’ lineup would have the same impact, giving the team depth. (Daanish Bhatti/Daily Bruin)
By Coral Smith
Oct. 28, 2019 10:28 p.m.
The Bruins’ two-setter rotation is making opponents do a double take.
Coach Michael Sealy said No. 25 UCLA women’s volleyball (12-7, 7-3 Pac-12) relied on strong setting last weekend in the Bruins’ back-to-back upsets over ranked conference opponents.
Between the two matches, UCLA hit for a combined .296 hitting percentage and racked up 108 team kills. Sealy said rotating between two setters – senior Cali Thompson and sophomore Devon Chang – was key in creating different options for the attack in both of the upsets in terms of increasing the swings taken from the middle of the court.
“(Thompson and Chang) did a nice job of moving the offense around,” Sealy said. “People aren’t used to (redshirt sophomore middle blocker Emily Ryan) being first priority, so we ran a different offense at them than they expected, and it helped a ton.”
Ryan finished the weekend with 11 kills in each game, tying a season-high.
The Bruins have tested various setting systems throughout the season after Thompson – who was expected to start at the position before the season – injured her ankle in the season opener. With Thompson out for the remainder of nonconference play, Sealy brought in Chang and sophomore setter Hawley Harrer to run a two-setter offense.
Once Thompson returned, UCLA used both the two-setter and one-setter systems up until two weeks ago, when the Bruins settled on the current rotation of Chang and Thompson.
Sealy said part of the advantage of switching off between two setters is that if each plays three rotations, there’s three attackers in the front row for every rotation. This allows the Bruins to take swings from anywhere along the net, preventing opposing teams from predicting where they’ll set the pass to, Sealy said.
“If you have a one-setter system and that one setter in the front row, they know you have to go left-side, so it lets them set up a really good block defense,” Sealy said. “So at least with two hitters at all times in the pins, we can diversify.”
Chang said in addition to the contributions her teammate makes on the court, Thompson also helps her improve her own game.
“(Thompson) has a great serve, she’s older, she has a lot more experience than me, and so she really helps me see the court in a different way,” Chang said. “She gives me a lot of great feedback and advice, and it’s really helpful for someone that’s younger, like me.”
But despite the differences in experience between the different setters, junior outside hitter Jenny Mosser said the team knows any of the three setters could come in at any time and have the same influence.
“I think it says a lot that we’re able to throw anyone in, and we’re able to win,” Mosser said. “Knowing that we’re doing great with (Thompson and Chang), but if we ever needed (Harrer), we’d be fine with that, too.”
