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Show www.dailyutahchronicle.com Back in action on Crimson Court Ute Invitational opens Toone returns from sidelines 2008 volleyball season after redshirting senior season main force for the defense in the libero position and StephaSTAFF WRITER nie Shardlow will run the ofAfter a summer full of rig- fense as the setter. Although Shardlow received orous conditioning, strength training and two-a-day prac- the starting spot over incomtices, the fun can finally begin ing freshman Abby Simmons, for the U women's volleyball Launiere said both setters team. The team will kick off would see playing time. the season against Utah Valley "We're going to use both of University tonight at 7 p.m. as them for now," she said. part of the annual Ute InvitaAnother player expected to tional. get game time this weekend is Despite the looming game the Brazilian Cinthia Silvia, a time, the team hasn't been fo- transfer from Salt Lake Comcusing much on who will be munity College. on the other side of the net "Cinthia has great all-round Instead, the focus has been game and will play a key role strictly on Ute volleyball. for us," Launiere said. "I think "We haven't spent much fans will really enjoy watching time worrying about Utah Val- her." ley," said head coach Beth LauLauniere also said fans niere. "It's all about our side of should be looking forward to the net right now," seeing Baird in her new posiSanta Clara, is the other tion on the right side. "It will be exciting to see team that will be taking part in the action this weekend, facing how many more swings she Utah Valley on Saturday and gets," Launiere said "She'll be a huge part of our offense." the Utes Sunday at 4 p.m. The team, which includes On Santa Clara's side of the net will be former Brighton several newcomers, is planHigh School star and power ning to focus the weekend on hitter Krista Kelley. After heav- playing as a team and adjustily recruiting Kelley them- ing to having new people on selves, the Utes feel ready for the court. whatever the hitter brings to "We are still getting used the court. to new players," Haynie said. "We know her game," Lau- "And we want to focus on keepniere said. "We know she'll get ing the team chemistry flowing throughout the match." a lot of hits for them." With only a few weeks of The coaching staff has finally reached a decision on who team practice under their will be starting for Utah come belts, the team is as prepared game time. Seniors Emillie as possible for the upcoming Toone, Lori Baird and Kathryn matches. Haynie will all take the court "We're as ready as we are for the final season opener of going to be," Haynie said. "But their college careers. Sopho- everyone is 100 percent fomore Karolina Bartkowiak and cused and ready to play this junior Chelsey Sandberg will weekend" share the other middle blocker ""' "*"pfietdstsd@ spot. Keisha Fishftr will be a rhrnniclp.ut(jhffdu Paige Fieldsted Paige Fieldsted STAFF WRITER Ever since she was a freshman in high school, Emillie Toone knew she would play college volleyball. The number of college coaches that came to recruit her told her as much. As a 6-foot-7-inch high school freshman, Toone, who hadn't quite grown • into her body, could be described at best as awkward. "I was really uncoordinated," Toone said. "It was scary to have college coaches watching me so young, but it just made me want to work even harder to get the coordination and get to that level." Utah head coach Beth Launiere was among the coaches interested in Toone from the beginning. "She was awkward, but sometimes she would make plays that would surprise you," Launiere said. "She did things that led me to believe she would be a great volleyball player. I knew I wanted her the first time I saw her play." Toone joined the Utah women's volleyball team in 2004 and played in every match her freshman, sophomore and junior seasons. As a junior, Toone averaged 1.93 blocks per game, making her the second-best blocker in the nation. Combined with an average of 2.43 kills per game, Toone helped lead the Utes to be the best blocking team in the nation. Toone gives all the credit for her national ranking to her teammates. "The other blockers on my team make it so I can be so good," she said. "I give credit to my wing blockers because they are the ones who set up the block." Toone was on top of the world and looking forward to a phenomenal senior season until last May when a knee FILE PHOTO/TbeDeilyUtahOironklt Emillie Toone has worked relentlessly to recover from her knee injury and return to her team for the 2008 volleyball season. *TSee TOONE Page 8 Ludwig needs a chance Soccer home season to display his true talent opens against Arizona T Team to also face Georgia he student section at Utah football games is a passionate bunch. Nearly every game after a four-and-out series, the wild-eyed fans cup their hands to their mouths, look toward the men in headsets, and begin a chant that ends careers: "Fire Ludwig!" These are also the same fans who paint their faces red and go shirtless in subzero temperatures. A lot has been made of the contract extensions this offseason. Offensive Coordinator Andy Ludwig was the only assistant on the staff who wasn't given a raise. Defensive Coordinator Gary Andersen's salary was given a boost from $182,500 to $193,000, an increase of more than 5 percent. Ludwig's salary will remain a paltry $177,500. I'm not sure how he can live with the price of gas. Still, if you ask the rabid MUSS, he's getting about $177,500 more than he deserves. Last year was an offensive travesty. Louie Sakoda was given national accolades for a reason. It felt like he was punting more than the offense was NICK PAPPAS completing passes. The Utes ranking of 7th in total offense in the conference sounds good. It's too bad there are only nine teams in the MWC. These numbers alone should be enough to send Ludwig away with a piece of cardboard and a magic marker, but numbers don't tell the sordid story of the Utes' last two seasons. Injuries have limited the team considerably. Quarterback Brian Johnson, the most important sprocket in the machine, hasn't had a complete season. Heralded running back Matt Asiata has had one more play than Ludwig himself. Brent Casteel, our best wide receiver, was viewing most of the games from the sideline. In retrospect, the healthier lineup back in 2005 showed the true ability Ludwig has to run a team. The Utes led the league in total offense and finished 12th nationally. Seventh out of nine is awful. Twelfth out of no is exceptional. Utah fans are spoiled rotten by the Urban Meyer years. He gave us the dessert of a spread offense, a cherry on top in Alex Smith, and we licked the bowl clean. Ludwig's offense is not dynamic, but winning is what matters. I would sacrifice flash for the flashing lights on the Scoreboard. Moving chains wins games. No one knows this better than Ludwig. He is also an important mentor for future quarterbacks. He coached David Carr to the No. 1 overall pick back in 2002. Billy Volek set the NCAA record for lowest career and season interception percentage during Ludwig's tenure. Kyle Whittingham didn't give Ludwig a raise, and he doesn't deserve one. What he does deserve is a chance to prove he can succeed with a healthy lineup. It's something he has done in the past. Silence at "Big House" would go far in silencing the chants at home. n.pappas@ chronicle.utah.edu Bryan Chouinard STAFF WRITER After completing a road trip in which the Utes were forced to endure back-to-back overtime games in the same weekend, head coach Rich Manning and the Utes will now turn all their attention to the 2008 home opener against the Arizona Wildcats. Both teams will come into Ute Field Friday night coming off important wins in this young season. The Utes, after falling just short to nationally ranked Wake Forest on Aug. 22, came back with a strong showing that was capped off by a goal in extra time by junior Kelly Isleib to give the Utes a 2-1 win over North Carolina, Greensboro. Arizona, on the other hand, kicked off its season with a 1-0 win over Cal Poly. The only goal in the game was scored by Arizona sophomore Karina Camacho in the 35th minute. "I'm anxious and eager to see how we perform in our first home games of the year," Manning said. "Now that we have two games under our belt, I want to see if we can continue to improve." Emotions will be running high for the team as it makes its home debut, but the real challenge will be to keep those emotions in check as Arizona returns a veteran team from last season. Seven of the Wildcats' starters from 2007 are back this year. However, Utah has gotten the best of the Wildcats since coach Dan Tobias took over at Arizona, taking two of three meetings since 2003. Opening night at Ute Field won't be the only action for the team this weekend. The Utes will follow up the meeting with Arizona by hosting the nationally-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia is ranked No. 18 in the country and is coming off a solid 2-0 win against in-state rival Mercer. It was freshman Ashley Miller that was responsible for both Georgia goals, but the Utah defense will need to account not only for Miller, but also for Hermann Trophy National Player of the Year candidate Carrie Patterson as well. "Georgia will be another good measuring stick for us, too," Manning said. "They have a quality team that plays good soccer and they will test us." One way or another, come Sunday night after the game, the young Utah team will have played two nationally-ranked teams and will already be four games into its season. Both the team and its fans will have a far better idea of just how good this team can be. The action kicks off Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Ute Field against Arizona. The Utes will host Georgia on Sunday at Ute Field at 1 p.m. . b.chouinard@ chronicle.utah.edu Cross country starts new season against in-state rivals James Boehly STAFF WRITER The U cross country team kicks off its season this weekend as the Utes head to Logan for the Utah State Open. With in-state rivals Utah State and Weber State being the only other participants, the Utes will get a chance to see how their runners match up against the local competition. Although the Utes finished the race third last year, head coach Kyle Kepler is not concerned about what place his team finishes in. "This is a low-key meet for us," Kepler said. "If we win it, great, if not, no one's gonna hit the panic button." The Utes' top returning runner, junidr Alyssa Abbott, suffered an injury six weeks ago and will not be competing in this meet. Although the injury isn't season-ending, it's unclear how long she will be inactive. The two best active returning runners on the team this year will be seniors Chelsea DiGrazia and Lauren Endersen. During last year's outdoor track and field season, DiGrazia was an NCAA Regional qualifier in the 1500 meter and Endersen was the conference champion in the 10,000 meter. "This is a race we want our younger kids to get a race in and get their first college experience," Kepler said. "The older kids are in good shape and will be using the meet to train through it." The Utah State Open will begin tomorrow at 9 a.m. at the American West Heritage Center in Logan. j.boehly@chronicle.utah.edu 1 |
