WSU volleyball dominated the University of Idaho last Saturday, winning 4–1. Even though they dropped the fifth set, they were superior in essentially every facet of the game. 

However, let us not get too far ahead of ourselves. They were playing the Vandals, a team that has won just 12 matches in the past four seasons. It was also just the first match of the spring season.

Nonetheless, some important things about this Cougar volleyball team were learned from the team’s first match…

#1: Eliana Ti’a is the best player on this team

Out of the 56 kills that the Cougs recorded, outside hitter Eliana Ti’a accounted for 25% of them (14). She did this while playing in only three sets. This means she averaged nearly five kills per set. 

For reference, outside hitter Melina Christodoulou led the Cougars with 2.83 kills per set last season.

While a lot of these kills came when Ti’a was playing in the front row, several also came when she was behind the attack line.

Additionally, she was great defensively. There was a specific play in the second set in which she went airborne to get a dig and keep the play alive. The play later turned into a kill for WSU outside hitter Madyn Cervellera.

Middle blocker Lucie Blažková is typically the “default” when asked who the best player is. She was solid against the Vandals, recording six blocks and three kills. However, recording just three kills for her is underwhelming.

Ti’a also played more dynamic defense in the back with her digs. While it is unfair to knock Blažková for this, given that she is a middle blocker and was often subbed out after serving, Ti’a flew around in the back. Blažková did not do that against Idaho and normally does not. Ti’a is the more versatile defensive player.

Ti’a also went up for blocks while playing in the front, but she was just not as successful as Blažková.

Blažková had the blocks, but Ti’a had the digs, the kills and it could be argued she had a bigger defensive impact because of her athleticism.

#2: Emerson Matthews and Madyn Cervellera are the real deal

The Cougars lost two key outside hitters in the offseason: Taryn Vrieling and Christodoulou. Christodoulou was especially a key loss since she was an accurate hitter. She hit .260 last season.

Head coach Korey Schroeder went out and brought in two new outside hitters through the transfer portal: Emerson Matthews and Madyn Cervellera. They are the real deal, and together, could be better than Vrieling and Christodoulou.

Against Idaho, they combined for 16 kills, four service aces and a block. 

Most importantly, Matthews was patient. Many of her kills came when she prioritized accuracy over power, particularly on the left side. However, she also let it fly cross-court with a lot of power, similar to Vrieling, when she needed to.

Matthews could go on to be one of the best attackers on the Cougs if she continues playing how she did last Saturday.

Cervellera was electric. Similar to Ti’a, she played well in the back, setting up her teammates with solid passes defensively and also recording a back-row kill. She was also solid in the front, recording seven kills in that position. The one critique is that she had three service errors. 

If Cervellera can fix up her serve game, she could be one of the most dangerous players on the team.

#3: The Cougars miss Italia Bernal

Setter Italia Bernal walked in the offseason, leaving Livia Ward as the only setter. The Cougs picked up Audrey Hollis to give them a second option at the setter position. Through one match, neither is quite as good as Bernal was.

Early in the first set, Blažková had an attack error, and part of that could be attributed to the fact that the ball was slightly behind her when she went to hit it. There was another specific time in the fourth set when Ward had another set that was slightly behind the hitter, this time Ti’a. 

To be fair, those are only two distinct instances. But Ward looked a bit off for a decent part of the afternoon. Some of her sets did not seem quite as smooth as Bernal used to deliver to the hitters. Ward also had two service errors.

Hollis did not have any memorable moments in which she set up her teammate poorly, but she did not particularly stand out either. Most of her passes were solid, but were not as smooth as Bernal’s. 

In the only set the Cougars dropped, WSU ran a 6-2 formation, meaning they had both Hollis and Ward on the court at the same time. Hollis had two attack errors while playing that formation.

Bernal was consistent, and almost all of her passes seemed to have just the right amount of air underneath when she played at Wazzu. Ward and Hollis struggled to replicate that, and at times, they negatively stood out for their passing. Bernal rarely stood out for poor passes.

It was not all bad, though, as Hollis had a block and a kill, and Ward had two service aces and a kill. Their passes were solid most of the time, and it was only the first match of the season.