Hi, volleyball fans, and welcome back to Volley
Talk, the podcast created for volleyball lovers
who want to dig deep into what is going on in
NCAA and international volleyball. I'm your host,
Sarah Pavan. I'm an Olympian, beach volleyball
world champion, former Nebraska Cornhusker, and
longtime pro, both indoor and on the beach. And
I'm Adam Schultz, former indoor player, international
volleyball coach, and the show's resident stat
guy. Week three, men's VNL in the books. Pool
play for everyone is over. Final eight has been
selected. We are rolling in to the men's and
women's final eight. Before we even start the
episode, I just need to let you guys know, we
are not going to be releasing an episode next
week because we have a prior engagement that
is taking us out of town. We will not be able
to record. We are so upset about it. It is what
it is. So do not come looking for any episode
next week. We will be back the following week,
however, and with a giant episode with men's
and women's final eight breakdown. So just want
to get ahead of that. Okay. We're really sorry,
but we are excited to discuss all things men's
VNL this week. So let's get started. All right.
We do not have anything to report in the highlights
and happenings. Love did announce their rosters
this week. However, we will break them down at
a later date. Just wanted to throw it out there.
The rosters have been announced. I got two massive
comments on YouTube of people who are upset we
didn't mention the following things. One, Morgan
Hentz is playing in Love. Why are they upset
about that? Because we didn't talk about it.
Why is that a big deal? I don't know. So that
was mentioned to me. Okay, sorry. And the other
one is that Zeroberto is coaching at Love. Okay,
to be fair, we talked about this being potential
like months ago. Okay, so we definitely did talk
about this. We said like it was a long time ago.
We were like, yeah, we heard Zeroberto is probably
coaching Love LA. Okay, sorry we missed it. It
has been confirmed. That is a big deal. you're
not wrong. So that is a thing. Sorry we didn't
name Morgan Hentz by name. We know she has a
lot of fans out there. That's all there is to
say. What can we say? Those are your highlights
and happenings. Those are the highlights and
happenings is us apologizing for you for not
talking about those two specific things. Even
though we were aware of them, we did know that
they were happening. Sorry for not mentioning
them. And yeah, we'll go in depth into the love
rosters at a later date. Nothing else to report,
so let's get into men's V &L. Continuing our
listener -suggested segment last week of V &L
Dream Team, we did the women last week, so obviously
we need to do the men this week. As a reminder,
they are doing the Dream Team by stats this year,
and the winner of each statistical category wins
$10 ,000. the dream team post final eight. So
here we go. Our picks for men's VNL dream team.
I think I am going to be roasted and ripped apart
so badly for my picks. We will see. Cause I,
I have a couple too that may or may not. To be
fair, Adam had access to his own personal stats
that he created. I didn't. And then after I made
my list, I was like, dang, the numbers I looked
at were like global totals. And then I thought
about the number of the teams that went five,
like literally every game. And I was like, that
definitely skewed the stats. So I'm just getting
ahead of this to be like, I'm aware. I don't
want to hear about that particular part of it.
Okay. Let's start with setting. Who did you pick?
Fukatsu from Japan. I picked the same thing.
So for those of you who like, we don't discuss.
Who we've picked. So we're revealing this in
real time as well. So we'll see how close they
are. Okay. My reasoning being Japan went 12 and
0. Correct. Do you know how hard that is to do?
Incredibly. And they don't sub. Like those guys
play all the time. Yeah. Their lineup played
all three weeks. So that is very hard to do.
I think about last year. I know somebody out
there will know the specific number. I am making
this up off the top of my head. I think they
finished, what, sixth? Fifth? I know their record
was eight and four. I don't remember exactly
where they finished in comparison to the other
team. To go undefeated, we've talked about this,
the difference between last season and this season,
I think setter heavy. No, I totally agree. They
didn't change any of their hitters. You know,
the rosters are the same. Quite frankly, not
only does the record indicate that, but watching
them, the hitters are in such better rhythm.
The decision -making is good. Everybody is firing
on all cylinders. He just makes that team better,
period. Splinter the rat, baby. Yeah. The sage.
The wise man. You know, I just, I, yeah. He's
a phenomenal setter, and he by far had the biggest
impact on his team that I could see. That was
an easy choice for me. Yeah. Okay. We agree so
far. Probably we'll stop there. Let's go to middles.
All right. I was torn with my own picks. So my
first one was Semenyuk from Ukraine. That's a
fair pick. The reason I picked it is because
he put up pretty good blocking numbers and was
also among the top serving middles. His efficiency
is pretty good. He didn't get set a ton, but
his efficiency is very good. So I would say for
a middle's skills, he was well -rounded. Okay.
And my second pick, and this is the one that
I was unsure about and I'm not even sure I want
to say it, is Howe from Canada. It hurts me so
much to pick somebody who's on the relegated
team. And this is the one that I'm speaking of
in like going five sets all the time. The number
of blocks he got was astronomical compared to
everybody else. And I understand they went five.
Okay. With everybody. But his blocks per set
is actually, I believe in the top two for middles
who played a ton of sets. Okay. I feel better.
So I actually had him on my list as well. His
hitting efficiency was really good, and he got
way more kills than the majority of middles.
And he served relatively well, too. He's got
that float serve that doesn't necessarily generate
a ton of aces, but it definitely puts teams in
trouble. If Canada hadn't got relegated, you
wouldn't feel bad putting him on the list because
his performance was... He was unstoppable. He's
undersized. He blocked well. The whole VNL, I
was saying that he was Canada's best player.
Not that that means much right now, but yeah.
I've said it the whole VNL. He was the bright
spot for Canada for me. Agreed. And performance
-wise, he was at the top. I hummed and hawed
over that one just because of how they finished,
but I was like, no, you know what? He earned
a spot. With his play, I thought. I know people
are going to be like, how did you not pick a
Polish middle? How did you not pick? Like, Lemanski
blocked really well. He put together really good
blocking numbers. So I could make an argument
for him as well. Give or take Semenyuk, Lemanski,
a good server. He blocked well. His hitting numbers
aren't as high. So let's do some slashes. Lemanski,
Semenyuk, how for me? Yeah, I was going to go
with Lemanski. I thought he played well. Like
you said, he's solid. for that team. He attacks
well, he blocks well. I actually, watching Poland
play, they're so disciplined on the block. Like,
there's no holes when they run triples, when
the middles close, and you may not see that all
the time, but it makes it really tough for hitters,
so I like that pick. Okay, let's go to opposite.
Who did you pick? I picked Regers. Okay, why?
This was a similar situation to the Canada, the
Howe choice. Belgium's not very good. But he
puts up outrageous numbers. Everybody knows where
the ball is going. He's their only attacker.
He kills the ball at a super high rate. He's
not the most efficient, obviously. And granted,
he's not the best server and blocker. But just
from a pure performance standpoint of getting
kills, which is an opposite's job, I felt like
I needed to choose him. I mean, everything you
just said about him is exactly why I didn't pick
him. Fair enough. The only way he scored was
attacking. He didn't do anything else. I don't
disagree with you, but his attacking was just
so much better than everybody else's from a points
per set standpoint. Who did you pick? I picked
Adis Lagumja from Turkey. Fair. Legit near the
top of the stats, like in the top few. For attacking,
blocking, and serving. He played very well. The
only opposite that's up that high in all the
stats. Like, you can't deny those numbers. Not
to mention Turkiye's incredible improvement since
last VNL. Like, he was a huge part of it. So,
yeah, I had to pick him. I knew you were going
to pick him because he had more than an attacking
skill. And you love a well -rounded opposite
who can do more than one thing. Well, yeah. But
opposite's job is to score points, attacking,
blocking, and serving. He did it. I like the
fact that everybody knew where it was going and
he still found ways to score. I think he's fun
to watch. So that's why I picked him. Let's go
to left sides. Okay. I mean, I think there's
one shoe in and he's been very good and he's
consistently at the top of every statistical
category. Three, two, one. Alex Nikolov. Yeah.
Okay, yeah. He was the left side version of Lagumja
for me on the right side. He was the top scorer
in the whole tournament, top attacker. He's up
there for aces. His blocking stats aren't great,
but I mean, he's put together great performances.
And he plays. He's always available. He plays.
He goes to championships. He comes to national
team. He's always there. He's always playing,
and he's always performing. It's impressive to
watch him. Yeah, okay. We agree on one of them.
Who did you pick? Ran Takahashi. I know I said
last week that I'm not as big a Ran fan as everybody
else out there, but I could not deny, A, his
improvement from last year's V &L to this year's,
and again, He was up there in every statistical
category except blocking, like, attacking. He
was up there in aces. His reception was among
the best in the whole tournament. Like, and his
team finished first. That's fair. Like, you can't,
I don't know. I had to give it to him. I found
the left side decision the hardest. It was like,
I found middle the hardest. I was going to say,
you probably never experienced this because you
were a very good student, but. When you had multiple
choice tests in university and all the answers
looked good and you weren't sure which one to
pick, that's how it felt for me trying to pick
left sides. No, middles for me was by far the
toughest, but we do still have one position.
Who did you pick for libero? I picked the Turkish
libero. You were heavy on Turkey this week. Okay,
he was the only libero that was in the top couple
few for both defense and reception, which I feel
like is... 80 % of what liberos do, minus setting.
I really like the libero from Slovenia, Kovacic.
I always have trouble with the names. Slovenia
as a team keeps rallies alive, and I thought
he dug and passed well. He made timely plays.
It looks like he really holds that passing rotation
down. I like the way he played, and I thought
his numbers were pretty good. across the three
weeks so that was my choice i feel like my picks
are pretty obscure i mean i had to give a shout
out to japan because they finished first poland
like i only had a slash on the middle but they
didn't play a lot of their players all three
weeks so that to me is a knock on winning an
award for dream team even though you know they're
good didn't have any slovenians they played really
well yeah italy was all over the map with their
players did you have an american i didn't have
an american like what what i don't My shout out
to the Americans would be Haynes, their right
side, I thought had a phenomenal tournament.
DeFalco came too. He played really well. And
I mean, we all know how we both feel about Christensen,
but it's so hard. I feel like people are going
to be like up in arms about these picks. They
might be, but it's, it's really hard to. I found
this way easier with the women. A hundred percent.
There's far more parody and different ways to
look at players and what they bring to the table
and what they're good at. There's so much physicality.
Anybody can have a good week and pad your stats.
And we didn't get to watch all the games, but
I mean, I love when people write their MVPs on
the YouTube and I get to read those. So let's
hear what you think. Cause those are our picks.
So week three men's VNL complete. The final eight
is set. I will say I'm pretty proud of us. We
nailed the top eight teams. The order? No, not
so much. So if you want a refresher, our prediction
was Japan, USA, Slovenia, Poland, Italy, Ukraine,
Turkey, China. What actually happened was Japan,
Poland, Slovenia. Italy, USA, Turkey, Ukraine,
China. So we were pretty close. We kind of flip
-flopped Poland -USA. I expected USA to beat
Bulgaria, which didn't happen. That was the one
match that I thought they would take. And I honestly
thought that the Poland match would be way closer
than it was. Boy, was it not. Was it not. Three
straight. Poland decided to bring the big guns
and to show up and play well. And they looked
real good. Not to mention like half the crowd
was Polish because Chicago has a massive Polish
population. Not that that's an excuse or anything,
but like I really thought that was like the game
that I was most excited to watch this week. Yeah.
It was kind of disappointing. Other than Canada,
Cuba, because we love a pucker match. You know
what I mean? Which we can talk about that later.
It did not deliver the way that I expected. No.
So we flip -flopped USA -Poland, and then the
rest were decently close. We nailed this way
better than we got the women's. Which is surprising.
Yeah, which is surprising, because I feel like
both of us are much better versed in the women's
side of things than men's. Well, and normally
the women's game stays a little more true. You
have fewer aberrations to the top teams and results.
What are your thoughts from week three? Several.
One, very impressed at how consistent Japan was.
I think that's one of my biggest takeaways. Honestly,
they went five a lot, but they found ways to
win. Always, obviously. They went 12 -0, which
is, as we're saying, very difficult to do. I'm
really curious to see how Japan does. Now, I
know they beat some of the top teams when they
didn't have their full rosters. We'll see what
comes with some of those matchups because they
brought their big guns to weeks one, two, and
three. So this is something that was thrown out
there on Instagram was, do you think Japan is
going to be able to maintain this? Or do you
think that things will fall apart in the final
eight? I don't think things will fall apart.
They will fall apart, but do you think that they're
going to see this through to the end? I don't
love their semifinal matchup for them. It's a
tough one. I think they'll beat China, obviously.
I think they would have fared better against
a Turkey or a Ukraine in terms of how fast they
can play. I mean, they already beat US though,
if US beats Italy. They did. They definitely
have a chance to make the final, but I don't
think that... semi -final is their best matchup.
My other takeaways from week three and kind of
the Vietnam as a whole is shocked that both Brazil
and France did not make the top eight. That's
tough. Yeah. For me, I kept waiting for France
to find a rhythm. Like they've had some roster
turnover since they were at the top and you're
like, okay, they're going to come or some of
those guys are going to show up. I'm starting
to wonder like, is this France now? I feel like
the rule changes have hindered their left sides
maybe more than any other team in the world.
I'm just not sure they're going to get back to
that form quickly, missing the pieces they are
with the style they play. I mean, that's tough.
You see France and Brazil, two teams, two countries
that invest heavily in volleyball, men's volleyball
in particular. And the expectation for those
two countries has got to be to make the final
eight. Last year, France made the final eight.
Did not do great. Yeah, I feel like those two
countries, the expectation is to make the final
eight. But then on the reverse of that, we saw
the ascension of Turkey and Ukraine. Very impressed
with how both of those two teams played. And
consistently, like they don't have the deepest
rosters. Turkey was rough last B &L. They struggled.
I think they, I don't know the numbers. They
were maybe won three games or something. Yes.
To make the jump that they did is wild. Ukraine
too. Last year was their first VNL and they came
squeaked into the top seven because China got
a spot. It's wild. It was really cool to watch
how much better you can get in a year as a program.
Honestly, this whole tournament is just about
consistency. 100%. And I think there are very
few teams who can do what Poland and Italy did
in terms of leaving players home and still being
consistent. I mean, look at Poland. Poland struggled
in week one. They did. What, did they win one
match in week one? They're good enough and deep
enough to have that experiment in week one and
still pull it out when they bring their players
back. Impressed with Turkey and Ukraine for sure.
I would add Bulgaria to the list of being surprised
that they didn't make it. And Slovenia just keeps
coming and keeps performing. They are the ones
that are like super sneaky good. Yeah. But when
you think of like... powerhouse programs, they
aren't the team that like gets thrown out. You
know what I mean? No, never. When are people
like, who are the powerhouses in men's volleyball?
People are like, Oh, Italy, Poland, Brazil, like,
but no, Slovenia is like consistently low key
sneaky. Yeah. I'm really excited for the final
eight on the men's side. I'm excited for the
final eight because like our predictions, which
we'll get to in a minute are going to be so wrong.
Like you just never know. You don't know what's
going to happen. I do want to talk about, so
we had the two teams flip -flop that we like,
you typically expect to be in the final eight
versus the ones that were maybe more of a surprise
or like first timers. There was also a huge battle
at the bottom. And coming into this week, Cuba
had zero wins. I picked them to be relegated.
I was wrong. Our Canadian team got relegated.
So, yeah, Cuba came in with zero wins. Canada
had won, but they had amassed a ton of points
because they went five so many times. Then you
also had, like, Belgium down there. You had Argentina
down there. They were all playing in the same
location, which was very exciting. Cuba showed
up, baby. Okay? They took care of it. They were
like, we are here. to stay for 2027. And then
Canada, the complete opposite happened. We're
going to talk about Canada's relegation a little
later on, but I just wanted to, we're talking
about the top eight, but like there was a serious
battle happening at the bottom too. From Canada
standpoint, blowing two, two set leads in the
first two matches they played against Japan and
Argentina and getting blanked by Cuba and Belgium.
Just not good. Like you said, we'll get into
it. But that was shocking. Because they were
there all VNL. Like there but not there. Yes.
Like you're not there if you have one win. Seven
matches that all went to five sets. You could
easily envision a world where they're, you know,
have four or five wins. But it just didn't happen.
And that's, you have to perform. And to Cuba's
credit, they knew what they had to do. And they
executed. Okay, so moving into the final eight,
let's take a look at the matchups, some predictions.
Will we be right? Probably not, but it's worth
a try, you know? So we've got Japan playing China.
I'm going to take Japan. I think that one's relatively
straightforward. That's probably the easiest
prediction of the lot. Watch them be like, we'll
lose. We've got Poland against Ukraine. I like
the way Ukraine is playing. But watching Poland
this week with all of their starters back, they're
just too good. Yeah. I'm taking Poland as well.
We've got Slovenia versus Turkey. Turkey is playing
really well. But Slovenia, they just win. I feel
like it's bad form to bet against Slovenia. They're
just consistent and they wear you down. And I
think being in the top eight for the first time,
you have to learn how to beat it. Like, I have
to imagine that. for teams like Turkey and Ukraine,
they're thinking about, hey, we want to make
the top eight. And you hit that goal, and now
you're playing against a Slovenian team who...
Like their goal is to win. Their goal is to win.
I don't see it this year. I think they need a
little more experience. They need to understand
what playing in that environment with those pressures
are. I'm edged to Slovenia, but I think it's
going to be a close match. And then we've got
Italy -US. I think this is the toughest one for
me. I don't know. Mikuleto is out. Do we know
what their roster is going to be? I mean, you
have to assume they're going to bring everybody
they can. This one's tough. I'm going to take
a flyer and say US. I was going to say the same
thing. I think I don't love Italy's right side.
Ryszalischki? No. I love Romanov, though. And
that's the thing. Have no feel for who Italy's
going to play. They flip -flopped those two all
last season, even until the bitter end where
somebody messed up the lineup. Never forget.
I don't know, but Italy, they find ways. They're
young. Their young guys are playing well. If
you would have asked me two days ago before the
U .S. played Bulgaria and Poland, I would have
said... USA for sure. I thought they were playing
really, really well. But they did not end well.
Honestly, this is going to be a 50 -50, like
toss a coin. Well, you have to pick one. I'm
picking US. I'll pick the US just because I like
the way they played all VNL. Okay. So based on
our predictions, we've got Japan versus USA.
Do you think the US will get beat by Japan twice
in the same tournament? Yes. Really? Yeah. Think
that USA's weakest position with the addition
of the right sides into Falco is in the middle.
I think their middles are legit. Well, Gendrick
is really good. I think the connection between
Christensen and McHenry has gotten better. I'm
not talking about from an attacking standpoint.
I agree with you. I think blocking wise McHenry
is a bit of a liability. Really? Speed -wise,
when he gets there, he's very good. I don't think
he closes particularly quickly yet. I just, I
think they're going to struggle with the speed.
You think I'm wrong. McHenry's as fast twitch
as you get. I know, but I don't love his reads.
Like, I don't think he gets, he gets used a bunch.
He's going too high because he just dies. Yeah,
I mean, I just, I think that his positioning
on the block when it's that quick. I think they're
going to be holes. And I don't know that with
the speed they're running that they're going
to be able to control them. He's saying this
with a half smile on his face because he knows
that he could be bitterly incorrect. He's like,
I'm going to keep saying this and I'm sticking
to my point, but deep down I'm like, dang, I
might be wrong. I mean, I could definitely eat
these words, but I think Japan is playing really
well. I like the offense they're running. I think
everybody... is feeling it right now, I think
they could beat the U .S. Even if what you're
saying about McHenry is true, which I don't agree
with you, you've got to, if the guy can follow
a game plan, they will be prepared. It's a gut
feeling that the middles are going to struggle
against Japan. I want Japan to see this through.
I really do. But the U .S. is studying every
single touch from that match they lost to Japan.
I bet. And you don't think that Japan is doing
the same thing? I mean, I got to go with the
US. I want Japan to do it, but I don't think
they're going to see this through. So what do
you think the difference is going to be? Like
when you look at that matchup? Here's the thing.
It's just a second ago. You were like, I was
like, is Japan going to see this? You're like,
no, I don't think so. I think their semifinal
matchup is too tough. And now we're here and
you're like, they're going to win. The Italy
US game is a pick them. The Japan against those
teams. I said, I think that's the worst matchup
for them. Okay. So you're taking Japan. I'll
take the US. Okay. Okay. And then Poland, Italy.
And then Poland, Slovenia. Poland. I'm taking
Poland too. They're just too good right now.
The final, we both have Poland against. You have
against Japan. I have against US. I'm taking
Poland. I think Poland's going to win again.
I just think they're too good. The thing about
Poland is they're too deep. If somebody is struggling.
And you know we have a serious obsession with
Semenyuk. That third man, that third left side.
Coming off the bench, can it get any better?
No. Not in my mind. And the thing about how Gerbich
runs that team is he doesn't care. If you're
not performing, he doesn't hesitate to take you
off the floor. He doesn't care, and he can because
he's like, I was literally the best, so I don't
care what you think. I mean, pretty much. So
they have the depth, and he's not afraid to make.
if people aren't performing. I think they're
the best team right now. All right. We just differ
in our finalists. We'll see who's right. Probably
neither of us. Italy's going to win and the U
.S. isn't going to be an option either way. Ukraine's
going to win. You know, Turkey is going to win.
Just mess it all up. Let's see what happens.
This is the fun part, though. You throw your
predictions out before anything even happens.
We love a speculation. We love a prediction.
We're batting maybe. Negative. Negative. But
you know what? We tried our best. So let us know
your thoughts. We got some homers out there.
Okay. People accuse us of being homers. I think
that we are anti -homers. I am much more harsh.
I think a lot of people think we're American.
Really? Yeah. Okay. Even if we were American,
anti -homers. Think about it. Think about it.
But no, we are Canadian. But I think we are the
most. harsh on the u .s and canada true and they
are also the teams we watch the most so that
also tracks so we legit have homers out there
who are going to pick their country to the end
we might call you out in the comments it's fine
get ready for it but let us know your thoughts
anyway okay so as we said we're going to talk
about canada's relegation so let's do it we got
So many questions, comments, reach outs, emails,
like you name it about Canada being relegated.
We could not stop talking about it from Friday
night on as we were just floored, embarrassed,
just like so disappointed. So let's talk about
this. Where do you want to begin? Let's begin
with a few stats and then we can go in. Okay.
And I also had, I've thrown in a couple questions
that we can kind of like talk about as it pertains
to them as well. Okay. So before we go any further,
I think it's important to understand the team
and maybe what the expectations were. Because
we saw a couple young players featured in some
of the weeks, but the reality of it is this team
is not young and they're not inexperienced. They
had seven members on the wide roster. who played
in the Paris Olympics and who were available
for them to play. So Herther Setter, Hofer, who
we didn't really see. He was a serving sub when
he started last year's V &L. Yeah, so I was a
little confused about that. Katrinsky was also
at the Olympics. The other right side, Schwartz,
was also at the Olympics. And Eric Lepke, where
was he? He was a great left side for them. Mar
Demianco. didn't play after week one. Like they
have experienced players who should have been
able to win matches. So I'm not buying the young
inexperienced that I've heard from a bunch of
different people. That's just not, it's not true.
Yeah, I'm kind of scratching my head on this.
I'm scratching my head on lineup decisions, on
substitution decisions. Like what? I kind of,
we kind of had the shout out answer for this.
Like somebody help us out a couple of weeks ago
of like, where did Mar and Demian Yanko go? And
Lepke, where, where did they go? And somebody
was like, oh, I think they went to Gord Perrin's
wedding for three weeks. So I'm just like, why
did you show up in Ottawa and then just like
disappear for the rest? Were you injured? I didn't
see any reports about an injury. Like, like nobody
had any answers. Where did you go? And there's.
Curry was injured. Curry was, yes. The libero.
So that, okay, fair, obviously. No matter how
you look at this from my perspective, it's wrong.
If Mar and Demyanko and Lepke didn't want to
travel outside of Canada for whatever reason,
if it was their choice to not play weeks two
and three. Shouldn't be playing week one either.
For me as a coaching staff, it's like if you're
not all in, you're not part of the team. That
to me is a very easy decision. If that wasn't
the play. And the coaching staff only brought
them to week one and then wanted to give other
players an opportunity. Fireable offense. Fireable
offense. You can't get relegated and not play
your best players. Like it makes no sense. So
either way, those lineup decisions specifically
around those players for me is a massive miss.
But even week one, I'm like, okay, Hover started
all VNL last year. Mar coming in. Okay. Yep.
Fair. You're benched. Got it. Makes sense. But
what did you do? To not play the next two weeks
because he wasn't bad last year. No. He did a
pretty decent job. But are you telling me that
Vargas and Young are better than him? I'm not
sure about that. Unless they improved a lot.
Like, I don't know. I don't know what happened.
What's the story here? Where did show go after
week two? Yeah, no week three. I don't know.
That one for me is less critical than Demyanko
and more. But I'm just saying, like, you have
the players on the wide roster. Okay, we can
use the U .S. women as an example. They have
some players that people have been like, why
aren't they bringing these players along? Well,
you know what? It's fine because they finished
first in the ranking. You know what I mean? It's
not the same thing as like Canada. You literally
got relegated and people are like, well, where
are these players? Like completely different
situations. That part to me is mind -blowing.
Mind -blowing. Before we get into some of the
other things, here are some of the numbers about
this V &L performance. They went to five sets
seven times. That's an absurd number of times.
How many did they win? None. Exactly. But they
got reverse swept three times, including twice
in week three where they needed a win to not
be relegated. Okay, so we had a lot of questions
about them going five. Okay, can I give you one
other stat? Yes. They played 21 sets that were
decided by two points. They lost 13 of them and
won eight of them, but obviously never won. Any
of the ones to close out. There were just some
wild numbers around that. Somebody was like,
how is it possible to lose so many five setters?
Is there a place in the game where things seem
to change from a coaching perspective? What needs
to change? Does Dan Lewis keep his job after
this? And another one that kind of was similar
was talking about the Japan -Canada game, how
they went five as well. And they're like, man,
Japan goes five with everybody, but they're always
winning in five. Canada's going five with everybody
and they're losing in five. So how would you
approach these situations as a coach and a player?
So those are the kind of like five set discussions.
Honestly, you see it happen because like the
number of reverse sweeps is like, I know it's
not like a huge number, but you kind of see it.
It's very obvious to me that Canada's coaching
staff has, they can put together a solid game
plan because very often in these matches that
they've gone five, they've won the first set.
They've won the first and second set, which that
tells me you've got a solid game plan and you
are prepared. The fact that you're losing in
five all the time tells me that you are incapable
of identifying what a team is doing to you. And
you are incapable of making real time adjustments
that you have to watch film to be able to figure
out what the heck is going on. And you cannot
watch a game in real time and figure out what
is happening. That is what the five set discussion
tells me for Canada, for Japan, they on paper
are. They're smaller. They run a different style
of play. So they kind of take time to work into
a match to see what a team is doing. And the
fact that they're able to usually come back and
win in five tells me that their coaching staff
and them as players are able to make adjustments
to maximize their maybe deficiencies that teams
are trying to exploit early on. I agree with
everything that you're saying. But. No buts.
It's a very hard skill. to be able to analyze
what's happening in real time, compare that to
the game plan, and then understand your strengths
and weaknesses and change that. Not everybody
on a coaching staff can always do that, but you
need at least one. Not everybody can do that,
but I think as a complete coaching staff unit,
everybody as a whole, people need to be contributing
different things to be able to make it happen.
Agreed. That was my point. I don't see that.
You watched week one. Demyanko was unstoppable
in the middle until the fifth set. And then it
was slow down, slow down, block. Fifth set's
over. Teams are collecting information. Like
you said, they're making adjustments. And Canada's
not adjusting back. If you listen to Dan Lewis's
feedback, and it's not, again, these statements
are not blanket statements. They're very specific
at the beginning of the matches. And then later
on when things aren't going well. No, it's like.
Look for the hands. High off the hands. And the
feedback gets less specific. But I also think
part of that is watching Dan get so emotionally
invested in the match. It's very hard to think
analytically when you're tugging on the ref's
leg sleeve to get attention and make a call.
And you're so anxious about what's going on.
That doesn't work. That anxiety leeches onto
the court. I think it's both a mental component
from the coaching staff and an adjustment component
from the coaching staff that is hindering those
fifth set performances. It was so hard to watch.
It was so hard to watch. And just like almost
cringy, like tugging on the ref's pants to like
get a call or beg for a call or like as a coach
talking through the net to the opposing players.
What are you doing? What are you doing? Stop
it. But it's detrimental. Yes. And clearly they
weren't able to figure out what's actually going
on because he's too busy begging for calls or
fighting with players all the time. Those would
be some of the things that I saw from a coaching
standpoint. Is this a fireball offense? Getting
relegated as Canada with this roster, in my opinion,
is. But I don't know if they will. He's a homegrown
coach. I'm not sure who else takes over that
program. They're in potentially transition with
a lot of young guys coming up. I don't think
he'll be fired, but this is a massive blow to
Canadian volleyball, men's volleyball. Massive,
because it's hard. I think it's going to be very
hard to get back in. I don't think they'll be
back in before the Olympics. You're missing all
of these quality training and experiences for
players like Varga, who are going to now... fall
further and further behind because you don't
get to play. And just be able to play continental
stuff. It's not the same. There's massive repercussions
to this. Well, somebody also was like, why is...
They were talking about the Japan game, but in
general, it's like, why is Canada losing when
they're up two sets to none? Are the players
getting tired? Is the coaching staff making bad
substitutions? Well, there's one other trend
that I've seen with them. They often generate
leads. and then disappear for stretches and give
up runs of points. So obviously they're generating
runs of points if they're building leads, but
when they give up points, it kind of to me seems
like you're checked out. There's three or four
errors in a row or a couple bad decisions in
a row. It just seems that they're A, streaky
as a team, but their mistakes compound with each
other. Sets where they've been winning 13 -8
end up... 25 -23. And that just can't happen.
If you can build off that momentum, you don't
find yourself losing fifth sets because you've
taken care of business. Let's talk about this
Cuba match. Basically, if Canada beats Cuba,
they are in. So Cuba came into the match with
two wins, but not in very many points. Canada
came in with one win and just so many points
because they kept gathering points by losing
in five. So if Canada wins this match, they are
pretty much safe because Cuba played Italy the
next day. They weren't going to win. I mean,
the percentage chance that Cuba was going to
beat Italy was very small. It's a must win for
both teams. And Cuba comes out and wins 3 -0.
3 -0. Are you kidding me right now? That is what
you put on the floor when your VNL future is
on the line. You get blanked. Well, you can look
at it the other way. Cuba was horrendous. This
VNL. We do have to. Okay. Yes. Cuba. Give Cuba
credit. They struggled. Okay. They lost eight
in a row. They came into week three winless.
And they knew that they needed to get these wins.
They won their first three matches. They got
it done. Okay. Canada comes into VNL week three.
They're like, we need one win. And they're like,
no, don't want it. Cuba, back against the wall,
they showed up when they had to and figured it
out. Canada was the complete opposite. Can you
imagine if the situation around the Cuban team
was normal, how good they would be? Anyway, that's
neither here nor there. It's like a command performance
every time. It's like every match you're playing
to stay in VNL and they'd be like, VNL champions.
But anyway, the number of balls that I saw their
left sides hit into the sharp angle, almost every
single swing. Literally almost every single swing.
And not only did the block not even get close
on any of them, neither did the defense. But
again, I listened to feedback about this later
in the match, and you heard, or it might have
been the post -game interview, while they hit...
over us and then they hit set two it was a set
two so in between sets two and there's a dan
lewis said something to the effect of well they're
hitting over us and then they're hitting around
us and then they're doing you know this that
or the other thing kind of like we don't know
what yeah when they're not hitting over us they're
hitting around us and when they're not hitting
around us they're hitting over us it's like what
it's like no that's that's what they're supposed
to do they're trying not they're trying to score
and granted if you're getting hit over there's
not a whole lot you can do about that maybe a
sub and a taller player but You have to defend
the balls around. You have to get slowdowns.
There are things that you can do. Let's force
them to hit line. Leave a truckload of line.
Let's just see what happens here. I do not want
to see them score into the sharp angle one more
time, okay? I heard that in between sets two
and three. I was like, this is over. They don't
know what to do. Set three, the body language
on the court. I almost turned it off. I was like,
you guys are rolling over and dying. The body
language was terrible. I'm like, this is how
you're responding to this adversity right now?
Very disappointed. As a Canadian, too, I'm extra
disappointed in that outing and how the fight
just seemed to disappear. There weren't any Canadian
players who made plays down the stretch when
they needed to. If you lose seven matches in
five, you just needed somebody to step up. twice,
once more. And it just, it didn't happen. There
needs to be a shift in mentality and approach.
And, you know, they talk about scoring after
20. How are you going to fix that? What's, what's
the plan? Is it set distribution? Is it set location?
Is it swing choice? Is it not being a great,
like there's all kinds of things and you should
have been able to make those adjustments between
weeks one, two, and three. Who knows how long
it'll take for us to see Canada back in the VNO.
We know it won't be in 2027. I wonder how this
will affect their Olympic prospects. I wonder.
Because if any year is going to be a year where
Canada's like feeling great about making the
Olympics, it's when the U .S. is off the table.
Can you imagine when it comes to the continental
qualifier and Canada has to play Cuba? To make
it. To make it in. Who's going to show up? That
VNL match was not just about staying in VNL.
Cuba sent a message. 100%. Who knows what this
is going to do to volleyball, the men's team.
All I can say is how the tables have turned in
volleyball in Canada, everybody. The women were
getting no love for the longest time, and the
men were getting all the funding. They were getting
everything. And now look. Now look what happened.
Honestly, I'm proud of the women. But, guys,
it is time for listener questions. Our listeners
have been showing up, okay, with the questions
on Instagram, by email, on YouTube. Like, you
name it. You guys are submitting a ton of questions,
first of all. And you're very curious. I can't
even tell you how many we have in reserve. I
try to select these questions to keep them relevant
for the most part to what we're talking about.
But it is very hard to make these selections.
So anyway, here we go. I picked a whole bunch
today. Question one. What happened to the U .S.
middle blocker Butler? She was playing so well
last year. Not only did she not make it to the
roster this year, neither. Sarah nor Adam had
her in mind when picking the LA roster. Can someone
fill me in? If you're talking about the LA roster
that we talked about last women's episode, the
challenge was to only pick one person per college.
And Breon Butler went to Texas. And as we know,
there are lots of Texas athletes playing for
the national team. And we ended up picking. As
our Texas athlete. So that's what happened there.
As for part two, I heard a rumor. It is not substantiated,
so I don't know if it's fact or not. But basically
I heard that she did not like Eric Sullivan and
just they did not see eye to eye. And so she
was not invited back because of that relationship
dynamic. Again, not confirmed. That is just something
I heard. And that happens, right? Coaches have
a style. Coaches have things they're looking
for. It just doesn't always work. That's the
way it goes. One other question for you in regards
to this. Do you think she's better than Okbagu
or Redke? No. Do you think she's the third middle?
Better than O 'Neal? Better than Ajid? No. You
know, she's... She's good, but even without the
relationship dynamic, I still think she's lower
in the depth chart. Okay, tied to this question,
question two, what happened to Maddie Skinner?
So I have a theory on this. Hit me. Okay, first
of all, I haven't heard anything about her being
injured or anything. She is on the VNL wide roster,
but has not traveled at all during VNL. So maybe
she's injured. No clue. But my theory is when
you watch her play, so many of her points come
from the throws or the like power tips and just
like kind of manipulating the ball in a way that
has become illegal in VNL this year. So I'm wondering
if maybe they were like. Until you can figure
out how to score effectively, either by attacking
or tipping traditionally, we can't bring you
because we can't use you. It's a good theory.
I agree, and I think with the fast offense, like
with Jordan Poulter, she does that a lot specifically.
Think of how many balls, like we saw it at Texas,
we see it in love, how many balls Maddie Skinner
scores by jumping and like... power throwing
the ball down or manhandling the ball, for lack
of a better term, which just isn't going to fly
in VNL anymore. Yeah, and I mean, she was already
on the outside looking in from an opposite perspective
than you take away arguably her best weapon.
And yeah, she's got some reinventing of her game
she needs to do, and it probably hasn't happened
yet. So that's my theory. I think it's a good
theory. That's where I'm at. Okay, question three.
While commentators have no effect on the volleyball
itself, they do influence the volleyball viewer's
experience. Can you guys speak to how commentators
are chosen, selected for events such as VNL?
And then this person went on to say, there's
one commentator, Clayton Lucas, that's always
laughing as his commentary, and I'm not a fan
of his perspective on the game sometimes. And
then she said, Sarah mentioned she didn't watch
USA versus Brazil, but it was either that match
or the one before we had kept mistaking Jordan
Thompson for Haley Washington, who isn't even
on the war roster. I did end up going back and
watching USA Brazil and I noticed the same thing.
So it's so funny that you bring this up. That
is just being unprepared. No, here's okay. This
is an observation I have made. This is another
one of like Sarah's theories. But I have noticed
this a lot with commentators, particularly white
commentators. The number of times I have seen
black athletes be confused between each other
when a white commentator is announcing a game
is insane. Again, it has nothing to do, I don't
think it has anything to do with racism or anything
like that, but I think it is. Somebody who has
like a sociology degree or something confirmed
this for me, but I'm pretty sure we view our
own race more distinctly than others. And so
I have noticed this across the board in commentating
and it drives me crazy. So he is not the first.
He does joke around a lot, which he's funny.
Like some of the things he does are funny, but
I'm pretty sure for VNL. if you show interest
and can like prove that you've done this before,
I don't know what the procedure is, but because
the schedule is so grueling and you're traveling
overseas and you have to be gone for literally
like six to eight weeks out of your summer, I
think it's probably very difficult for them to
find a cast of commentators that are willing
to do it for the duration of VNL. So I think
as long as you're, like knowledgeable about the
game and show interest, I think that they have
considered a lot of people. Yeah. And I'll say
this, right? Your best talent goes where there's
the most money and there's not the most money
in volleyball. There's not a pool of people who
have been doing this professionally for a long
time to draw from. You look at NFL, NBA, like
there's just more people who are doing it because
it's worth your time. Not to say that they're
not doing a good job, but I think that that also
plays a part in the quality of the broadcast
as a whole, not just the commentators. And trust
me, watching VNO, I have certain commentators
that I like way better than others. Some I do
not enjoy at all, and there's a couple that I
really do like. But think about it. These people
are being asked to give up almost their entire
summer. to go overseas sit in a gym for all day
for like five days straight it's not easy and
talking volleyball for like four matches in a
row like yeah so i have a lot of respect for
what they're doing it's hard but yeah it's probably
the most not the most sought after opportunity
if you're comparing it to like doing the professional
leagues or things like that where you're able
to just travel domestically in the winter or
something. Okay, question four. While there are
so many heavy hitters and big swings, it seems
like blockers tend to leave the line open. Is
this easier to defend, which is why it's left
to the defenders? But if it's easier to defend,
why are there so many kills in this area? Are
there stats on areas of the court that get the
most kills? A lot to unpack in this question.
I'm going to give a couple kind of high -level
theories of why people do this. First, offenses
are so fast, it's often very difficult for pin
blockers to help with the middle and the pipe
and then get outside and seal the line. There's
just not enough time. So unless you're willing
to sacrifice helping in the middle to get out
to the pin and take away the line, you just can't
cover it all with a block. For me, the second
piece is if you're forcing a hitter to hit down
the line, there's the possibility that they miss
the court and have an error versus swinging into
the middle of the court where you're not going
to miss. You're either going to hit a defender.
It's not going to be an error. You're forcing
that player to kind of thread a line, maybe hit
the antenna, maybe hit out of bounds, and then
you're hoping that your defender can dig that
ball. Digging down the line is tough. It's a
tough skill when there's no block in front of
you. But it's just, it's usually the higher percentage
play rather than leaving the middle of the court
open for a hitter to hit a seam or no block that
way. There are some very good line hitters. That
is not an absolute rule, but I think that is
probably the thought process a lot of the time.
I've noticed it a lot with right side attackers
especially in the women's side lately like a
lot of blocks are leaving the line open for right
side attackers and my theory on that is because
the libero is usually digging down the line which
if you have the option between having them hit
to your right side in the angle or like your
libero I think you want to play the percentages
that your libero will get a better dig but it's
also I think we're seeing the Outside hitters
are having a hard time setting a consistent block
on the outside because we're not seeing the hits
always come straight down the line. We're seeing
them come into the line seam at times, which
is hard to dig for a line defender. If you are
leaving line, it is a very narrow bridge you're
walking of like... where to line up because the
difference between digging straight down the
line and having a slight angle available is huge.
Okay. Question five. This is for the women. The
Italian starters came back for week three and
they were brought to five sets by both China
and Canada. They also went five in the world
championship semifinal against Brazil and in
the final against Turkey. They have a very simple
game. They don't vary their attack. They run
middle in front of the setter. They run the opposite
and position four. They don't run combos like
the Piper Slide. Running this system, they looked
unbeatable for a long time, but I've noticed
that they've become less effective in recent
games. Is their type of game now becoming too
predictable and other teams have started to figure
it out? Do they need to vary their attack? It
strikes me that their game effectively relies
on perfect execution, and when that's lacking,
they appear vulnerable. I mean, that statement
stands for a lot of teams. Like, if you don't
execute, you're vulnerable. That being said,
they run the middles in front because their opposites
are so good. Like, you want to create a spread
and a seam for Entropova and for Aganu. It just
makes sense that you're going to do that. We
talked about this in the last podcast. I do think
they need to add a pipe ball into their offense
because their left sides are not quite as terminal
as they have been in the past. And so 100%, I
think they're going to need to add a little something
to help the left sides get a little more one
-on -one, one -and -a -half, see a few less blocks.
They do what they do because their personnel
allows them to run. that system effectively.
And I don't think going to five means that you're
doing something wrong. You're playing good teams.
You're going to have battles. It's can you come
out on top? And they generally do. But I do agree
with the statement that they don't look as unbeatable
as they did in the last couple of years. A hundred
percent. But you have to remember, they also
played together for the first time in the third
week. Like all of them had a break in. weeks
one and two like it takes a little bit of time
to find your rhythm i think let's wait and see
how they look at european championships before
we go late even yeah before we say that italy's
over i think this is a good question yeah no
i i agree As a VNL viewer since 2023, I have
always been curious regarding relegation, specifically
how only one team is relegated per year. Do you
guys deem this to be fair or do you think it
would be more beneficial or exciting for a higher
turnover each VNL? I think two teams should be
relegated. I think there's so many teams who
are on the cusp of being able to come in and
out. It's a long haul to get back in and with
only one team coming in and out i think games
would mean more and you would see a little more
everybody fights but a little more drama at the
bottom if you had two teams coming out so i would
be a huge proponent of a two -team turnover i
definitely think it would be more exciting whenever
there's more at stake things are always more
exciting i just think particularly in the women's
side once you get past like the top 10 teams
the level for me kind of drops But I think this
helps with that. If you have a couple nations
who are up and coming, this VNL experience is
so important for young players, for teams who
haven't done that, to understand what the level
is, to be able to move two of those cusp teams
up to get a chance, even for a year, so they
understand. I think that helps the overall level
as well. I wonder if money has anything to do
with it. You often see sometimes the bottom teams
are the ones who are hosting. hosting their federation
president is involved in the continental you
know what i mean there's just like so many politics
and things going on so i wonder if that's part
of the reason why they don't do it but i i do
think it would be way more exciting but it is
also like such a huge investment to do vnl so
like once you make it like having the opportunity
to try to like Figure it out is also useful.
I don't know. Pros and cons to both, but I would
be a fan of the two -team relegation. We agree
that it would be way more exciting. Question
seven. The serving of the U .S. men's national
team middles seems to be a real weakness for
them. With how high Jendrick and McHenry get
off the ground, why can't they just work on elevating
as high as possible and hammering hard, aggressive
flat balls that go down toward the mid -torso
of the passers? If they serve their normal powder
puff floats, the other team sides out 90 % of
the time anyway. You're not wrong. Two things.
One, I guarantee you they are working on that
serve. They just haven't figured it out yet.
It's not consistent. And the other thing to think
about is who are your green light servers and
who do you need to just get it in? And so, you
know, those two, even their most aggressive float
serve may not cause as much serving trouble as,
DeFalco or Haynes or Anderson, right? Like you
have really good servers on team. I think as
a team, the U S has actually served really, really
well. This VNL. Are you just thinking of TJ DeFalco
though? Because he's good for like 27 aces every
match. No. Do you not think that Haynes served
pretty well? I think he's serving pretty well.
The question is pertaining to the middle. Do
you think like, I agree if you're going to serve
a free ball over, what are you, what are we doing
here? Well, I guess my point was in isolation,
their serves are not very good. Agreed. But you
have to, there may be a bigger team context as
to why they have the mandate of make sure you
get your serve in. Fair. But like, I just wonder,
they're not like necessarily placing the ball
in a precise way either. You know, sometimes
people get the yip serving too. Don't get me
wrong. I struggle serving. So I'm just gonna.
get it in, and that's a win for me. I don't know.
On the surface, their serve is not difficult.
100 % agree with that. I'm just saying there
may be other reasons other than they can't do
it as to where that's coming from. But they are
generating a ton of points from elsewhere, so
I do understand what you're saying, and I can
get behind that. Maybe they could work on developing
a hybrid serve. But yeah, can you imagine if
McKendree just like yasses the ball up there
and it's just like... I will guarantee you that
he is spending time one -on -one working on those
things, but it just might not be there yet. Okay,
question eight. How is the U .S. women's team
on top of the standings in VNL despite having
zero players amongst the best in statistical
categories? I know the U .S. uses a lot of their
players and rests players, but is there another
reason for this? Is it because they run a balanced
offense? So my instinct reading this question
was thinking of how often they're just like switching
up their lineup, which it makes it really hard.
When you think of the teams that are out there
and how some teams are not deep at all, and they
need to play the same roster every time, that
automatically gives those players just a huge
advantage in the statistical department, which
this person addressed. Yeah, I mean, I think
the Belgium right side on the men's side has
like 224 points in the men's. And they're like
third last. Yeah, that is definitely part of
it. But I think the other thing, too, is the
U .S. doesn't have a star. They don't have a
Vargas. And so they have to rely on moving the
ball around, having everybody involved in the
offense. And quite frankly, that's been their
identity for a really long time. They've moved
the ball around. They've run the pipe well. They
have had top blockers. In the past, they have
had people at the top. But not a cannon on the
outside who you're just going to feed balls to.
I think you see this a lot when you have balanced
teams. You don't necessarily have a standout
statistically. You're just not that opportunity.
I'd be curious what the stats would look like
if they had stuck with a similar roster. For
three weeks. I still don't think they would be
high. Really? No. I don't think they would be
leading in any of the categories other than efficiency
categories. I think somebody would be up there
in blocks. In blocks, maybe. I guess for this
I'm thinking attacking and killings. And killings.
For this I'm thinking attack and kills. And I
don't think that would be the case. Because I
don't think anybody gets enough sets. Okay, question
nine. At the international level, I've noticed
that the captain of a team can change around
amongst a handful of veteran and up -and -coming
players. Aside from the coin toss, what does
a captain do at this level, and is it very consequential
for a team's performance, stability, etc.? Typically,
what's supposed to happen is the captain is the
only person that should be able to talk to the
referees. Unless you're Canadian. I knew that
was coming. So that's really, yeah, the coin
toss. They're the only people that are, they're
supposed to be the go -between between their
teammates, between the coaching staff and the
referees. Aside from that, it's like you're the
person who has to go do the press conferences
and do this and that, like off -court stuff.
But on the court, it's... Your leadership group
is your leadership group, generally, regardless
of who is the captain. Yeah, like you said, performance
-wise, I don't really think it makes much of
a difference. Okay, last question of the day.
If you're a young up -and -coming athlete, like
if you're an Isabel Hawk type talent, okay, from
a smaller Asian nation like Vietnam, Taiwan,
Philippines that has traditionally done well
in Asian continent events, but that's it, would
you recommend them to try to go through the NCAA
system? would it give them the training and exposure
they would need to have a chance of playing at
a higher professional level? That's a very specific
question. Well, because, okay, so this all stemmed
from the fact that the Taiwanese Libero signed
for MLV NorCal, which they were all excited about
when they were posting about it, but I'm like,
who is this player? So that is where this thought
process kind of came from, is that... These players,
while A, famous in their own countries, B, they
do well in the Asian continent events, nobody
from around the world other than the people who
play in those continental tournaments know anything
about them. Do you think playing NCAA or professional
in North America changes that from a worldview?
Okay, well, I think a lot of agents and stuff
now are tied and are keeping a close eye on NCAA
volleyball. which could then lead to them being
picked up from an agency perspective. If you
can come play in one of the top four conferences
in NCAA, maybe you get a little more visibility.
I think the better path or the easier path is
just to go out and get a European agent or to
try and connect with somebody that way who can
advocate for you. Because at the end of the day...
If your goal is to play pro somewhere, it's really
hard to find a contract on your own or to get
seen by a team. You need good representation.
That should be the goal. Yeah, but this question
can be thought of as going to NCAA with the thought
of getting representation from NCAA play. It
never hurts to be in more than one place in terms
of being seen. Yeah, this is an interesting question
to me. I don't think playing in the NCAA is a
surefire way to get where you want to go. But
you do see, I feel like you see a lot of Asian
athletes from like some of those smaller countries
go play in Japan. Like sometimes I see a Japanese
roster and they have players that I'm like, oh,
and it's clearly from playing in ABC tournaments.
You know what I mean? So like, I feel like if
you're able to make the jump even to a higher
level Asian league and then use that as a springboard.
Yeah. Like that could be an opportunity to completely
agree with that. You, I think there's lots of
different ways to get noticed and seen. I'm not
saying NCAA is not a great way, but I, I'm not
sure that would be my first thought. Thanks to
everybody who submitted questions. We had a ton
to go through this week. It was so hard to pick
only 10, but we appreciate everybody who's paying
attention and curious about the sport. So looking
forward, obviously this week is VNL final eight.
They'll all be good games. There's not that many
of them to watch, so maybe you can watch most
of them. Quarterfinals start on Thursday, and
semis and finals will be Saturday and Sunday.
And as a reminder, and we're choked about this,
we are out of town for a prior engagement this
weekend, so we are not going to be able to release
a podcast episode. next week so what we're gonna
do we're gonna catch up on women's final eight
as soon as we can and we will release a big episode
covering the men's and the women's final eight
at the same time in two weeks so we're sorry
about that we are also not super thrilled with
that but that is the way life goes so we'll catch
you back in two weeks That concludes this week's
episode of Volley Talk. There's always something
shaking in the volleyball world and we hope you
enjoyed this little fix. You'd be sure to follow
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out on Instagram or at info at sarahpavin .com.
Thanks so much for joining us and we'll be back
in two weeks. Bye.