Nov. 4, 2013

Ole Miss volleyball head coach Joe Getzin spoke to the local media Monday afternoon at the Manning Center.

Opening statement...
“We had a rough weekend. We got swept at Missouri and Arkansas. However, on a bright note, we had some offensive production that we hadn’t seen all year from our team in both matches. We just weren’t able to get a stop defensively. All year we’ve been clamoring for more hits and kills, and we did that this weekend, we just weren’t able to stop the other team.

"Missouri will probably be in the top-five this weekend. They’re still undefeated and a very good team, probably the best team we’ve seen all season so far. Arkansas came out firing on all cylinders playing at home. We didn’t find a defensive stop for them.

"We really can’t let that bother us as we turn around and go to (Mississippi) State on Wednesday in an ESPNU match. They’re very similar (to us) statistically and record-wise, as well. It doesn’t really matter when you play your in-state rival. It’s going to be a tough match. We’ve got to be prepared and put our last two matches behind us and move forward.

"We turn around after that, come home Wednesday night, have a practice on Thursday and head to Tennessee (Thursday evening). We will hopefully get a season sweep of Tennessee. We’ll charter home Friday evening to play Texas A&M on Sunday. It will be a busy couple days for us.”

On excitement for TV match...
“I don’t think we’ve even discussed that point of it yet. This will be our first TV match. I’m sure the freshmen will have to get used to the cameras in their face the whole time. Once the whistle blows, most players don’t even recognize they’re on TV.”

On Kara Morgan moving into fourth place on the career kills list at Ole Miss...
“She’s been a four-year starter for us. Unfortunately with an injury this last spring, I don’t think she’s been quite at the top of her game as she would like in her senior year. I’ve been really proud of her because of the way she’s stayed in there. Recently she’s really come on strong defensively and passing-wise. Kara’s been a good leader for us her whole career here.”

On physical condition of the team leading up to busy week...
“We had last weekend off. That’s like trying to catch up on sleep; you can’t sleep a lot for something that’s going to happen in the future. Thankfully the girls have taken care of the academics so the stress level is a little bit lower. Our team is in good physical shape - that isn’t an issue at all. We’ve just got to limit some reps. With no days in between, you don’t get as much scouting and preparation as you normally would. That’s the hard part about it.”

On attitude of the team...
“We’re so young and the attitude has been good all the way through. They’re frustrated with not being rewarded for what we ask them to do. They do it and the other team steps up and plays a little bit better. As I’ve stated, I like this team. There’s a lot of promise in the future for Ole Miss volleyball. We’ve got to fire on all cylinders to make it happen. They know we’re good. I believe the team realizes how good we can be. They’re excited to play this week.”