Not often does IU Coach Sherry Dunbar-Kruzan get out of her seat during a match.
She usually stays seated, intensely watching the match, noticing every detail. At times, she will get up to offer her players some advice to improve their play.
However, in the fifth set against Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday night, she was up and excited.
The Hoosiers were trailing two sets to one to the 7-4 Eagles, and earlier in the day, IU had lost for the first time this season, in five sets to Samford. Now, with IU's back against the wall in the fourth set, adjustments had to be made.
FGCU junior outside hitter Amanda Carroll was having her way at the net with 27 kills, and Dunbar-Kruzan knew IU had to stop her.
“We finally got the speed of our block going to try and shut her down,” Dunbar-Kruzan said. “When it’s crunch time, that’s who they were going to go to, and we finally slowed her down, and once we did that it gave us a little bit more confidence.”
The fourth set was tight the entire way through, but at 21-21, the Hoosiers gained an edge and took the set 25-22 to force their second fifth-setter of the day.
Unlike the noon loss to Samford, there was no slowing IU down as the Hoosiers took the fifth set 15-10 to beat FGCU.
“After the fourth set, we all just said, ‘let’s lock in and let’s finish this,’ and we were so focused that entire set. It was awesome,” sophomore outside hitter Kendall Beerman said.
Beerman had the game-winning kill and said she loves those types of moments. Her thoughts as she was in the air before the kill: “Let’s finish this game."
The types of moments Beerman was talking about are easier to handle when you have had experience in them, like Beerman has. But when freshmen come into the game and perform in those moments as well, it makes for a happy coach.
Dunbar-Kruzan put freshman outside hitter Kamryn Malloy into the game in the fourth set, when she had not played a minute the entire day.
Malloy had nine kills and a hitting percentage of .750.
“It’s great that we have freshmen that can handle that,” Dunbar-Kruzan said. “I’m not afraid to put them in because I think they are that good. I think they have the right maturity level of play that I know they’ll be fine.”
Along with Malloy, freshman defensive specialist Bayli Lebo was constantly in the game, freshman Alexis Parker was IU's go-to weapon in set five against Samford and freshman Nora Meehan was inserted to serve at key points.
Dunbar-Kruzan said that this weekend showed how deep and how good IU’s bench is this season.
The win gave the Hoosiers a record of 11-1, their best start to a season since going 12-0 in 2010. That year was also the last year they made the NCAA Tournament, as the Hoosiers advanced to the Sweet Sixteen.
IU's next match will be a conference matchup against Illinois at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at the University Gym.
