Dunbar leads team to best season it has had in 6 years

The IU volleyball team made a 179-degree turn in two years under Coach Sherry Dunbar.

The only last degree left to 180 is to make postseason play.

That might be coming in the not too distant future as Dunbar took a team that had a combined five Big Ten wins between 2004 and 2006 and got them nine Big Ten wins in 2008.

Not making postseason play was the only negative thing that happened to the team this year. This was a goal which many on the team thought they would accomplish, given the fact they finished in sixth place in the conference and the Big Ten had at least six representatives in tournament play every year since 1998.

Sophomore outside hitter Taylor Wittmer said the team members were upset they did not get in but had no say in the matter.

“We were really disappointed about (not getting in), obviously,” Wittmer said. “Though, you cannot control what the committee says.”

Despite missing the tournament, IU had many positives this season.

Positives like a 17-15 record, the first winning season for the team since 2002, and wins against two ranked conference opponents – then-No. 13 Minnesota and then-No. 21 Wisconsin – also the first time since 2002.

Dunbar said the season as a whole was a success, and she looks for even more success in the future.

“Looking at the whole picture of what we did was important and it set the foundation for years to come,” she said. “We need to build on that and move on to bigger and better things.”

Individual highlights include senior defensive specialist Juli Pierce becoming the all-time digs leader and senior middle blocker Erica Short becoming the all-time kills leader.

These two players’ skills are going to have to be compensated for if IU is going to continue improving as a program. Two ways this might happen is through recruiting – the team has two High School All-Americans recruited for next year – and IU’s other returning players making contributions.

One of these may be junior Kelsey Hall, who finished fourth on the team in kills this season despite missing eight matches early in the year due to injury.

Hall said the future looks bright for the team, and they will be even better next year.

“We are excited for the freshmen coming in, and we are a team on the upswing,” she said. “We will finish fifth or higher next year (in the Big Ten) and go to the NCAA Tournament.”