No. 7 University of Louisville, No. 12 Texas A&M University, No. 22 University of Tennessee, then-undefeated University of Georgia.
Those were the tier of programs that Indiana volleyball opened its season competing against on the road. The Cream and Crimson went 1-2 against ranked opponents, falling in three sets to Louisville and Tennessee and defeating the Aggies.
It was losses that Indiana head coach Steve Aird said were like medicine — they tasted bad but were good for the team. It was a daunting stretch of games that taught the Hoosiers valuable lessons.
But when the Hoosiers finally returned home for their season opening Indiana Invitational at Wilkinson Hall on Thursday and Friday, they weren’t playing the same tier of competition.
The Cream and Crimson defeated California Polytechnic State University in three sets Thursday and Eastern Illinois University in three sets Friday. Neither were Power Four opponents, and Eastern Illinois entered the contest 1-6 overall, riding a six-game losing streak.
It was a stark contrast with the Hoosiers' first four opponents. But Indiana still maintained its standard and found different kinds of value from the invitational.
“We’ve done a really good job at staying connected even in hard times,” sophomore outside hitter Jaidyn Jager said postgame Friday. “There’s a lot of miscommunications like here and there, but we did very well starting out quick and just trusting each other.”
In Indiana’s matchup with Cal Poly, the Hoosiers won the first two sets 25-11 and 25-16. But in the third set, Indiana had to come from behind late in the match. The Hoosiers led by as many as six points in the set but found themselves trailing 21-17 late.
“I thought we got a little bit timid in game three and started making some errors and then the errors compound” Aird said postgame Thursday. “And then you see stuff that doesn't make sense, you know, kids get timid and hit balls under the net, passing blows up, and T (sophomore setter Teodora Krickovic) trying to be too creative and everyone starts to search, as opposed to just trust what we do.”
Self-inflicted errors plagued Indiana in the set. But instead of crumbling as they did in previous matches, the Hoosiers responded with maturity and composure — a sign of growth for the crew.
Following the victory over Eastern Illinois, fifth-year middle blocker Kiki Granberry said her team has demonstrated growth over the past couple games in their ability to bounce back from errors.
In addition to building mental composure, the invitational allowed the Cream and Crimson to become more assured of themselves in front of their home crowd. It was Indiana’s first opportunity to play in front of its own fans. And an increase in confidence translated into two high-level performances.
Against Cal Poly, Indiana tallied 41 kills and hit .378. Four different Hoosiers hit at least .400. Granberry led in attacking percentage, hitting .667. Jager led in total kills with 14.
Then, against Eastern Illinois, the offensive efficiencies continued. Indiana picked up 46 kills, with Jager leading again with 14. The Hoosiers hit .391 as a team with five players hitting over .300.
“You see the students showing up and showing out for us, and I think it really helps us and makes us confident,” Jager said postgame Friday.
Indiana will look to carry its growth and continue its nonconference success when it faces Coastal Carolina University in the Chanticleer Classic on Sept. 18 in Conway, South Carolina.
Follow reporters Savannah Slone (@savrivers06 and srslone@iu.edu) and Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki87731 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana volleyball season.
