Capital Classic

Kudos to Musselman for taking the win in the Capital Classic Tourney! Obviously that's why their ranked #1

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Capitla Classic all-tourney announced

The all-tourney from the Capital Classic has been posted to the scoreboard dated 10/4/2008

great matchup vballdownunder vs. mntbiker who is the winner??

Thats what is great about this message board people get extremely passionate about volleyball and their girls!! I love it!! Now remember boys or girls (whoever you are) that this is all in good fun and the best team will finally be decided in Novemember!! But unfortunately for mntbiker (as it appears) I believe the state tournament format is the best 3 out of 5 to 25.

Who is the winner?

I totally agree tapout! This is what adds to the VB season, I enjoy reading every post.

What the...?

The original questions posted by Sinjin was "How do opposing coaches play them?" and "Your thoughts?". I gave my opinion and appreciate the objective comments from bigred1 and digitup08 who either agreed or disagreed and then offered an explanation of why. This is how we learn. However, some are trying to take my comments as a personal attack on their teams when it was never the case. If you would get over your self promotion of your favorite team and actually read what I am saying then you would understand that I believe that both Musselman and PHS are top teams in the State. When they squared off against each other Mussleman played to their level as expected but PHS unexpectedly did not play their game. Whether Musselman was supremely stronger than PHS or not, PHS did not play at the level they usually do even as stated by bigred1 "We certainly can play better than we did in the finals". I just want to know other opinions as to why they did not.

And to reply to vbdownunder before the comment was edited. You are still wrong as to who you think I am and will never figure it out. And if you do, there are laws against stalking.

Sprawls- I played high school

Sprawls- I played high school volleyball in southern California and collegially at San Diego Christian College. The advise I would give is to play year round, play on a good travel team where you will be exposed to the big tournaments.

Sinjin- I agree with WVMTNBIKER in that I would try and double block her and hope that the other players don't beat me. In the finals against P-burg those other players looked very good to me, they do set to her a good bit but I would have shocked if they had not since Greenbrier East and Parkersburg could not stop her.
I don't buy into the fatigue issue because all the teams have to overcome that.

On a side note it was very enjoyable talking to the fans from Parkersburg and Musselman, it was obvious that there is a respect for each others teams. I aslo enjoyed talking to the Winfield parents, they were extremely vocal in support of their kids and it was a fun enviroment.

How do you play Musselman?

How do you play Musselman? Double block Manor when she is on the front row, attack constantly to keep them off balance, and score when she is on the back row. Musselman is an average team without Manor and they rely on her way too much. If she has an off day or goes down with an injury they will be hurting. Both Winfield and Greenbrier East split games with Musselmen at the Capital Classic and Musselman barely beat out Winfield by points for the #1 seed out of pool play. Parkersburg is more balanced all the way around than Musselman. You could see Winfield was tired when they played Parkersburg in the semi-final but they still pushed them hard which tired Parkersburg but Musselman cruised in because Greenbrier East did not push them in their semi-final so Musselman was able to roll over Parkersburg who looked tired in the finals. In my opinion, Winfield was the surprise team of the tournament. They came out of no where and easily took down GW and Greenbrier East, pushed Parkersburg, and split with Musselman. They did have a bad game against Parkersburg South though. Woodrow Wilson had a tough day and Cabell Midland did not look good at all.

reply to wvmntbiker

Both Winfield and Greenbriar East split with Musselman....
Yes they did in pool play in games to 20 points big difference than a 5 game match to 25

Without Manor Musselman is just an average team......
If you take the best player off of any team its going to make a difference but I believe they would be far better than average

Winfield was tired when they played Parkersburg in the semis......
If thats the case they better get in better shape the seasons past half way over

Winfield pushed Parkersburg hard...
Looked to me like Parkersburg won without to much problem according to the scores (25-18 / 25-20

Winfield had a bad game against Parkersburg South.....
Their the only team able to have a bad game?

Parkersburg looked tired in the finals (because Winfield pushed them so hard).....
I have a hard time believing Carl does'nt have his girls in shape and I am sure he would never say they were too tired to perform

Parkersburg way more balanced than Musselman...
Assuming your a Winfield fan while you were on your way home (after pushing Parkesburg real hard because you certainly could'nt have been there watching) Musselman dominated the finals and looked like they were just getting started.

Both Winfield and Greenbriar

Both Winfield and Greenbriar East split with Musselman....
Yes they did in pool play in games to 20 points big difference than a 5 game match to 25
- Did you even see the games? Both Winfield and Greenbrier East outplayed Musselman. I agree that a 5 game match is a different level and requires a different level of performance but being outplayed for 1 game or 5 games is flaw in a team that needs to be addressed and corrected. Are you saying that Musselman is the best team in the state only in 5 game matches to 25? I say they are one of the best teams but like all teams they have weaknesses that can be exploited.

Without Manor Musselman is just an average team......
If you take the best player off of any team its going to make a difference but I believe they would be far better than average
- From my observation on Saturday and in my opinion, their defense and blocking schemes are well trained but their offense revolves so much around Manor that it takes away from the effectiveness of the other hitters.

Winfield was tired when they played Parkersburg in the semis......
If thats the case they better get in better shape the seasons past half way over.
- When was the last time you played in an all day tournament? Sitting around between matches is tiresome. When you play 100 percent against an opponent is tiresome and then have to do it again instantly will take a toll on any team no matter what the conditioning is. Being "tired" can be a physical or mental state. Winfield played like they were tired compared to their previous play. Whether it was physical or mental is for the coach to determine and correct.

Winfield pushed Parkersburg hard...
Looked to me like Parkersburg won without to much problem according to the scores (25-18 / 25-20
- Scores are used only to determine a winner of a contest but do not dictate the manner in which it was played. A team can outplay an opponent and still lose.

Winfield had a bad game against Parkersburg South.....
Their the only team able to have a bad game?
- What is the point here? The majority of the teams there and a bad game or two.

Parkersburg looked tired in the finals (because Winfield pushed them so hard).....
I have a hard time believing Carl does'nt have his girls in shape and I am sure he would never say they were too tired to perform.
- Parkersburg did not play up to their usual standards in the finals. They were late on their blocks, out of position on their defense, and slow on their transition which, in turn, means they could not get their offense going. All are indications that they were tired either mentally or physically. No coach will ever say their team was tired or unprepared but good coaches will find the root cause, fix the problem, and prepare for the next time. I am sure the Parkersburg coach will do that and I am sure he is not happy with the way they lost.

Parkersburg way more balanced than Musselman...
Assuming your a Winfield fan while you were on your way home (after pushing Parkesburg real hard because you certainly could'nt have been there watching) Musselman dominated the finals and looked like they were just getting started.
- I am not a Winfield fan but after watching them lose the first game in pool play to Musselman, make adjustments, and then come out, and outplay them the second game they were worth keeping an eye on. Especially since they were an AA school last year. Musselman did play a good final and played as expected but Parkersburg did not play as expected. So you have to ask why did Parkersburg not play up to their potential and not rule out being "tired" because in my opinion they looked it because of the reasons I stated above. Only the Parkersburg coach will be able look inside his team and find out what caused the breakdown. If you want to try and turn a sharing of information into a personal dig "Assuming your a Winfield fan while you were on your way home (after pushing Parkesburg real hard because you certainly could'nt have been there watching" then try to get your facts straight. 1. You are incorrect about me being a Winfield fan. 2. You are incorrect about me not being there. AND 3. Your comments are indicative of someone who enjoys watching the game but not study it.

Are you kidding me wvmntbiker?

All Iam saying is Musselman lost a game to 20 in poolplay against Winfield and Greenbriar East, big deal nobody went unbeaten on the day.I am not trying to take anything from Winfield they have a nice team. My point about having a bad game is you made it sound like Winfield had a bad game against Parkersburg South but Musselman could'nt have had a bad game they "got out played" because of proper coaching adjustments. Yes I saw the games and I saw Musselman dominate the tournament. They have been ranked #1 since week 1 so somebody besides me thinks they are the best team in the state. I dont think it matters when the last time I played in an all day tournament, the girls have to do that ,my point was Musselman did'nt seem to have problems in the playoffs with fatigue. Your comment (a team can outplay an opponent and still lose)? Thats a new one on me! LOL! By the way this is the second time Musselman has beaten PHS this year. They beat them in pool play at Oak Glen Tourney 2 out of 3 match and they will probbably see them again at Martinsburg on the 18th. And last your right I just love to watch the games then get on here a talk about them!!Have a nice day wvmntbiker:)

excuses by wvmntbiker

WVMNTBIKER,
I am from Parkersburg and we don't need you making excuses for us. PHS plays in all day tournaments just about every weekend, our girls are in shape and know how to prepare mentally for long tournaments! Musselman simply outplayed us both times we have played them this year, we do not need to make any excuses, we respect Musselman and I'm sure they respect us. We certainly can play better than we did in the finals but Musselman brought their A game in the playoffs and they are tough to handle for anyone when they play like that.

I never made excuses for PHS

I never made excuses for PHS nor have I criticized them and if you carefully re-read and understand all the comments I made about PHS you will see that I have a lot of respect for Parkersburg and the coach. I merely stated an observation and gave my opinion which is the purpose of an open forum so we can all learn from it. The Parkersburg team and the coach are too good to accept that they were outgunned. If that is what they believe then they just lost my respect. You stated it yourself "We certainly can play better than we did in the finals". I agree that PHS can play better. That was my entire point and if I had a bet on the finals it would have been for PHS. Now, the big question is, why did they not? My opinion was they were tired based on how they played but I also added "Only the Parkersburg coach will be able look inside his team and find out what caused the breakdown." If you do not believe they were tired then how about offering your suggestion on why they lost other than being outgunned because the PHS Volleyball program is better than that.

How do you play Musseman?

Actually the last time we saw Musselman at the Oak Glenn Inv. they set their outside hitters prob. about 90% of the time, in the Capital Classic they were much more balanced and their right side hitter played very well. In fact at Oak Glenn their other outside hitter #6 (don't know her name) hurt us more than Manor, and it appeared that she had an off day in Charleston. So I would disagree that they are a one player team, they also have great servers and good passers. Beside that if you had a Div I athlete on your team wouldn't you try to get her the ball as much as possible???? Carl would not use the excuse of being tired, both teams played the exact number of games throughout the day. I didn't watch much of their pool throughout the day (park. was in the other pool) but it seems that Musselman falls asleep at times during pool play, and then turns it on during the playoffs. I will agree that Winfield has a nice team and was the surprise team of the tournament. I'm sure Musselman underestimated Winfield especially after they beat them easily in game 1 of pool play (25-18?). Anyone can steal a game in pool play when the games start at 5-5 but its a different story to win 2 out of 3 or 3 out of 5 to 25. I do think the Big Reds are much better than they played in the finals so it should be closer the next time they play. I'm not a coach and would not begin to give advice on how to defend anyteam esp. not Musselman, but I would think that you should probably start by passing their tough jump servers.

THE MUSSELMAN PLAYER YOU ARE

THE MUSSELMAN PLAYER YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT IS SABINA NICEWARNER #6 BUT I THINK ALL THE GIRLS PLAY WELL TOGETHER.

Capital Classic

High Quality tournament! IT was certainly a showcase of most of the top AAA teams, along with a nice showing of the #1 AA team Philip Barbour. (PB played with out 2 starters, including their strong middle Jazzmine Boyd). Did anyone get a list of the all-tournament players!

LUVVBall- I forgot to mention

LUVVBall- I forgot to mention PB earlier and I agree that they played extremely well especially being down key players. Lets hope she gets good news on her injury and is able to come back and play this season.

Boyd played this evening in

Boyd played this evening in PB's wins against Robert C. Byrd and University. She favored it a bit, but looks like she will recover. Good news for her and the Colts.

Defending Musselman

After reading the comments about the Capital Classic and the success Musselman HS is having at present, I pose the question - How do opposing coaches play them?

I haven't had the opportunity to see Musselman this season but watching them last year they are quite balanced.
However when the chips are down you know you're going to get a heavy dose of Manor off the strong left.
I witnessed them fall 2 games down to GW last year at states before they set at least 90% to Manor for the rest of the match to come back and win. It was a matchup GW was powerless to stop as their shorter setters in the 5-1 couldn't make the block. It was something you would to plan well before a match to get your personnel in the right rotations.
Even then I don't believe most teams have the personnel to match up with them.
Your thoughts?

Musselman did look very

Musselman did look very impressive on the day especially once the teams finished pool play. I was also impressed by Winfield and Parkersburg,

The Manor girl is hands down the best player in the state imo but there were some others that I thought played well ( OH from Cabal, Middle hitter from Winfield and the OH from GW)and I think the competition was good all day. I try to follow the setters ( as a former one) and I was impressed by the setter from Musselman and Greenbrier East as well.

Musselman looked good

digitup08 were did you set at did you set in college? If so thought you might give some advise on setting at the next level. By the way Musselman does look really strong. Do they run a different style offense than most other teams do?