For Utah, the 2015 season could be looked at as one of disappointment. The Utes began the season ranked No. 23 in the AVCA national poll and sported some pretty impressive talent, as Kendall Cygan, Adora Anae and Brenna DeYoung looked to carry a relatively young team to a good season.
However, things didn’t go according to plan. After Utah started 7-5, including a win to kick off Pac-12 play, the team began to nosedive in the standings. Utah only won three more games after the win against Colorado in the conference opener and ended the season with a disappointing 10-21 record, including a 4-16 record against Pac-12 opponents.
While the ending record points to a lackluster season, Utah flashed some potential that points to a bright future in the Pac-12 conference. Leading the way towards future greatness is Anae, who was recently named to the All-Pac-12 first team this week and was one of only three sophomores to receive the distinction. Anae is the second player in Utah’s history to earn this honor after Shelby Dalton was nominated to the same team last year.
Throughout the season, Anae showed her potential to become a great player and potentially lead Utah to better records in the seasons to come. The sophomore out of Laie, Hawaii broke the single-match kill school record three separate times this season, her most recent coming against Oregon State on Nov. 1 when she recorded 28 kills. She also set the school record for most 20-plus kill matches with 12 on the season.
Anae also finished with the highest single-season kill mark out of anyone in Utah’s history with 501, breaking Sheila Cottrell-Sorensen’s previous record of 500 kills. Known for her relentless offense, Anae also led the team in digs with 388.
This season definitely cemented Anae’s superstardom status for the future, but she isn’t the only reason for hope on this young Utah squad. Berkeley Oblad also earned conference honors, being named a Pac-12 All-Freshman team honorable mention.
Oblad was a true freshman from Nevada and immediately proved her worth to this team. She made an appearance in all but three of Utah’s sets on her way to 180 and 95 total blocks. She was second on the team in blocks and had two seven-block games. She is already one of the most versatile players on Utah’s roster and only figures to improve from here on out. In coming years she will undoubtedly prove to be a key cog in head coach Beth Launiere’s system.
While Anae broke many records herself, Launiere reached a big milestone of her own. In a game against Oregon State, Launiere earned her 500th all-time head coaching win. Launiere is now up to 501 wins, all of which have come as a part of Utah’s volleyball program. She has spent many years working with this team and those 501 wins show how experienced she is. Her coaching skill is a factor that is key to this team’s success, especially with this young team going forward.
As the season ends, Utah will say goodbye to two players who performed very well over the season — seniors Kendall Cygan and Brenna DeYoung. DeYoung led the Utes this season with 123 total blocks and was named a Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week earlier in the season. Cygan, on the other hand, was second on the team with 5.05 assists per set for a total of 560 assists. Cygan was another member of Utah’s volleyball program to reach a significant milestone this season, moving into sixth place on Utah’s all-time assist list, and will end her career as a Ute with 2,424 assists.
“It feels really awesome to have accomplished that much over my four seasons,” Cygan said. “It just feels great to finish my senior year somewhere making a name for myself.”
These two players will be tough losses for the Utes as they graduate and leave a program they have helped so much.
In the end, the Utes finished 10th in the Pac-12, staying ahead of Oregon State and Cal. After a season that was marked by the worst losing streak of Launiere’s tenure with Utah, nine straight losses and a lack of success against Pac-12 opponents, Utah will look toward the future with high hopes.
“I think the future is bright,” Launiere said. “We have some good young players. People thought when we came in to the Pac-12 we wouldn’t do very well, but we did well pretty fast. I just think we believe that we should. We knew it was going to be a tough year, but we’re building for the future for sure.”
All but two of the Utes starters will return next year with more experience under their belts, and the team will be able to build on this year and learn from its mistakes. While this season was disappointing for many fans hoping for another NCAA Tournament berth, it will become a stepping stone for success in the next few seasons.
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