Volleyball season may still be more than two months away, but a trio of Utah Utes will be getting started a little bit early this summer.
After leading the team to its second consecutive Mountain West Tournament championship last season, senior Kim Turner and juniors Kelsie Kartchner and Lyndsey Henderson will be heading to Lake Placid, N.Y., in July to take part in the USA Volleyball A2 training program at the Olympic Training Center.
Tryouts were held at the Final Four in New Orleans in late December, and the three Utes were among only 19 players across the nation selected to participate in the training program. The announcement marks the first time in U coach Beth Launiere’s 14-year tenure that any Utes have been selected for the team. The 2003 program will run from July 5 through July 20.
“It’s a really big deal,” Launiere said. “Toshi [Yoshida], the national team coach, asked specifically for Kim to try out, and then we got word that they wanted to make sure Lyndsey and Kelsie were going to be there as well.”
The A2 team, which will be coached this year by USC assistant Paula Weishoff-Hanold, Illinois assistant Anne Kordes and Texas assistant Robby Pulliza, was created to give successful, promising young volleyball players the opportunity to train with some of the country’s elite and gain national exposure. Many will eventually move on to the USA National team.
“Every time a player of mine has gone into a situation like this, where they’re playing with other players who are equal or above them, they come back flat-out better volleyball players, because they have to play at a higher level for a three-week duration of time for them to succeed,” Launiere said. “Players adjust to that and find ways to succeed. I think they’ll come back better volleyball players, and I think they’ll also come back with more confidence.”
As three of the top returning players from last year’s team, Turner, Kartchner and Henderson were obvious candidates for the A2 squad. All three could make strong candidates for the national team in the coming years.
Turner was the co-MWC Player of the Year in 2002 and is one of the preseason favorites to take home the hardware once again this fall.
As Utah’s junior captain last season, Turner was awarded MWC Player of the Week honors on four separate occasions. Considered by many to be the league’s top defensive player, she led the MWC with 1.64 blocks per game. On the offensive side, she finished second in kills, averaging 3.87 per contest, and had the conference’s ninth-best hitting percentage (.294) despite rotating between middle blocker and outside hitter during the season.
With three all-MWC selections under her belt, the senior has a golden opportunity to make a name for herself on the A2 team this summer.
Kartchner and Henderson were both hugely instrumental in the Utes’ success last year, and each has another two seasons left to play.
Despite splitting time with Tracy Neumeier early last season, Kartchner eventually emerged as one of the league’s top setters in her second season. She tied for fifth with 10.86 assists per game and, after helping lead Utah to the MWC Tournament crown, was named the tourney’s Best Setter.
Henderson also blossomed in her sophomore campaign. The 6’5″ middle blocker was one of the team’s most valuable defensive stoppers, finishing fourth in the MWC with 1.33 blocks per game while hitting for .255 on the year.
The 16-day A2 program will no doubt have a hugely positive impact on the Utes, who bowed out to Texas A&M in the first round of the NCAAs last December. The team lost Brenda Beal and all-conference star Sylva Strzinkova to graduation, while former starter Sabine Schulz transferred back to Germany with two years of eligibility still remaining.
This year’s roster could include at least five freshmen. The added experience Turner, Kartchner and Henderson will gain in July could be just enough to make up for off-season losses.
“This opportunity that these three will have to train with the best players and under great coaches is invaluable,” Launiere said.
When the A2 team concludes its training in late July, it won’t be long before it’s back to work for the Utes. Practice begins on Aug. 7, just 22 days before they take the floor for their season opener versus Arizona State.