Gophers volleyball prepares for Ohio State at NCAA Sweet 16
The University of Minnesota volleyball team faces Ohio State in the NCAA Sweet 16 on Thursday.
MINNEAPOLIS - It wasn’t just another Monday as Hugh McCutcheon and the University of Minnesota volleyball team got ready for practice at Maturi Pavilion.
This is the time of year in college volleyball where the next day isn’t guaranteed. You have to win to get there. For the eighth straight season, McCutcheon and the Gophers earned that right with wins over Southeastern Louisiana and Northern Iowa last weekend at The Pav in the NCAA Tournament.
The stakes get higher this week as they head to Texas for the Sweet 16.
"It’s great. I think often times it gets lost on a lot of people the idea that there are only 16 teams practicing today out of whatever it is, 300 and change. That’s a real thing," McCutcheon said. "We don’t take it lightly, it’s a privilege to still be competing."
McCutcheon has set that standard with the Gophers, but it wasn’t so certain that would happen about two months ago. In mid-October, he announced his 11th season at Minnesota would be his last as volleyball coach. He’s stepping into a new role as assistant athletic director and sport development coach.
Since that announcement, his players have united. They’re 13-2 since, 22-8 on the season and on a five-match win streak.
"At the beginning of the season we talked about peaking in December. We have overcome a lot of those challenges, but I think now we’re at this point where we’re all in it together for the team. Our unity is strongest right now," Arica Davis said.
Teams are judged by winning and losing, but this program has always stressed the journey and the process. The results will come if the players stick to McCutcheon’s path.
"From the beginning it was we’re going to build a foundation, we’re going to do the recipe right and then the winning will follow. We’ve put in the work and proved that we deserve to be here," Carter Booth said.
"We talk a lot about the recipe. If everyone does their job and we get all the recipe ingredients right, the cake is going to come out like it’s supposed to," Davis said.
The No. 2-seeded Gophers will face No. 3-seeded Ohio State at 11 a.m. Thursday in Texas. The winner meets the No. 1 Texas/No. 4 Marquette winner Saturday for a trip to the Final Four.
The Gophers and Buckeyes have met twice this season. Ohio State took a 3-0 sweep at Maturi Pavilion on Oct. 12. Less than two weeks ago, the Gophers went to Columbus and left with a 3-1 victory. The rubber match is Thursday with the season on the line for both teams.
The margins become thinner with every match in the NCAA Tournament. Winning comes down to execution.
"Your ability to be present and lock into the plan, execute all the sudden take on a greater important. That stuff becomes a differentiating factor,’ McCutcheon said.