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Association of Water Volleyball Professionals
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 Post subject: Terrific Tuesday
PostPosted: Tue Sep 19, 2017 10:08 pm 
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Posts: 3995
Location: AWVP World Headquarters
I don't know what's gotten into all of you, especially since the love for the game was decidedly missing on Saturday (bad Pandas, we had pool all day--all day). But why ask questions?

Clearly, the post season is upon us. We rage against the dying of the light, and the warmth, although today was perfectly tolerable. And the games get good, as do the players.

How long has it been since there was a TT? Years? How could I say no??

Dramatis Pandasonae: Mikey, Taz, Dub, Scott, Ford, LJ, Big Hairy Jason the Kodiak Bear, Wilbur, Tbone, Kent, Kyle, me, Skull, with Skull being the 13th warrior (had to go buy shorts--better planning on these events please).

Being also a late arrival, my first question is how in the hell did all the big fellas get on the same team, and then stay there through the entire contest (Scott Dub Ford BHJ is a lot of firepower)? Inquiring minds want to know...

Didn't matter. In the first game of small ball I played in we knocked em out. Perhaps a bit of revenge for Dub's comment to Taz on Sunday: "You're too little!"

All games were good, all players were good. That means games will be close, and every play and player matters. This is the dream that was ball!

Notables:

What a day for Mikey. Most active player out there, like Tigger bouncing around on that net!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n48RyNTHyz0

Try to keep the camera on him, cause he's real fast, and good at drawing up old motion in the ocean Argosy plays so that the chess pieces aren't exactly where you expect them to be on our side, meaning opponents can get rooked!

Much as Taz likes to do the cross pass, his best hitting moments are off the alt front pass or cross pass when he's on the right side of the net.

Skull at power forward. I like it. Very impressed with his performance over the last couple of days. Amazing what happens when you get some trigger time, meaning you have to come out and play, which is my way of saying he's really developing as a player in terms of hits and blocks, and should come out more if he can.

Wilbur/Wild Thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Mi3KNEpbA4

Learning to dial it down. I don't know if I should gives this away, but an old setter's trick is to set a little lower rather than way high for blasters who are going long. Also sometimes a little behind them to make them arc rather than blast (usually a backrow hitter). Not saying that was going on today (I heard LJ Wilbur hookup wasn't working well before I got there, though it improved from what I saw), but the somewhat lower sets were effective. Will seems to be born again hard on showing up for games. A welcome reappearance. After the hits get in, we'll move on to consistent fielding. It's all about the body rhythm.

BHJ, still hairy after all these years, but clearly not idle. That serve harries opponents. Just nasty. I didn't get a single one aimed at me today, maybe because I was actually handling them Sunday? That's strategic. Also good blasting skills and great hands for a big man on sets. Looking like a package bear.

Scott, Dub, Ford played big. Keep doing what you're doing, and you know what that is. For those couple of Ford Dub back row fielding errors, look to Scott for instruction. He almost never gets beat in the back row. If you think you're getting short shrift in this report, you're not. There were so many blasts coming at me and my team I couldn't keep track of them.

Kent, welcome back, and for you and especially Kyle, a relatively "new" player by AWVP standards, welcome to the big leagues. We all do our jobs in team ball. But what are those jobs? Depends on chemistry and trust. Both Kent and Kyle can play, and are sometimes underused. This is a tough trick to pull off, but if you can show you're team you are consistent, without the ball going to you much, then you are an option. There are ways to do this. You and your team just have to figure them out.

Tbone, playing strong. Tmobile. Gaining hitting and blocking respect.

LJ, the strategist. You can win or lose games just by the lineup. Which is why I usually trust his judgment on such things. I'm still a fan of old school "points down the middle," because it means your two setters are not going to be on the front line at the same time, it helps take away the middle of the pool as a server's strike zone, and it helps make passing options easily accessible. The only question then is who should be "front butt" and who is "back butt" Goes to who is doing better first pass from the back and who is setting better from the front. Debatable. I'm willing to do both, as is LJ.

Triangle formations that don't involve crossed server/hitter and hitter on net continually are a struggle, because making everything go to middle hitter means defense can converge. So the outside little guys either need to be options, or you have to go back row give n go. But opponents have often gone to serving short on these formations, which limits the options on this.

So, shockingly, I agree with LJ, and, not shockingly, disagree with Taz on this subject.

I am pleased and proud I was able to serve, set, save, and sometimes spike with this caliber of players, given I'm about 2 hours away from being another year older. Thank you for your dedication, and through said dedication, giving me the opportunity to take to the field one more time.

Remember this day, for it will be ours for all time. With more to come. These days are what ball is all about. MORE is what I want!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjVkG1Ht8-o

AWVP, mobile, agile, versatile, hostile. Born to ball. Ball til you fall. Damn I love the postseason!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ho_WeNKhgxk

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Death from above! Fire down below!


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 Post subject: Re: Terrific Tuesday
PostPosted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 2:09 pm 
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Location: Austin, Texas, Planet Earth
bravo TT. some of the best, more competitive balls of the year. bravo sirs, bravo!!!

i could have fought more, but the days, they grow dark early and panda is saddended

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 Post subject: Re: Terrific Tuesday
PostPosted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 1:14 am 
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Location: AWVP World Headquarters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTNS9nj_Iow

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