It's no secret that Louisiana Tech University is one of the top tier universities for academics in the nation. However, there's a new reason that many people have come to know the name. This season, the Men's Club Volleyball team has sored WELL past expectations since their first pre-season tournament back in November after losing the championship game for the Silver Bracket. Following the tough loss, the coaches knew that there was a lot of work to be done in order to be a strong competitor during the regular season.
The team started their year off with a home game win against ULL. A close game still raised some eyebrows, as A-team seemed to struggle to find solid connections on offense along with some spotty defense. Most spectators overlooked the point-for-point match by reassuring the team that "a win is a win." However, the coaches were not satisfied with that answer. With only a little over a week to prepare for the first conference tournament, it was full steam ahead.
Head Coach, Caleb Wug, saw the close game as an opportunity to refine the team forced errors and push the players to stay aggressive, but still remain controlled during each point. Following the last minute adjustments to offense, the Dawgs began to sore past their opponents during the first two conference tournaments, losing only to the top three teams (out of a whopping 40). They were on a role, becoming the first Louisiana Tech team to rank 4th in the SIVA conference. With the incredible performances being made, the A-Team was invited to its first Elite 8 invitational tournament, hosted by SIVA for the top eight teams of the conference. The Dawgs fought hard and landed with a 2-3 record after losing their first three games in pool play. However, because the Dawgs rallied back in bracket play with two wins, the A-Team only dropped to 5th overall.
Flash forward to the Conference Championship Tournament (a well-anticipated event), the Dawgs started HOT. With B-team taking on the Univeristy of North Texas and pulling out an electric win, the A-Team began its preparation for their first game against Sam Houston State University. After a lights out first set, winning 25-8, the Dawgs continuted on to win the next set, followed by another two-set win against Southern Methodist Univeristy. The Dawgs moved into their first ever semi-final game in the Gold Bracket against none other than Texas A&M University, the number 1 seed in SIVA. While the game was a tough loss, Coach Wug was proud that the players never gave up and didn't beat themselves with errors. "They played their hearts out. Even when they weren't scoring, you could still feel and see the desire to fight," Wug said. The A-Team finished their regular season in a two-set loss to Texas A&M, but was extremely proud of placing third overall out of 40 teams in the conference, the highest ever for the program. The coaches were also extremely proud of the B-Team for their continued fight throughout the season in which they only faced higher ranked teams. Finishing 29th overall, Coach Wug couldn't be prouder of the way they finished their season and looks forward to their first full-returning team next year.
While B-Team wraps up its season, A-Team continues to move on. For the season finale, the Dawgs are headed back to Kansas City for some unfinished business at the NCVF Nationals Tournament on April 18-20. You can catch all games live on their YouTube channel, @LATechMVB.
