Gallaudet University Women’s Volleyball — 1998 Outlook

A new era dawns on the Gallaudet volleyball program as Patrick O’Brien takes the head coaching reins for the first time. O’Brien replaces Peg Worthington, who retired as the second-winningest coach in NCAA Division III history. O’Brien inherits a 26-12 team, which returns five of its six starters from 1997.

“I’m excited about the season, just like I’m excited about every new year,” says O’Brien, who served as an assistant coach at Gallaudet for 11 years. “What sets this season apart, though, is that it seems like we have exceptional depth at just about every position.”

Certainly, the team’s fortunes are tied to junior hitter Ronda Jo Miller of Little Falls, Minn. Last season, Miller shattered the NCAA Division III record for kills in a season with 896. She also set a national record for kills per game, and led the CAC in hitting percentage. She was named CAC Player of the Year and to the NCAA All-Mid-Atlantic region team for the second consecutive year.

“Ronda Jo will be pivotal to our success,” says O’Brien. “But we also will have some other capable hitters to support her.” Indeed, the Bison finished fifth in the nation in team hitting percentage last season, at .302, through the efforts of Jenny Cooper of Carmel, Ind., junior Clare Cassidy of Fremont, Calif., and sophomore Stacy Nowak of Germantown, Md. Freshman Kara Richards of El Centro, Calif., is also expected to contribute.

“I expect our hitting to improve this season,” says O’Brien. “The hitters themselves are veterans, and our experienced and skilled passers will be able to get them the ball in the right spot.”

The hitters will be set by the squad’s lone senior, Brandy Tetzlaff of Waverly, Ill., Gallaudet’s all-time assist leader. Tetzlaff led the CAC in assists last year, and finished second in assists per game. Sophomore Shanada Johnson from Faribault, Minn., may also see time at setter, and will certainly utilize her defensive skills. Sophomore Ronda Johnson, Shanada’s sister, will be the team’s serve-receiving specialist and primary passer.

The Bison will emphasize blocking and digging this fall — two areas in which the team can drastically improve. “We’ve got players with the tools to be fantastic blockers,” says O’Brien. Five-foot-ten freshman Melissa Kononenko of Rockaway, N.J., hopes to prove her coach right. As for the team’s defensive specialists, O’Brien has eyed freshman Jill Donnelly of Albany, N.Y., as well as the Johnsons. Plus, Cooper was sixth among CAC digs leaders in 1997.

“We would like to win the CAC, which has become an extremely competitive volleyball conference,” says O’Brien, who has been part of two CAC titles as an assistant coach. “Ultimately, we’d like to get to the NCAA tournament.”

Despite the new head coach at Gallaudet, not much has changed. Worthington, the outgoing icon, now a Gallaudet administrator, admits: “The team is in very capable hands.”