Putting a wrap on 2023, the volleyball year that was
That’s a wrap on 2023.
We covered the heck out of it.
Quick history: My late, great partner, Ed Chan, and I bought Volleyball magazine in 2016. The first thing we did — and we had to do to make it work — was stop the print edition.
We always hoped we would see it again …
Last year, at the AVCA Convention in Omaha, we revived it, albeit on a very small basis. But we were part of the printed AVCA program, and it was special. For that matter, it was kind of emotional to actually touch and hold a magazine. We even used the old Volleyball magazine logo. I wish Ed could have been there.
Our role was expanded this year as once again all the participants in the convention got a program that included another Volleyball magazine insert. Included in that was the following column, written before we all headed to Tampa.
This has been a record year for VolleyballMag in so many ways, not the least of which is that we have obliterated our previous best page views record by more than 300,000.
Our coverage is better than ever. In this case, it’s about NCAA women’s volleyball, but we were all over beach, men’s, pro, club and high school. And we will continue to grow in 2024 thanks to a tremendous staff and VBM team and — most importantly — you, our readers, and a great sport that has us all excited more than ever.
That being said, please enjoy my ode to 2023 which really did appear in print:
This is the year that was.
Welcome to Tampa. And thanks for being a part of the year that we will all look back upon as the one when college volleyball didn’t just get over the hump:
It vaulted into the everyday sports limelight.
This is the year that 92,003 fans watched a volleyball match in Nebraska’s football stadium.
This is the year that a week later, Wisconsin played Marquette before 17,037, an American indoor regular-season volleyball record, and no one seemed to give it a second thought.
Seemingly every home team set attendance records.
Small gyms? Packed. Bigger arenas? Packed more. The AVCA noted that 31 Division I schools set single-match attendance records.
This is the year that TV ratings were better than ever. And then better than that. And then better than that.
NCAA volleyball made the ESPN highlights more than ever. The ESPN and Big Ten Network volleyball ratings were incredible. News outlets around the country not only paid homage to the stadium match, but paid attention after that.
People who wouldn’t know a volleyball from a hockey puck watched our sport. And then they watched it again and again..
They watched because it’s a great sport played by beautiful, graceful and elegant athletes and it’s exciting as hell, match in and match out.
We are all part of something really special going on in our sport and, if you’re here for the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship as an AVCA member, as a fan, as someone new to our sport, well, your timing is perfect.
A little reflection on this NCAA season, ultimately the reason we are all here. Well, there is the AVCA Convention, of course, and even I am presenting, so to speak, when I interview five-time Olympian Danielle Scott (plan now for 2:45 p.m. Friday: Coaching Me Part 1: “If I Could Have Coached Myself…” (presented by Diversity Development Team).
OK back to the NCAA season, one that began with a stunning development. Texas, the defending national champion, lost — got swept! — at Long Beach State. That was on August 25. That was without star middle Asjia O’Neal, and Texas is 26-3 since and it worked out OK for the Longhorns. But that was portend of things to come in what turned out to be a wacky and wonderful season.
Another side note: In the AVCA preseason coaches poll, Texas was No. 1, Wisconsin No. 2, Stanford No. 3, Louisville No. 4, and Nebraska and Pittsburgh tied for No. 5. The final four participants all had their travails — no team makes it this far without overcoming obstacles — but all are pretty special.
Top-seeded Nebraska starts four freshmen. The last team to have four freshman starters and get this far was Stanford in 2016 and the Cardinal won it all. And they won two more before they graduated. Could this be the start of a Nebraska run for a program that hasn’t won since 2017?
Third-seeded Wisconsin lost three matches, all in the Big Ten, at Nebraska, and then at Penn State and Purdue without 6-foot-9 Anna Smrek. The Canadian is the tallest player here and a superstar who plays along a 6-7 teammate. Wisconsin won it all in 2021.
Fourth-seeded Pittsburgh, another team loaded with freshmen, is in the national semifinals for the third year in a row. When Pitt and Louisville went two years ago, no ACC team had ever advanced that far. They both made it last year and Pitt had to beat Louisville by pulling a reverse sweep to get here.
And Texas? You had to wonder what would happen if the Longhorns ever put it all together and they have, that’s for sure. Madisen Skinner has been spectacular and the aforementioned O’Neal is an Olympic team candidate.
Another side note: This is the second year that we are fortunate enough to collaborate with the AVCA and have a print edition of Volleyball magazine. When we did it last year, it was the first print version since we went totally digital in 2016, so this is super exciting.
And speaking of exciting …
There is no doubt that when Texas plays Wisconsin and Nebraska plays Pittsburgh on Thursday in Amalie Arena the place will sold out and rocking.
But it won’t end there.
Things will wrap up here Sunday when the championship match is shown on ABC — for the first time on network TV — as more history will be made.
Congratulations to us all and never forget that we were all a part of the year that was.
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