Gophers volleyball is back with Top 10 battles, NCAA title aspirations

No matter what happens in the Gophers volleyball opener Friday against No. 10 Baylor, getting to start the season in August – instead of January, like last season – is already a win.

Hugh McCutcheon enters his 10th season as the team's coach armed with the No. 7-ranked team in the country. He'll see how the most challenging nonconference schedule of his tenure prepares this team for the Big Ten and hopefully a longer postseason run.

"Just the idea that we could make a run at this thing, build some momentum and go would be exciting for everybody this year," McCutcheon said.

The Gophers open at the Big Ten/Big 12 challenge in Madison, Wis. After facing Baylor, they'll play TCU on Saturday. It's an early test, with five ranked opponents in the first six matches, including No. 1 Texas in Wednesday's home opener at the Pavilion.

"The Big Ten is tough; it's the toughest league in the country," McCutcheon said. "It will be nice to have a lot of lessons learned before we have to get into the fray of the [Big Ten]."

Last August, with the Gophers coming off a trip to the 2019 Final Four, McCutcheon wondered how his players would react with the season delayed by the pandemic.

The Big Ten's postponement of fall sports in 2020 because of COVID-19 concerns meant no nonconference matches. No normal progression. No fans once play started in late January.

Even with all of those changes, Minnesota went 16-3, finishing as Big Ten runner-up and carried the No. 3 overall seed into the NCAA tournament. That made the five-set Sweet 16 loss to unseeded Pittsburgh even tougher to swallow.

Some familiar faces return with unfinished business. One in particular, fifth-year senior outside hitter Stephanie Samedy, could easily have called it a career after winning Big Ten player of the year last season.

"We all know how the season ended, and it wasn't how we wanted it to go," Samedy said. "Having the opportunity to come back, why not take it and see how far we can go this time?"

Samedy returning to the Gophers was significant Big Ten news in June, but it was no surprise to people within the program.

Even before the talented 6-2 Florida native finished the season leading the Big Ten in kills per game, Samedy talked with her head coach about the NCAA allowing an additional year.

"We had the conversation pretty early on," McCutcheon said. "We've known for a while. Most importantly for her it's an extra season; she'll get better again. I think it will be a great chance to finish her career in front of fans at the Pav."

Gophers fans will be surprised when they see outside hitter Adanna Rollins on the opposing sideline. Rollins, who was named most outstanding player in the Austin region during the Final Four run in 2019, transferred to Penn State. All-Big Ten middle blocker Regan Pittman also graduated. But McCutcheon has a mix of veterans and underclassmen with potential back.

Junior defensive specialist/libero CC McGraw missed eight games last season with injuries, but she hopes to return to her All-Big Ten form from two seasons ago. Sophomores Melani Shaffmaster and Taylor Landfair are the next in line to lead the U's offensive attack.

Big Ten play this season is scheduled to open Sept. 24 vs. Michigan at home — and the Gophers will have eight matches under their belt if they can avoid any COVID-related issues.

"The pandemic is still a thing," McCutcheon said. "We're not out of the woods yet, but it feels like we're further along than before."

The Gophers should figure out how they stack up against the best well before Big Ten play this season. It won't be easy but a much more normal challenge than they faced last fall.

"Obviously, we dealt with a lot of adversity this past year," McGraw said. "Everyone can agree COVID wasn't the easiest. Having to navigate that while competing in a season, we had to grind mentally and physically. I think that will help us this year."