The LSU volleyball team will see how much it improved this weekend when it travels to Tallahassee, Florida, to take part in the Florida State Invitational.
The Tigers (1-2) return to the court after a two-week break following their first weekend of play when they lost two matches against top-25 teams.
Instead of hosting its own tournament this year, LSU decided to take a week off and focus on how it can improve after a difficult first round of games.
“It was really nice to take last week and focus on us,” said junior outside hitter Katie Lindelow. “We didn’t have to worry about an opponent or scouting reports or things like that. We could just focus on what we needed to do.”
The Tigers forced close sets against No. 13 San Diego and No. 8 Purdue in the Mortar Board Premier tournament two weekends ago, but lost both matches for a combined six sets to one.
Lindelow said LSU would have rather won those games, but playing such stiff competition to start the season has given them a chance to see where they need to be by the end of the season.
“It got us in the right mindset knowing where we want to be,” Lindelow said. “We want to compete and beat those kind of teams in the future this year.”
LSU coach Fran Flory said her young team learned a lot from these losses, and she looks forward to seeing how it performs this weekend.
“That first weekend could be the most important weekend of our season in terms of learning, growth potential and an understanding of what it’s really going to take,” Flory said. “We’ve made some huge progress. I’m excited about the direction we’re headed, and the design of the season, thus far, has worked. That said, the proof is in the pudding when we walk onto the court this weekend.”
Flory said the big takeaway from LSU’s season-opening tournament was a noticeable lack of defense.
In the Tigers’ two losses, they committed seven combined blocking errors and only picked up 14.4 digs per set compared to 17.8 digs per set by their opponents.
“We discovered that our defense wasn’t as good as we anticipated it to be,” Flory said. “That’s our system, and that’s our tenacity and attitude. We went in more focused on our offense. Offense wins, but defense creates the opportunity to win.”
The Tigers will finish their weekend in Florida on Saturday against another top-tier opponent, No. 7 Florida State, which has accumulated a 5-0 record despite a stacked schedule in which it faced three ranked teams and two others who have received votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
While LSU’s other two opponents of the weekend, Central Arkansas (1-5) and Samford (3-3) may not be as good on paper, Flory said their records don’t accurately represent how talented they really are.
Despite another weekend against tough competition, the Tigers’ goals this weekend remain unchanged.
“Obviously, we’re looking to get three wins, implement what we’ve learned in practice to help us on the court and play aggressive and play our game,” said senior setter Malorie Pardo.
You can reach Tyler Nunez on Twitter @Nunez_TDR.