It was a season to remember for Idaho volleyball. The Vandals finished the season 16-11 and claimed the second seed going into the WAC tournament, the highest the program has finished since joining the conference in 2005.
The momentum didn’t continue into the tournament as the Vandals were eliminated in the semifinals by New Mexico State. Idaho coach Debbie Buchanan said the loss was a big disappointment, and her team is hungry to get back next season.
“They were pretty upset after that match, and I don’t blame them,” Buchanan said. “They worked hard and had a great week of practice and we we’re doing everything right.”
Buchanan said the experience is tough to deal with but she feels her players will learn from it. She said her team’s focus helped it get as far as it did.
“I think if you look at the team, the kids this year were really locked in and they had their eyes set on where they wanted to finish,” Buchanan said. “They worked for it and I’m really proud of them. They didn’t let outside things affect them and I think their determination is the best we’ve seen in the past few years.”
Idaho took home a pile of awards from the WAC awards banquet. Outside hitters Allison Walker and Alicia Milo earned first-team all-WAC honors while libero Cassie Hamilton, setter Jenny Feicht and middle blocker Alex Sele earned second-team all-WAC. Middle blocker Alyssa Schultz earned WAC all-freshman team.
Buchanan took home WAC Coach of the Year for the first time in her career. She said it’s more about the team than her.
“It’s a great honor,” Buchanan said. “I don’t think you get that though without a great staff and a great team that comes to work hard every day. It’s nice that my peers voted for me, but I look at it more as a program award.”
Next year the Vandals will be without Cassie Hamilton, Alicia Milo and Rylee Walker, who graduate. All three seniors played an important role on this year’s team and Buchanan said they’ll be hard to replace.
“We have a number of players who are going to be in position to jump into those positions and fight for things,” Buchannan said. “Even with those kids jumping in, the one thing that is hard to replace is experience.”
Next year the WAC will look a lot different for Buchanan and the Vandals. Most notable will be the exit of Hawaii. The Warriors have ruled the conference for the past decade and usually had a high national rank. Buchanan said it’s going to be anyone’s conference next year.
“It’s sad to lose Hawaii because they’re such a great opponent,” Buchanan said. “I think it’s going to open up the conference and allow some other teams to win some championships now. You’re not playing the No. 6 team in the country on a regular basis.”
Idaho will have a long wait before getting back on the floor. Buchanan said her team is going to work on developing its game and decreasing errors in the offseason. She said her team is hungry for more and she is confident that they will be back in the running next year.
“I feel pretty confident about next year and where our teams going to be at,” Buchanan said. “I see us getting better.”