Things have been firing on all cylinders for UT Permian Basin first year and first time Head Volleyball Coach CJ Allard, who has his team sitting at 9-5 overall.
"I really did not try to predict what kind of season we would have. It's my first time being a head coach and first time in Division II. But we have 14 returners, 8 seniors, and were 17-10 last year," said Coach Allard. "I didn't want to set the bar too high and set myself up for disappointment or aim too low and accidentally achieve all our goals too early. But I always felt that this team had the ability to perform well and exceed expectations."
While Coach Allard didn't want to predict how his team would do to start the season, it's clear the hard work and dedication the coaching staff and players have been putting in since the spring is paying off. So far this season the Falcons have already broken a school record and have racked up five sweeps – four of which happened in a row.
"It feels great in the moment and then when you look at the numbers and think 'oh wow', we just set a school record doing this or we just held an opponent to another negative hitting percentage or any other statistical accomplishment we had this season," said Coach Allard. "It has been really quite impressive to see how successful we've been so far. . But the players know this is not just because we flipped a coin, and it just happened to land on heads. We've put in a ton of work to get to this point and the only way it continues to improve is by continuing the work."
The school record the Falcons broke came on September 20th against Lubbock Christian in a 3-0 road victory. In that match, the Falcons hit .326 percent in the first set, .367 percent in the second and .538 percent in a dominating third set, all while holding LCU to .103 percent hitting for the match.
With a .392 hitting percentage for the match on 102 attempts, the Falcons set a new program record for hitting percentage in a single match. The previous record was .330 percent in a 3-0 home win against University of the Southwest on November 7, 2015.
Falcons excelling at home
. The Falcons have also found success on their home court, boasting a 4-1 record. But according to Coach Allard, their confidence isn't tied to playing at home—it's built during practice.
"I think the most confidence we get honestly is from attacking practices. We are very specific to debrief after every practice and ask ourselves 'what did we add to today?'" said Coach Allard. "The matches aren't won on Thursday and Saturday when we put on our jerseys. That's just where we get to execute the work we've already put in. We are winning these matches in practice right now."
Practice a key to success
The importance of practice is clear to the Falcons, who understand that success doesn't just happen on game day. Over the course of the season, they'll face a variety of systems and teams, so it's crucial that they're prepared for whatever comes their way.
"That's why we put so much of the focus on our side of the net in what we do in practice because we will see such a variety of opponents," said Coach Allard. "The Lone Star Conference is the premier of the premier when it comes to college volleyball."
There are 11 matches left in the regular season before the Lone Star Conference Tournament starts on November 21 and while it is hard to predict how the season will end, Coach Allard is happy how things have played out so far.
"I'm so proud of where we are at right now, where we are going, and how much these players truly care for each other. So, at this point I'm very pleased but we have a lot more work to do," said Coach Allard.
The Falcons will be home again on Saturday hosting Midwestern State at 2 p.m., and if you haven't watched a match yet this season you should come on out.
"I think there are so many awesome unique individual stories, that would be hard to know about unless you show up in the gym and see our matches," said Coach Allard. "I think if anybody has seen this team in the past, come see it one more time and see if it's different and see if this product isn't worth coming out and checking out. Come these young ladies are putting in a ton of work and making history while we are at it."
