Carver has high hopes for JBU volleyball

The John Brown University volleyball team is a year older, a year more experienced and, head coach Ken Carver hopes, ready to make a move in the Sooner Athletic Conference.

The Golden Eagles went through the 2016 season with 11 of their 14 players on the roster as either freshman or sophomores. That group wound up going 21-12 and advancing to the semifinals of the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament, where they were defeated 3-1 by Oklahoma City.

John Brown returns the bulk of last year's team into 2017 with the only subtractions being graduated senior middle hitters Molli Pugh and Brittany Ayers and freshman middle Kennedy Shelstead and sophomore defensive specialist Bethany Maddox.

"I think we do have a solid core group of players coming back," said head coach Ken Carver, who is entering his fourth season at JBU with an overall record of 65-38. "Last year 11 of our 14 players were either freshmen or sophomores, and four freshmen started last year. I feel good about that core group. They had a good spring and offseason in terms of training."

The Golden Eagles participated in a spring tournament at Pittsburg State (Kan.) and went undefeated. Carver believes that success helped the Golden Eagles carry momentum in the offseason, and JBU added two more players to its roster to help for the 2017 season.

JBU was picked to finish fourth overall in the Sooner Athletic Conference preseason coaches' poll. Oklahoma City was picked to win the league, followed by Wayland Baptist (Texas) and Texas Wesleyan.

The Golden Eagles will have a new twist when it comes to Sooner Athletic Conference play. There will be an East and West division, which could lead to some interesting scenarios down the road.

"There's going to be a lot more opportunity for some tie-breaking situations to come into play," Carver said. "Last year I said it was wide open because a lot of players had graduated and every team in the league was younger. With the change in format and change in coaches, it's equally wide open.

"It's going to be interesting to see how things play out."

JBU has four seniors on its roster, and one of them is four-year starting setter Alyssa Arnold (5-foot-9) of Waynesville, Mo.

"She's started every game since she's been here as a freshman," Carver said.

Arnold and sophomore Elizabeth Williams (5-9) of Springdale Har-Ber will once again run JBU's two-setter offense.

Arnold, an all-conference second team selection, led the Golden Eagles with 663 assists last year, but Williams was right behind her at 590 assists.

"Both of them have done really, really well," Carver said of Arnold and Williams. "We've been really intentional in revamping our offensive system. We're making it quicker and having our players be a lot more involved with what happens on the court. We're really fortunate to have two high-level setters with Alyssa and Elizabeth as part of our team."

Sophomore Megan Beck (5-9, Frisco, Texas) is getting reps at setter for an emergency type situation, Carver said.

Senior defensive specialist Beth Brankle (5-4) of Siloam Springs returns for her final season at JBU. Brankle has led JBU in digs the last two seasons, recording 1,201 total over that period of time. She was an all-conference second team selection.

The Golden Eagles can play her in the middle of the back row, but they also can move her to left back.

"I'm real excited for Beth," Carver said. "She's right there in the mix again. She's the strongest player we have returning as an option for backrow specialist. She had a really good sophomore year and really improved upon that as a junior. She's come in and you can tell she's ready to do her best to eclipse both of those her senior year. She's fired up and ready to go."

Bailei Brown (5-11), another senior from Siloam Springs, is getting looks at the right side hitter position alongside Beck and redshirt senior Karis Buff (6-1, Tulsa, Okla.).

"The big thing with Bailei is physically she's doing exactly what we would have hoped," Carver said. "She's in the best shape she's been in. She's come back with a lot more confidence in the position. Some of the things we're trying to do offensively to speed up the game she's really clicked. We're hoping she'll continue to do that and be more of an offensive presence for us."

Brown had 132 kills last year, while Beck had 227 as a freshman.

"She had a really good freshman year," Carver said.

Buff missed all of last season with a knee injury, and she served as a student assistant.

Buff trained in the spring and played in the spring tournament at Pittsburgh State.

"She's really busted her tail this summer to get back to where she was prior to her knee injury," Carver said. "She's working to find that flow and sense of timing on a consistent basis. With what we're trying to do and adjust to the faster speed, she's had several really good practices and other days she's trying to re-adjust to that overall. She's got a heck of a work ethic, always asking for extra reps. Between her, Bailei and Megan, we have three viable options offensively and defensively."

Sophomore outside hitter Carly McKinney (6-0, Mission Viejo, Calif.) led the Golden Eagles in kills as a freshman with 327, but she was also second on the team with 452 digs. McKinney was JBU's only all-conference first team selection.

"She's a great all-around, six-rotation player that has the ability to be an impact player offensively and plays good solid defense and ball control," Carver said. "She's a good, positive energy kid, really encouraging. She's another one that works hard in the offseason and came back an even better player than she was as a freshman. I'm excited to see how good she is."

Junior outside hitter Bayli Reagan (5-10, Springfield, Mo.) saw limited court time last year, with a lot of it being a serving specialist. Carver said she's worked hard in the offseason and it's paying off for her.

"Her mechanics and technique are producing a lot more consistent results," Carver said of Reagan. "What was holding her back was being more consistent with serve-receive and defense. She's spent a lot of extra time in the gym in the offseason and you can definitely tell a difference."

Two other players are vying for time at outside hitter. One is junior college transfer Kinzee Mayo (5-11, Anthony, Kan.), who came to JBU via Butler Community College (Kan.).

Mayo is pretty versatile, Carver said, and has repped at all three front row positions.

"Her natural position is probably outside," he said. "We're still in the process of determining where her home is. I think she'll have an impact with us somewhere on the court."

JBU's only freshman, Taylor Glover (5-11) of Grapevine, Texas, is also an outside hitter but she's recovering from an elbow injury.

The loss of Shelstead -- who transferred to Abilene Christian -- hurts JBU in the middle, but Carver said all-conference honorable mention sophomore Jessica Meyer (5-11, Windsor, Colo.) is more than ready to step into the spot. She had 195 kills, 85 block assists and 21 stuff blocks as a freshman.

"She's just another kid that's really athletic," Carver said of Meyer. "She's shown a lot of versatility. She can hit anywhere along the net. She's another that's really excited about having a quicker offensive tempo.

Sophomore Lindsey Davis (5-10, Plano, Texas) joined the team as a walk-on last year and wound up playing some right side when Buff went down with an injury.

She has shifted back to the middle and "took the opportunity and ran with it," Carver said.

Juniors Elizabeth Bjornsen (5-9, Fredericksburg, Va.) and Bailey Sager (5-6, Platte City, Mo.) should have some opportunities to compete on the back row.

Bjornsen has battled injuries much of her JBU career, while Sager can play all around and has improved her ball control and defensive readings. Both could be serving specialists as well.

JBU opens its season on Friday and Saturday by competing in the Oklahoma Wesleyan Invitational in Bartlesville, Okla. The Golden Eagles will play fellow Arkansas school Lyon at 11 a.m. on Friday and end the day with a 5 p.m. match against Oklahoma Wesleyan.

On Saturday, JBU will play an 8 a.m. match against Sterling (Kan.) and then close the tournament at 4 p.m. against Friends (Kan.).

In an odd scheduling quirk, the Golden Eagles only play seven home matches with the first being Sept. 15 against Oklahoma City.

"I think the road is going to be a tell-tale thing for us," Carver said. "Learning to win on the road will be big or this year could be a struggle for us. Team chemistry is what's most important. It's a great opportunity for us. We'll see some great teams in those nonconference tournaments. It'll make us better and bodes well for conference."