UNH moves into conference action

The University of New Hampshire volleyball team hosts Providence on Saturday, Sep. 22 for the team’s first conference game of the season. The Wildcats went 6-8 in non-conference play to start the season. 

“Providence is always one of those scary teams,” head coach Jill Hirschinger said. “They can get on a roll and do nothing wrong.”

UNH split games with Providence last year, winning at Providence 3-1 in their first meeting and losing at home 2-3 in their second match. Providence is currently 1-16. 

The team is a lot younger this year with seven freshmen. Middle blocker Brenna Buckwalter, and outside hitters Tori Forrest and Abby Brinkman headline this group of young freshmen. All three of them have seen significant playing time and will continue to during conference play. 

“The freshman are good,” Hirschinger said. “They come from good backgrounds and they provide a lot of energy. We’re young, but we’ve got the energy, and the leadership on top.” 

The leadership starts with the four lone upperclassman, highlighted by juniors Morgan Thatcher and Destiny Tolliver. According to coach Hirschinger, the two left-handers are the strength in the middle of the team. Senior co-captains Jansen Falcusan and Jessie Schnepp round out the group. 

“The team I have this year has been very consistent in their play,” Hirschinger said. “We haven’t been that up and down team, we’ve just been consistent and played hard.”

The Wildcats went 8-4 in conference play last year to earn the No. 2 seed in the America East tournament. The team lost in the semi-final to Stony Brook, 1-3.

“It’s the time of year we’re peaking,” Hirschinger said. “The coaching staff feels good about it. We’re very optimistic about this year.”

Before the 2 p.m. Saturday showdown with Providence, the Wildcats will take on Harvard this Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Lundholm gymnasium. The Wildcats cap off the week’s action with another 2 p.m. game against Dartmouth this Sunday, also at Lundholm gymnasium.