MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Steve Hendricks knows this about what’s left – the Bucs are on the outside looking in. Barry University’s fourth-year volleyball coach also knows his team has a chance.
Barry embarks on the first of two remaining road trips as the second half of Sunshine State Conference play begins Friday at Rollins. The Buccaneers (13-8, 3-5 SSC) will be making their second straight trip to Rollins (13-10, 5-4) after having spent last weekend there at the South Region Crossover, where Barry went 3-0 against Gulf South teams.
“In the past the SSC has gotten four to five teams in the (NCAA South) Regional,” Hendricks said. “We know we need to keep this spot and move up a little bit to have a shot at going to the NCAA Tournament.”
Barry led Rollins two sets to none in the first meeting in Miami Shores before falling in five with the final set decided by a 20-18 verdict on a ballhandling error. That alone told the Buccaneers two things: they can compete with the upper echelon in the league, and they need to stay zeroed in on seizing control when the match is in their hands.
Saturday Barry will play at Eckerd, whom the Bucs swept in the Health & Sports Center in the first half of the season. Still, the Tritons have a winning overall record as well, so no lead is safe, and no match is a gimme until it’s in the books.
But postseason possibilities and incentives have this Buccaneers team determined to be different.
“I think they’re very motivated to make the NCAA Tournament,” Hendricks said. “We need to knock off Rollins. We’ve got a game plan, we feel pretty good about it, and I think my team’s playing better than we did at the beginning of the year.”