How will you spend your Thanksgiving break?
The two most crucial tournaments of the season hang ominously in the Violets' horizon. The season, so far, has looked gloomy for the Violets. They are 17-7 overall, 3-5 in the UAA, and are ranked eighth in the New York region. In the last two weeks, the Violets have fallen four places in the standings. And more losses at this weekend's SUNY-Brockport Tournament of Champions would plummet the Violets even further in the division standings.
An even harsher blow could be dealt to them the following week, when division monster Emory University hosts the UAA Championships. Lose there, and the Violets wave good-bye to the NCAA Championships. There is no question that the season hangs in the balance.
"The next two weeks are tremendous," coach Tim Cowie said.
Ahead is a rocky road with plenty of room to stumble. Not only must NYU overcome skilled teams, but the Violets themselves have placed some hurdles in their way. Most noticeably, injuries plague the Violets. Only seven players are currently active, which means that during inevitably long matches against good teams there will be only one sub on the bench.
Cowie confirmed that junior setter Leah Shapiro will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury. Add that to the season-long loss of veteran Allison Malinsky, and the Violets look awfully vulnerable.
"We've had so many injuries that the dynamics of the team change every week," Cowie said.
Annie Devine, Shapiro's replacement, is a freshman, and her lack of experience has resulted in a lack of numbers. While Shapiro averaged over 11 assists per game, Devine is putting up just under 6. Devine has also been playing 4 more minutes per game than Shapiro was.
And like Devine, all the Violets are spending more time on the court. Cowie counts not getting winded and mentally burned-out as one of the players' top priorities. "The season's coming to an end, and a lot of players are getting tired," Cowie said. "It gets mentally tough for athletes. And trying to get mentally tough is difficult."
Eyebrows of concern have also been raised by the uncertain status of the Violets' star player, sophomore Brittany Warfield. Warfield is suffering from muscle strains in her knees, Cowie said, and has been absent from practice since the Violets' last game. Warfield leads the team this season with 526 kills and 57 service aces.
"She's playing [at the SUNY tournament] but with her type of injury you can only get rest, " Cowie said. "She's been out a week and a half, but I'm sure she'll lay it on the line."
Even before Warfield was injured, the Violets showed all the signs of below-par play. A good indication of the team's problems are the thin margins of victory over the past few weeks. Playing best-of-five matches, the Violets have gone four games or more in seven of their last 10 games. They have only won five of those.
Despite the mediocre appearance of his team, Cowie won't concede losses to powerhouse clubs like Washington University or Emory '#0151; teams bubbling over with tall and talented players.
"Having bodies can help," Cowie said. "Emory has a deep and talented bench, and they have more options if someone's not playing well."
"You've got to play hard from the get-go if you go out against a team that's bigger and deeper," Cowie added. "You do some things differently, take the team out of their system, and scratch out some wins." A test to that philosophy will come at the tournament this weekend at SUNY. All four teams the Violets will face hold higher rankings, and two of them, Ithaca and Cortland, are in the nation's top-20.
"Nothing's coming easy," Cowie said. "But if we win this weekend, we'll be back up to third or fourth [in the conference]."
Cowie also said that teams that look unbeatable like the ones the Violets will soon face are not, well, unbeatable.
"Emory is fourth in the country, and I think they have a lot of holes. They have some offensive tendencies, they like to run the slide a lot, and if you can take that away, you're taking away a big part of their offense," Cowie said.
But for Cowie, Emory isn't the team keeping him up at night. And it isn't even one of the better teams the Violets must face in the next weeks. The Violets' Friday night opponent, the Rochester Institute of Technology, is the team from which Cowie left last season to come to NYU. "It'll be a little weird seeing all of the players and parents in the stands Friday night," Cowie admitted.
