By By Olson Barthelemy
After 25 years of coaching volleyball for the Pride, head coach Fran Kalafer has piled up so many milestones that it’s hard to keep track of them all. However, she’s not likely to forget this one anytime soon.
As she walked onto the court before Friday night’s conference match against Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Kalafer was greeted by her team, all of whom were wearing shirts bearing the same two words: “For Ruth.”
Ruth Kalafer, Fran’s mother, died of leukemia earlier this year and the team participated in a walk for leukemia and lymphoma the previous day. This small action illustrated the Pride’s affection for its head coach and set the tone as the team beat VCU in straight games (30-26, 30-21, 30-25) later that night to give Kalafer her sixth-hundredth career win. She became the twelfth active NCAA Division I head coach to win 600 career matches.
“It was pretty rewarding, especially since the team played so well tonight,” Kalafer said.
After coming off of two Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) wins on a southern road trip last week, the Pride (7-6, 5-1 CAA) was looking to maintain its momentum as it prepared to face the Rams (7-8, 1-4).
Kalafer was aware of the challenge the Rams presented, saying they were, “the best VCU team I’ve seen in conference.”
VCU had already surprised the entire conference, having won as many games thus far into the season than it did in all of 2004. Keeping the caliber of its opponent in mind, the Pride entered the match determined to both capture number 600 for its coach and to win its fifth straight CAA game.
The Pride rarely found itself behind in the match, as the team disposed of VCU in a tidy hour and a half.
VCU made the most noise in the first game as it managed to stay even with the Pride during the game. Leading the offensive in the first game were juniors Beverly Rivera and Elizabeth Curley, who each tallied five kills and excellent hitting percentages of .444 and .571, respectively. In fact, Curley’s percentage was .500 or better the entire match (reaching a high of .600 in the third game). She finished tied with sophomore Amanda Beyersdorff with a team-high .571 hitting percentage.
“Everyone contributed,” Curley said. “We wanted to win in three”.
The Rams did not make the situation any better, repeatedly shooting themselves in the foot. They racked up nine of their 19 errors during the match in the first game. VCU also managed 11 errors on serves, four of them coming from freshman setter Cat Juson.
Her counterpart and reigning CAA Rookie of the Year, Shellane Ogoshi provided 13 assists (39 for the match), four kills and countless point-saving plays.
Despite the Rams’ miscues, they managed to make the first game relatively competitive before succumbing to the Pride, 30-26.
The second and third games belonged to the Pride as well. Curley maintained her solid play as she accrued nine more kills, bringing her total for the match to a team-high 14 to go with three service aces. Beverly Rivera complimented her nicely, finishing with 11 kills ,while Beyersdorff (nine kills, .571 hitting percentage) and Ogoshi chipped in as well.
Ogoshi, described by Kalafer as the “sparkplug of the team,” made her presence felt throughout the match, dashing from baseline to baseline and pulling her team out of some precarious positions. When asked how she plays with such emotion, Ogoshi cited her parents and her love of the game, saying it gives her “motivation.”
The only anomaly one could find in the box score was Talita Silva, who had an off night. The usually solid and dependable sophomore outside hitter, who came into the match leading the team in kills, managed only four with a hitting percentage of -.042.
However, Silva’s rare ineffectiveness went unfelt as the Pride won the next two games, 30-21 and 30-25, notching another CAA win.
As important as the conference win was, the overriding theme of the night was Kalafer’s milestone.
“She’s an incredible coach,” Ogoshi said after the match, recounting how the team surprised its coach with the shirts before the match.
When asked what the 600 wins meant to her, Kalafer said, “Boy, am I old! It means I’ve been doing this for a long time. But this team is great. I care about them as people.”
The coach then paused for a moment before adding a statement that further reflected her modest demeanor and respect for the game.
“I remember the wins, but I remember the losses more,” she said. “You learn more from the losses.”
After spending a quarter century continually producing wins for the Pride, nobody will dwell too long on those losses.
