Sophomore's Blocks Help Women's Volleyball Topple Hofstra

During the 2012 season, then-freshman middle blocker Caroline Holte immediately made an impression on the Harvard women’s volleyball team, registering a team-high 89 blocks. Holte’s 2012 tally was the third most blocks in a single season in Crimson history.

After just two matches of the 2013 season, Holte, a consistent starter for her team, is on point to repeat and vanquish her previous record.

On Saturday, at home in the Malkin Athletic Center, Holte put up 12 of Harvard’s 17 blocks against Hofstra in a 3-1 win for her squad. The sophomore also registered 23 total attacks, the third most on the team, and nine kills, for a team-high hitting percentage of .261. She provided intensity throughout the match, with plenty of late-set kills, including one to clinch the second set, 25-23, after plenty of back-and-forth rallying between the Crimson and the Pride. In the final frame, a joint block by Holte and sophomore outside hitter Jennifer Shults swatted down an attempted Hofstra kill and sealed the victory for Harvard.

The match was the second straight Crimson victory in which the squad bounced back after dropping the first set.

Holte’s 12 blocks is the most blocks for a Harvard player in a single match in two years, when Sandra Lynne Fryhofer ’12, put up 13 at Georgia State in September 2011.

New to the team this season is a group of five freshmen, two assistant coaches and a new offensive system, all of which are making an immediate impact upon the team.

Holte credits these new faces and strategies for the pair of wins the Crimson earned this weekend and for her own accomplishments on the court.

“Last year, our preseason was a little bit rough, so this year we were really excited to come off with a win because we were trying to introduce our freshmen to our system,” Holte said. “We have a new, more concise strategy to follow and that’s really helped improve our game already.”

This new strategy has fit both Holte’s offensive and defensive net play of Holte, who attributes much of her success to her coaches, teammates and the new systems in place.

“I think that we had great stats going into the game that allowed me to see where I needed to block and what specific players I needed to focus on,” Holte said.

On defense, Holte has looked to both the right side hitter and right side blocker to position the ball correctly and set her up for the block, whether it be a solo or assisted block.

“I’m definitely depending on my teammates to help me be in the right spot for the blocking and for offense in general,” Holte said.

Further, efficient setting by rookie Corinne Bain and sophomore Hannah Schmidt has allowed Holte and the other hitters to effectively launch kills at the opposing teams. In the Hofstra game, Bain tallied 28 assists while Schmidt provided 13 of her own.

“The setters are putting up great balls for the middle [hitters] and for the outside [hitters] to hit,” Holte said. “We’re focusing on a quick offense [and] I think the setter are doing a great job of putting up that quick ball.”

The Laguna Beach, Calif. native spent the summer training in accordance with both the strength and conditioning program set forth by her coaches at Harvard and with workouts that are a little tougher to come by in the Cambridge area.

“This summer, I played a lot of beach volleyball because I’m from California,” Holte said. “I did a lot of beach workouts, so that helped strengthen my ability and endurance within the game. It helped me become more quick on offense.”

The rise of Holte, Shults, and fellow sophomore outside hitter Kathleen Wallace, comes after the team faced the loss of standout contributors Taylor Docter ’13 and Beth Kinsella ’13.

“There’s something to say about seniors graduating, but there are always players that are going to step into those positions,” Crimson coach Jennifer Weiss said. “I think our whole team is different. We have a whole different identity this year. We wouldn’t be where we were without our seniors, but we’re a whole new group so we’re excited to capitalize on new strengths.”

—Staff writer Cordelia F. Mendez can be reached at cordelia.mendez@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @CrimsonCordelia.