By Madeline Sattler, News Staff
It has been repeated over and over this season, but Northeastern volleyball coach Ken Nichols maintains that the motto “chess over checkers” plays a crucial part in the team’s success.
“One of the key things we talk about here at Northeastern is ‘chess over checkers,’” Nichols said. “There are so many talented volleyball players out there, but you have to find a way to differentiate yourself.”
This season the Huskies (11-3) have spent a lot of time watching their opponents on film and assessing their strengths and weaknesses. Nichols and his team are then able to come up with a specific game plan for each opponent, just like in chess.
“You have to adjust quickly,” co-captain and junior outside hitter Janelle Tucker said. “Depending on what team you’re playing, you have to know their weaknesses and attack their weaknesses.”
On Saturday, Northeastern took on the Harvard University Crimson as part of the New England Classic at Solomon Court. In the second set of the match, the Huskies opened up an 18-9 lead before the Crimson went on an 8-1 scoring run. Northeastern saw their lead dwindle down to just one point before Nichols called a timeout.
“One of the Harvard kids got hurt and it changed the game plan,” Nichols said after the game, explaining that in-game adjustments to opponents are pivotal to success in both volleyball and chess. “They had a different lineup and we needed to change what we were doing.”
The Huskies went on to win the set 25-21 and took the match in three sets. Tucker and senior middle hitter and co-captain Nicole Bishop each had nine kills in the match. Sophomore libero Natalia Skiba had 19 digs and junior setter Ina Kamenova recorded 21 assists.
Later that night, the Huskies swept the University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies. Again, Northeastern scouted UConn thoroughly and made necessary adjustments during the game.
“We’ve taken a look at the footage and I think UConn is a solid blocking team, well-coached and the setter does a nice job of distribution,” Nichols said.
The two teams battled back and forth throughout the first set until the home-team Huskies took their first lead of the match 13-12. Northeastern went 12-7 over the next 19 points to win the opening set 25-19.
In the second set, Northeastern got on the board first and never trailed. Sophomore setter Jillian Briner recorded nine of her 21 assists in the set and also had the set-winning kill.
Northeastern opened up the third set with five unanswered points before UConn finally found the floor. Northeastern junior outside hitter Kelly Bacon had five of her 12 digs in the set.
“They were a good team and we did our best against them which paid off,” Bacon said. “[What] I think we do this really well is play chess over checkers and just think about what we want to attack on the other side.”
Following the weekend, Bacon was named the Colonial Athletic Association’s (CAA) Co-Offensive Player of the Week. The Temecula, Calif., native had 41 kills in the Classic, including a career-high 21 against the Boston College Eagles on Friday night. She also scooped up 31 digs on the weekend and was named tournament MVP.
“[It was important] to not let off the gas and just keep pushing forward,” Bacon said.
The Huskies open up CAA Saturday against Hofstra University at 7 p.m. They will play their next five matches at Solomon Court.
“There is an open tape exchange in conference play, so it’s very intimate in conference and these teams can see every match we’ve played,” Nichols said.
Northeastern will be looking to maintain their tactic of playing “chess over checkers” this weekend and for the rest of the season.
“I think [the New England Classic] is a good way to jump off the non-conference schedule,” Nichols said. “Looking at Hofstra and beyond, the idea is to execute game plan and go after strengths and weaknesses.”
