The University of Nottingham (UoN) Women’s Volleyball team starred in an emphatic 3-0 victory over their Nottingham Trent University (NTU) rivals to level the Varsity series at 1-1 yesterday afternoon.
To say the team had confidence going into the fixture would be an understatement. Having both their first and second BUCS teams ranked higher than Nottingham Trent University’s counterparts will do that, as will having won last year’s fixture three sets to none, and seemingly leaving Trent with little chance in terms of how the two teams compared on paper.
The warm-ups became an even clearer indication of the confidence in the UoN team, as opposed to their much more apprehensive rivals. The team ran through their warm-ups with precision and accuracy, displaying an attitude of complete and utter composure.
As such, it was unsurprising when the University of Nottingham team went about their business confidently and clinically in the first set, never letting their opposition gain momentum and winning twelve points on the trot to claim first blood in just 20 minutes. This set the tone for the rest of the game and whilst Trent pushed the University of Nottingham girls a little harder in the following sets (losing 25-16 and 25-15), they proved no match for their dominant opponents.
Whilst no one can knock the Trent side’s spirit, with girls consistently diving for the ball and chasing it with unrelenting hope, the tactical prowess and the skill set of the UoN team was too much to handle. There was a noticeable difference in all departments: more accurate serves, more powerful spikes and better blocking, all contributed to the overall difference between the two sides.
Having already spoken to Impact before the game about the energy and confidence in the team, it was unsurprising that this would be the case and the team displayed first-hand what a formidable unit they are together. The team seemed to gel just as well on court as they did off it, their strategic time-outs with coach Callum Grieve being much more succinct and laid-back than that of their opposition who looked deeply enthralled in their tactic making.
“Captain, Cassidy Croci, lauded the brilliant atmosphere and praised her team in the post-match interview for the strength in depth of their squad.”
In the end, the University of Nottingham girls humbly sailed to a comfortable victory with very few mistakes to iron out, levelling the Varsity series and setting the bar for their male counterparts. A team that boasted a wealth of talent seemed unfazed by the occasion, their calm and collected demeanour silencing the crowd of Trent fans that had gathered in the Lee Westwood Sports Centre.
The captain, Cassidy Croci, lauded the brilliant atmosphere of the Varsity fixture and praised her team in the post-match interview, hailing the 3-0 victory as a display of the strength in depth of their squad, which was a small showcase of the abundance of talent within the Women’s Volleyball Club at the University of Nottingham.
Final Score: Nottingham Trent University 0 – 3 University of Nottingham
Laura Williamson
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