College Sports

The motto of the 2008 University of Texas Tyler volleyball team is "Don't look back."

It is one that the Patriots have in their locker room, on t-shirts and most importantly etched in their minds.

The motto is not only a reminder to forget about last year's 7-26 season, but it serves as a credo for every aspect of the game.

"This motto helps us learn from our mistakes and look forward to the next play, practice, game or whatever the situation is," said head coach Kristee Phelps.

Phelps, who enters her fourth year at the helm of the Patriots, is excited about having something on this year's team that she has not had much of in previous seasons. This year the Patriot's will have more size than ever before.

Three members of this year's squad come in at 6-foot or taller, where as the tallest player on last year's team was 5-foot-10.

"The height will add a different dimension to our blocking and attacking," said Phelps. "We will have a more refined defense since we have bigger blockers. The bigger block will leave significantly less holes in our defense."

Although, Phelps has added more height with some new faces this season, she has also returned a very strong group of players from last year. A talented group that is not only passionate about the game, but eager to prove their mettle in the ASC.

"This group of returning players has a bad taste in their mouth from last season," said Phelps. "They are going to do everything in their power to make sure last season never happens again."

While Phelps has worked hard to change her team for 2008, the NCAA has made a change of its own to the game for this season. Instead of the first four games in a match being played to 30 using rally scoring, they will now be played to 25, also using rally scoring. The fifth and deciding game will still be played to 15.

Phelps welcomes the change in rules and thinks it will only improve the game.

"It will quicken the game and make it more exciting," Phelps said. "The shift in momentum could now come a lot sooner than people think."

Phelps believes it will also make the transition for freshman from high school to college easier, since high school volleyball is already played to 25.

The Patriots are not only looking to improve as a team in 2008 but they want to use this season to send a message to the rest of the conference.

"We want to be a contender in the ASC," Phelps said.

"We know that we will not necessarily go out and win every match, but we want other teams to know that we have to be dealt with now and they can't just look past us."

The Patriots (3-1) host four matches this weekend. Friday they play Ottawa at 2 p.m. and Texas College at 6 p.m. On Saturday, they will face Rhodes at noon and Bacone at 4 p.m.