Wichita State’s volleyball lineups start with Lehman’s growing versatility

Wichita State’s Mikaela Raudsepp is smiling and talking and rotating her hands, as if holding a volleyball court, to explain how the offense is spread out and uniform.

All you really need to know is that Raudsepp, a senior outside hitter, is confident the Shockers will score often. WSU, the preseason favorite in the American Athletic Conference, returns many of the scorers who lifted last season’s team to a 24-8 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Its .283 attack percentage ranked eighth nationally and second in program history.

Back to Raudsepp, who is rotating her hands and warning opponents. It will be difficult to catch the Shockers in an alignment lacking point producers.

“Spread out, meaning that you always have more than one option on the floor — so (scoring) is spread out,” she said. “Uniform, meaning that, regardless of where you are in the rotation, that spread-outness is still there.”

To put it another way:

“We have a lot of big guns,” she said.

The Shockers open the season on Saturday with matches against Lipscomb and East Tennessee State in Nashville, Tenn., in the LUV Invitational. Coach Chris Lamb knows most of his lineup. Senior Emily Hiebert, the Missouri Valley Conference Setter of the Year, enters her fourth season as a starter. Attackers Raudsepp and Tabitha Brown, both second team All-MVC picks, led the Shockers in kills; Brown with 325 and Raudsepp 324.

The key — and the mystery — to how the lineup is shaped rests on the growing skills of senior Abbie Lehman. She spent the spring working on the right side and expanding her back-row skills. While Lamb isn’t sure how he will use Lehman — he describes one scenario where she is the focus and one where the attack is more diverse — he expects her to add to a career with three previous honorable mention All-American honors as a middle blocker.

“There’s kind of the super-woman lineup and then there’s a more balanced, team kind of lineup,” Lamb said. “Abbie — it’s pretty cool when some of your better players are still on the steep learning curve.”

Lehman hit .384 last season and is a career .399 hitter, a mark that would rank second on WSU’s career list. She can become WSU’s first four-time All-American and first to lead the team in attack percentage four seasons. She did all that as a middle, yet eagerly took on new roles to hit with more movement on the right and defend and attack from the back row. The versatility will help this season and if she pursues a professional career.

“I’ve always been open to learning or changing positions,” she said. “It’s going to grow your game and who you are as a player. We started working a lot more on my back row in the spring. That was great.”

Regardless of where Lehman plays, fans will notice her in different roles this season.

“She’s been scoring from the back-row very well, and behind the setter very well,” Hiebert said. “She’s one of those people who is always going to work hard on what they give her.”

For WSU to shine with Lehman on the right, inexperienced middles such as Emma Wright, Abby Pugh (both redshirt freshmen) and freshman Brooke Smith must perform. Freshman Kora Kauling is on call if Lamb uses a two-setter system, as he did at times last season to take advantage of Hiebert’s attacking skills.

“Abbie is doing some things differently this year, very, very well,” Lamb said. “In both systems we’re doing, it’s a different Abbie. One of them is night-and-day different.”

Hiebert is prepared for any direction the Shockers turn. Lamb and her teammates see her maturing into a more vocal presence and a more aggressive scorer.

“Emily’s been given more freedom and Emily’s allowed to do her own thing now,” Raudsepp said. “Emily was told what to do and it was execution of game-plan in the past. Emily is now given the opportunity to analyze the situation and come up with what you’re doing.”

Lamb expects Giorgia Civita to resume libero duties. She played in 11 matches last season, moving into the starting lineup as a freshman, before a torn ACL in her right knee ended her season.

“She’s just making more defensive plays than anybody,” Lamb said.

The Shockers led the nation in digs per set (26.5) last season and also return seniors Gabi Mostrom and Hanna Shelton from its libero group. Senior Jenny Whitledge, who missed last season with with a broken left leg, is working at libero and as an attacker.

This story was originally published August 24, 2017 at 4:02 PM with the headline "Wichita State’s volleyball lineups start with Lehman’s growing versatility."