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With Syracuse trailing 24-17, Polina Shemanova took multiple deep breaths and tossed the ball high up into the air, with a greater distance than a normal set up for a serve. She kept her eye on the ball and timed her jump so that she could slam the ball to the other side. Shemanova raised her fist, sending a bullet over the net. The ball was sent with pace and power, flying to the other side, but it careened out of bounds.

Shemanova’s service error was Syracuse’s (10-12, 6-6 Atlantic Coast) eighth of the game, resulting in a straight sets loss to Miami (14-9, 7-5 ACC). Service errors proved to be a problem for the Orange in the loss, especially in the third set where they had four. It was the 10th time this season that SU has had a match where it had eight or more service errors.

Over the past couple of weeks, Shemanova has implemented the hard serve into her arsenal. At times it has worked for the outside hitter, finishing with a season high three aces against Georgia Tech. On Sunday, the serve proved less successful, finishing with a single ace and three service errors. 

“The number one reason for deciding which serve I do depends on the score,” Shemanova said. “I usually look at our assistant coaches, coach Lesli (Akeo) is responsible for who serves, where and how. So if she gives me a thumbs up, that usually means that I’m all set to go.” 

The final serve Shemanova explained that “there was nothing to lose” so she went for it. When the game is more “balanced” she’ll serve the ball softer or after a tiring point attempting kills in the front row. 

This season Syracuse has tried to be an aggressive serving team, attempting to put opponents on the back foot. Whether it’s Shemonova, Viktoriia Lokhmanchuk, Raina Hughes or Alyssa Bert, each player has played a part in that point of attack for SU. Lokhmanchuk leads the team with 31 aces, with Shemanova in second, recording 23.

“In general, we want to be an aggressive serving team,” Syracuse head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam said. “We’ve been working on it throughout the season…there were some matches where we did really well and some we didn’t, but it’s something we’re gonna keep working on.”

Each game, Syracuse would decide whether it would serve aggressively, depending on the strengths of the opponent. Watching film and evaluating how the other team sets up plays a big role in deciding how aggressive SU will be on the serve.

Ganesharatnam felt that serving hard would benefit SU against Miami, knowing that the system it runs is strong.

“They have really good middles that they incorporate a lot… we needed to put blockers in front of them but also serve aggressively so they’re less than system so they are less likely to run the middles.”

The Syracuse coach also explained that by serving aggressively, “you can have some errors.”

Early in the second set, Shemonova served aggressively, leaping into the air, firing a ball that arrowed along the left sideline. A perfectly placed shot that no Miami player could get to gave Syracuse an early 2-1 lead in the second set. Shemanova served aggressively again, but this time it backfired, as the ball slapped into the middle of the net.

Shemanova wasn’t alone in her struggles on the serve, Syracuse had five different players that recorded an error. When SU got good serves off, Miami did a good job of controlling them with its setters, not letting the serves deter its offense. Miami only had four service errors all game, but most of them came when it held a big lead, so it never proved costly for the Hurricanes.

“Your teammates know that you didn’t miss a serve just because you wanted to,” Shemanova said. “It’s the same mentality as if you’re going in for a kill, you’re trying to be aggressive. Sometimes things don’t work, but you will have many points ahead, so it’s important not to get stuck on that one.”

Published on October 30, 2022 at 5:39 pm

Contact Zak: [email protected] | @ZakWolf22