Meyer lights up court late in the match
The freshman defensive specialist is not intimidated, coach Kreklow said.
Published Oct. 26, 2007
During a three-match losing streak, MU volleyball coach Wayne Kreklow has looked to freshman defensive specialist Shayli Meyer to provide a spark late in matches. Wednesday night was no different, as Kreklow put Meyer in during the second and third games of a three-game loss to Kansas State.
"I thought Shayli did a nice job tonight of coming in and getting us some passes," Kreklow said. "Shayli is a freshman, but she's a very competitive kid.
She's not going to go out there and be afraid or be intimidated. She made some nice passes, made some nice defensive plays."
With the exception of three digs, Meyer's contributions were not reflected in the box score, but senior libero Tatum Ailes said she doesn't measure Meyer's performance that way.
"She just plays," Ailes said. "She doesn't think about things. She wants to be out there. She works so hard in practice. She deserves a spot on the floor."
Ailes said Meyer helps the team be aggressive and play to win instead of just to avoid losing.
"She plays the role that she needs to play," Ailes said. "She comes in, and she just plays guts-out and just provides a lot of things for us. She's not scared. She's just out there to win."
Meyer said she makes an effort to tune out all distractions and to play to win.
"I try to not focus on anything besides what's going on and take one play at a time," she said.
Until the team's Oct. 17 match against the No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers, Meyer had not seen action since Sept. 29. She played in one game against the Huskers and two games on Oct. 20 against No. 7 Texas.
Meyer said she is not disappointed with her limited playing time.
"I just try to stay relaxed on the bench," she said. "They usually give me some warning and tell me to be ready to go in. So I always just try to stay focused on the bench and be ready to go in whenever."
Despite maintaining her readiness, Meyer said getting to play is still a thrill each time.
"It's always exciting," she said. "Each game is a new game, and it's always really exciting."
Kreklow said he has been using Meyer to relieve some of the burden on senior outside hitter Na Yang. Although Yang is primarily an offensive player, Kreklow said she also makes many contributions on defense, which has led to her other teams focusing on stopping her.
"If I was playing us, I would do the same thing," Kreklow said. "I would want to try to wear her out.
I'd try to disrupt concentration, I'd try to get her out of her rhythm, and that's what everybody is doing. What we've got to try to do is try to give her a break a little bit."
Physically, Meyer is no match for Yang. She is 5 feet 3 inches tall and Yang is 6 feet 2 inches tall. But Meyer said when she goes in, she is focused on doing what she can and not replacing the production of the player she replaces.
"It usually doesn't matter who I'm going in for," she said. "I just try to play my game. It's not really any different going in for any other player."
Kreklow said Meyer is on track for more playing time.
"I'm hoping that maybe we can keep working her in and see if we can get something going with her," he said.
