LINCOLN — Hannah Werth can flat-out pound the volleyball, perhaps harder than anyone who's ever played at Nebraska. During last year's prep all-star skills exhibition in Omaha, one of her blasts was clocked at 55 mph.

Werth can jump out of the gym, too. During offseason testing with the Huskers, her vertical leap was measured at 27½ inches.

But if there was a way to calculate patience, Werth says her score would be embarrassingly low. If there was a stat that sized up a player's ability to stay even-keeled when things aren't going as expected, Werth joked that she might barely chart.

“I'm one of the most competitive people when it comes to things I have a desire and a drive to do,” said Werth, Nebraska's freshman outside hitter. “Patience — yeah, it's taking time for me to become patient, if that makes any sense. But it definitely has to do with maturity and becoming an older and wiser player. I'm not to that level yet, but I'm working on it.”

After getting a chance to recharge their batteries last weekend, when they had a Big 12 bye, the ninth-ranked Huskers get back on the court tonight when they host Kansas. The match represents another chance for coach John Cook's young club to take a step forward during what's been a roller coaster of a season.

And the contest marks the next opportunity for Werth to grow and get more comfortable playing the game she loves at the Division I level.

Werth's promising college career has gotten off to a mercurial start. She struggled — as did all of her teammates — when the Huskers opened the season getting swept by No. 8 Michigan at the AVCA Showcase. The next night, she appeared in just two sets and took only three swings as NU rebounded to beat fifth-ranked Minnesota 3-2.

During the dozen matches they've played since, Werth has been far too up-and-down for her liking in all of the key skills — serving, passing, hitting and blocking. Still, she's shown flashes of brilliance, and on many occasions displayed the dazzling talent that made her one of the nation's most sought-after recruits for the freshman class of 2009.

Perhaps most encouraging, Werth has come on strong lately. She already has two Big 12 rookie of the week honors on her résumé, and she could've earned a third for her gutsy performance during NU's five-set road win over Oklahoma last week.

She not only had a career-high 17 kills against the Sooners, she became the go-to attacker as the Huskers fought past Oklahoma in set five. That's when she scored five kills and had a hand in a momentum-changing block, helping NU snap its first two-match skid in six years.

The clutch performance came on the same night in which an infuriated Cook briefly benched Werth, junior outside hitter Tara Mueller and junior setter Sydney Anderson for their poor play in set one. By the end of that match, Werth's 17 kills would go into the books as the most by a Husker rookie since former NU star Jordan Larson had 19 in 2005.

“I yank her at Oklahoma, then she comes back and plays great in game five. She just took it over,” Cook said. “We continue to see (things like that) from her, and you've got to have players who can do that. She wanted the ball, and Sydney gave her the ball. We've got to get her to play like that all the time, but that was a big step she took.”

Considering her family tree, it should surprise nobody that Werth came to NU expecting to enjoy big success right out of the blocks. Her mother and sister both are standout athletes, and her brother, father, uncle and grandfather all have histories playing major league baseball.

Werth's teammates recognized right away her competitive drive. But Anderson said the move up to college ball is an eye-opening experience for every player.

“She wants to get up, and she wants to kill the ball. She's a freshman, and she's going to go out there and go hard — which is great,” Anderson said. “But at this level, if you go hard, there's going to be some big hands up there. As she's seeing, she's going to get blocked a few times. She's going to get more comfortable, and I think she's improving a lot.”

Heading into tonight's match, the 6-foot-1 Werth leads all Big 12 rookies with 2.72 kills per set. Her average of 2.74 digs also is tops among conference freshmen, excluding liberos. Cook would like her to improve on her .199 hitting, and he wants her to be steadier in passing the ball.

But for anybody who wants to compare Werth to Larson at this point in their careers, the coach said, there's one important thing to remember: When Larson arrived at NU in 2005, she wasn't counted on to play a lead role on a team loaded with All-Americans such as Melissa Elmer, Jennifer Saleaumua, Christina Houghtelling, Tracy Stalls and Sarah Pavan.

Even though Werth doesn't have that luxury, Cook said, he still loves the potential and passion he sees in the Huskers' touted freshman.

“I feel like I get more comfortable the more I work on my game and the more I practice with my teammates,” said Werth, out of Springfield, Ill. “Time is a big thing. I have to remember to be patient and remember what my coaches are teaching me. I feel like I have a great support system here, and we still feel really good about what kind of team we can be at the end of the season.”

Contact the writer:

444-1207, chad.purcell@owh.com

« Sports - Big Red Today

Share