Sports
The Battalion
Page 5 • Friday,
Corbelli, Aggies headed to NCAA
Once known for offense, A&M now uses solid defense, blocking
By True Brown
THE BATTALION
When Laurie Corbelli signed with
Texas A&M in 1993, she inherited a
team that was top-heavy with power
players. That year, the Aggies rode their
power game en route to a 27-8 record
and the team’s first berth in the NCAA
Championships since 1986.
Corbelli, now in her 10th year, has
kept that winning tradition alive by
advancing to the NCAA tournament in
each of her nine previous seasons.
The 2002 season was no different.
Despite some early struggles, A&M
(20-9, 12-8 Big 12) rallied to win its
last two matches of the
season and qualify for
the Championships.
The Aggies play
tonight at 7 p.m. in
California against Utah
in the first round of the
NCAA tournament.
During her tenure
here, Corbelli has
diversified A&M’s
team. The Aggies now
have a well respected
defense and boast a
solid blocking game.
“The ball-handling,
the defense, the passing
— that really wasn’t there,” Corbelli
said of her 1993 squad. “To have a
power game, we spent most of our first
year here working on the passing, ball
control and defense. And it’s still our
emphasis.”
The hard work has paid off.
This season, the Aggie defense fin
ished third in the Big 12 in digs with
16.88 per game. A&M’s defense held
opponents to a .193 hitting percentage,
fourth best in the conference.
“Defense really is what runs the
show,” Corbelli said. “The team that
plays the best on defense is the team
that is going to win. We’ve really
improved on our defense.”
During her building process,
Corbelli also made recruiting
California players a big priority.
Corbelli said California has a much
more developed youth system than
Texas does, so it is often the case that
athletes from there have more years of
experience by the time they are ready to
commit to a college.
Former players Kristie Smedsrud
and Jenna Moscovic, both California
products, were All-Americans during
their stay at A&M. Currently, four of
Corbelli’s players hail from California,
including setter Lexy
Beers and middle
blocker Tara Pulaski.
Beers, in her first
season as a starter,
posted almost 13
assists per game,
good enough for third
in the conference.
Pulaski, at 6-foot 2-
inches, has become a
dominant blocker for
the Aggies and leads
the team in the cate
gory.
“Some of the West
coast players we have
brought in have been able to make big
contributions,” Corbelli said. “We’ve
brought in some who have played at a
very high level for while. That experi
ence helps right away. There are some
Texas players that have played a long
time, just sometimes not at the same
level for as long.”
Under the leadership of Corbelli,
who’s husband John is the associate
head coach, A&M volleyball has flour
ished.
The Aggies have won at least 19
matches every season and advanced to
the Elite Eight twice. As a result, A&M
found itself in the top 11 in the final
polls for the first times in school histo
ry, including a record high of No. 9 in
1999 after the Aggies stunned No. 3
Hawaii in Honolulu.
“I don’t know if there’s a secret,”
Corbelli said. “Our training, 1 think is
very hard and very specific as to how
we do things. We do a ton of repetitions
with a certain disciplined technique.
The repetition and commitment we
show is really reciprocated by our play
ers. They all give a lot of hard work, a
lot of sweat in the gym and in the
weight room.”
J.P. BEATO III • THE BATTALION
Sophomore setter Lexy Beers sets the ball for outside hitter A.D. Achiefalu in the Aggies
match against the University of Texas. The Aggies will play their first-round match on Friday.
Defense really is
what runs the show.
The team that plays
the best on defense is
the team that
is going to win.
— Laurie Corbelli
A&M head coach
NEWS IN BRIEF
Ventura signs with
New York Yankees
NEW YORK (AP) - Robin
Ventura took a $3.25 million
paycut to stay with the New
York Yankees.
"I kind of figured there
would be a little bit of a
cut/'he said Thursday after
passing a physical and finaliz
ing a $5 million, one-year
contract. "Obviously, with the
labor deal that was reached,
it's a different year for the
Yankees."
New York, preparing for the
luxury tax in the major
leagues next year, is looking
to cut its $135 million payroll
and the third baseman did his
part.
“I'm with a great group of
people that I enjoy playing
with," Ventura said. "I'm with
a great team. I really enjoyed
it last year."
Cardinals pitcher
Benes retires
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Andy
Benes is ready to begin the
next phase of his sports
career.
"He told me he's moving on
to his next career — as assis
tant coach for his daughter's
third-grade basketball team,"
St. Louis Cardinals spokesman
Brian Bartow joked.
Benes made his retirement
official Thursday. He told gen
eral manager Walt Jocketty
during an hour-long meeting.
Benes, whose scheduled
meeting Wednesday with
Jocketty was pushed back a
day because of an area
snowstorm, declined to
publicly talk about the
retirement.
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