With her athletic ability, all around skills and killer serve, wouldn't she make the perfect beach player?
Volleyball mavens re: Micha Hancock
- Thread starter Chickenman Testa
- Start date
Absolutely. Very good blocker for her size and just her feel for the game, along with her other overall skills
And not that I focus too much on this superficial aspect, but she probably also fills out a bikini quite well
.... But I digress
And not that I focus too much on this superficial aspect, but she probably also fills out a bikini quite well
.... But I digress
FLAG! FLAG! FLAG!
One way to get me to open any thread is to mention Micha Hancock in the title.
It's OK. Digress! Digress!And not that I focus too much on this superficial aspect, but she probably also fills out a bikini quite well
.... But I digress
OK, the first photo is not Micha, but there is some resemblance.
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
And not that I focus too much on this superficial aspect, but she probably also fills out a bikini quite well
.... But I digress
Yup.
Indoor volleyball setters rarely pass a ball in serve receive. In beach volleyball if you can't receive serve, you're done for (refer to Kerry Walsh's passing in the semifinals). I'm not saying Hancock can't serve receive, but she likely has little practice in that position over the past 5-6 years given her role as a setter. She'd have to hit on occasion too, another skill she probably doesn't practice a lot today as a setter. Beach hitting is also very different from indoor... placement shots, roll shots, knuckle pokey shots are paramount to playing beach and are less emphasized in indoor where it's mostly power and open hand tips (the latter of which is an illegal contact in beach).
I'd assume you're suggesting she should set in beach, given her current position. This also means she'd have to block predominantly. I don't know much about her blocking skills in indoor and if that would be sufficient to translate to the beach. She has the size for it though.
Keep in mind a beach volleyball court is smaller than an indoor court. She would have to adapt her serve accordingly. It's not overly difficult, but would take a lot of practice to perfect it to the level it's at in indoor.
Because of all this I'd say she's not the "perfect" beach player, but maybe with practice she could be one. Beach players have to be extremely well-rounded because both players touch the ball on every single point. Indoor players are much more specialized into specific roles. I believe Hancock wasn't a setter until coming to PSU so she likely has some of the chops needed, but it would just take time to get acclimated back to it.
I expect that we are going to see a wave of talented beach volleyball players in the near future now that it's an NCAA sport. In the past pretty much all beach players played indoor in college and had to adapt to the beach game, or they grew up in coastal states like California where amatuer beach volleyball was already popular. That is changing and there will be younger players watching the Olympics that will now grow up spending their whole life playing on the beach, and we should see some better players as a result.
I'd assume you're suggesting she should set in beach, given her current position. This also means she'd have to block predominantly. I don't know much about her blocking skills in indoor and if that would be sufficient to translate to the beach. She has the size for it though.
Keep in mind a beach volleyball court is smaller than an indoor court. She would have to adapt her serve accordingly. It's not overly difficult, but would take a lot of practice to perfect it to the level it's at in indoor.
Because of all this I'd say she's not the "perfect" beach player, but maybe with practice she could be one. Beach players have to be extremely well-rounded because both players touch the ball on every single point. Indoor players are much more specialized into specific roles. I believe Hancock wasn't a setter until coming to PSU so she likely has some of the chops needed, but it would just take time to get acclimated back to it.
I expect that we are going to see a wave of talented beach volleyball players in the near future now that it's an NCAA sport. In the past pretty much all beach players played indoor in college and had to adapt to the beach game, or they grew up in coastal states like California where amatuer beach volleyball was already popular. That is changing and there will be younger players watching the Olympics that will now grow up spending their whole life playing on the beach, and we should see some better players as a result.
Micha is a great VB talent. I would love to see her continue her VB career in some form or another, be it in beach VB or court VB. Plus, she is also an absolute doll and would be a great ambassador for the sport, whether it is beach VB or court VB. Best of luck to her in whatever she decides to do going forward.
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
Not sure if you're aware, but she is playing pro ball in Europe (Conegliano, Italy).
And she's still a beast:
That 8 point run was a thing of beauty: ace, overpass, ace, out of system pass, overpass, out of system pass, ace, overpass, in system pass (blocked) and finally a side out due to a service error. 7 straight serves where the opponent couldn't run their offense, what an incredible weapon to have at the service line.
I do not think Blair Brown gets enough credit for her looks!
Why are there no pro leagues in the US? VB is fast paced and exciting, both men's and women's. Why no leagues with teams in college towns? What do they pay overseas?
Volleyball just isn't as popular here. As an example, it's the #2 sport in Brazil behind soccer, in the US it's not even on the radar screen. It's popular in many European countries as well.
The US does have professional beach volleyball (AVP tour) but it struggles to stay afloat. Sponsorship money is critical to their success and they seem to have a hard time keeping sponsors lined up. AVP actually stopped running several years ago, but has since returned but I hear they are struggling again.
