Syracuse volleyball has never made the NCAA tournament. But after 23 of 26 regular season games, the Orange (16-7, 12-3 Atlantic Coast) rank No. 31 in RPI, the metric used by the committee to select the 32 at-large bids to the tournament — 32 receive automatic bids by winning the conference.

“In this spot it’s really scary,” head coach Leonid Yelin said. “How close are we gonna get? You can even smell it. So, this is from my past experience, it’s a very dangerous time.”

SU only has a few comparable seasons. In 2004, the Orange started 25-5 before a loss to Pittsburgh in the regular season finale followed by another loss against the Panthers in the Big East Tournament kept SU from advancing further. In 2010, the Orange were 21-3 before dropping six of their last eight, once again not doing enough to get in.

Since he was hired as head coach in 2012, the closest Yelin has gotten Syracuse to the tournament was the 2015 season. The Orange entered November that season at 14-6, and despite going 9-2 over the final month, the eight losses were enough to keep Syracuse out of a tournament bid.

“I think we’re OK right now,” senior Jalissa Trotter said. “I think everyone is pleased with our standing. We definitely could be ranked a little better but we did take a hit or two from some losses. But I think right now everyone knows that’s very important to keep that spot or to get a better RPI.”

Yelin valued the RPI metric and made sure his team was challenged early in the season. While the Orange normally play a home tournament against unranked opponents, SU passed on that this season, in part because there weren’t enough high-quality opponents that wanted to play.

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Instead, the Orange headed to the Marquette Tournament where SU faced off against Marquette (18th in current RPI), USC (7th) and BYU (5th). Syracuse lost all three games.

Pittsburgh all but guaranteed the ACC’s automatic bid sitting with a 26-1 record, meaning the Orange need to get in as an at-large team. A win over then-No. 22 Louisville (36th) stands out as SU’s biggest resume booster. Aside from losses against Iowa (68th) and Notre Dame (62nd), Syracuse has only lost to top-30 RPI teams.

SU’s remaining three games are against Virginia Tech (143rd), Wake Forest (208th) and NC State (92nd), meaning any loss would be their worst of the season.

The seniors realize how close they are, having worked four years to reach this point.

“They know,” Yelin said. “Of course they know. We’re trying not to talk about it because there are a lot of things you want to make your players not thinking too much about this and get stuck trying to be afraid to do something to win.”

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Trotter and fellow senior Santita Ebangwese both said the players follow the RPI closely. But right before each game, they try not to think about it, instead focusing on game plan and how exactly to beat the opponent at hand.

Senior Christina Oyawale said everyone on the team is dedicated to the moment, knowing something larger is in play. Any loss from this point forward could send the team to the wrong side of the tournament bubble.

“You can see it in faces, you can see it their hearts in when we talk,” Oyawale said. “It’s not just a ‘Let’s go get this.’ It’s everyone coming to show up and do their part, and that’s what we need to move forward.”

Associate head coach Erin Little said the biggest challenge going forward will be keeping the players fresh, especially as schoolwork increases toward finals. The turnover from traveling can also increase fatigue this late in the season.

But the formula for the Orange to finally crack the big dance is straightforward.

Said Yelin: “Very simple: keep winning.”

Published on November 14, 2018 at 12:10 am

Contact Eric: estorms@syr.edu