Lone senior Yoerg sets up wins for women's volleyball team

Who would you ask for if you needed a leader with plenty of experience and a killer set? If you were a volleyball coach, you would ask for senior setter Ana Yoerg.

As the only senior on the 2001 women's volleyball team, Ana has been thrust into the role of leader — one for which she is most definitely prepared.

"As a freshman Ana didn't play much, but we put her in during the [Ivy League Tournament] because of her size and her maturity," head coach Glenn Nelson said. "It was the same when she was a sophomore — that was a championship team. Last year she took over and we won. She was a star. She will be a great leader this year because she knows what it's like to be in every possible position on this team."

"I was on the bench my first two years. I learned from watching rather than playing. That really helped when I became a starter my junior season," Yoerg said.

It may seem out of the ordinary for a walk-on player to sit for two years and then explode onto the scene her junior year, but that is the norm at Princeton.

"Coach Nelson usually has a setter sit the bench for two years and then have her come up and play for her junior and senior years," Yoerg said.

Although afforded the distinction of being the only senior, Yoerg is happy to be out of the public eye.

"As a setter, I don't get any glory and I don't have good stats. I like being more understated because when you're not always in the spotlight, you can be more relaxed. I don't have a lot of pressure on me on the court and it's easier to make up for mistakes."

Yoerg won't let the team rest on its laurels as she leads then in search of a third-straight Ivy Championship for Princeton. She is first and foremost a team player, and she thinks the Tigers "are going to be good. If we go into each league game focused, we can work our way to a number one seed. This is our most important goal right now. If we get to the NCAAs, we'll start all over from the beginning."

Last year, the Tigers played eventual-champion Nebraska in the NCAA tournament. Princeton played a great game in Lincoln, but eventually fell to the best team in the nation.

"We definitely play better when the pressure is on," Yoerg said. We love to have our fans come out to the games and heckle. They pump us up. They're so important."

With only one senior and three juniors, the Tigers will have to deal with inexperience as the season begins.

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"Lack of experience could potentially be a problem. We may start two or three freshmen, which is a lot considering only six people play [at a time]. So far, they seem level-headed, solid, and don't freak out," said Yoeg.

What the Tigers are lacking in upperclassman experience, they more than make up with in zealous underclassmen.

"We have a lot of talent, and we win a lot, so it makes other teams jealous of us, because we make it look like we don't work hard. We do work hard," said Yoeger.

As far as leadership goes, she went on to say, "Some of the younger girls are stepping up and helping there."

With key injuries and a lack of experience, Yoerg may have to move into a more visible role than setter this year.

"Ana is great at adapting. We may even have her hit half the time this year," Nelson said. "We're still trying to find an identity for this team. We have enough talent and depth that we'll do fine this year," he continued.

With a killer set, plenty of experience and great leadership, Ana Yoerg is the player to watch for the 2001 Tigers.

"People better come to our home games," Yoerg said.

The Princeton community would do well not to defy her.