Joscie Kaup was eager to get home. After being swept by Louisville and Cincinnati last month, the women’s volleyball senior wanted to begin the team’s eight-game homestand.

Now, she can’t wait to get back on the road. That’s what four straight victories and a 6-2 homestand will do to a team’s confidence.

Syracuse is full of momentum after defeating in-state opponents Colgate and Cornell, 3-1, Tuesday in the Women’s Building. The matches against the upstate New York foes finished a home stretch that began more than two weeks ago. SU went 3-2 in Big East play during the stretch and 3-0 against non-conference opponents.

When the Orange entered the biggest home portion of its schedule, it was reeling, having lost four of its last six, going 1-2 in the conference. With five Big East games on tap, the homestand was a time for the team to regroup and win some games.

‘We were hoping to use the home stretch as an advantage because we had so many Big East weekends in a row,’ assistant head coach Carol LaMarche said. ‘We missed a couple of games we would have liked to have. I thought we did fine. The teams we lost to (USF and Notre Dame) are hard teams. We didn’t have any terrible weekends or games, and we’re getting better with every Big East match.’

Kaup said the team learned a lot about itself over the eight-match stretch.

‘I think we learned a lot as a team, and I think that will help us in the future,’ Kaup said. ‘I think we’re playing better now than we were when we played Notre Dame (four matches ago), and I think that’s a big improvement and I think that will help us. Chemistry, communication, all of it has picked up in the last few weeks.’

Kaup said those certain aspects of the team helped propel Syracuse through the stretch, in which the Orange improved its setting, hitting and defense.

All three were on display Tuesday night for Syracuse. Junior setter April Quigley had 84 assists during the two games, while the Orange racked up 76 kills against Colgate in the first game. SU also kept balls from hitting the floor, picking up 110 digs in two matches.

Whether it was offense, defense or setting, the team is feeling confident now, which is important considering the team’s upcoming schedule. SU is currently ninth in the Big East (only eight teams make the Big East tournament) and has four of its last seven Big East games on the road. Further complicating matters is the Orange’s 4-8 record away from the friendly confines of Manley Field House and the Women’s Building.

LaMarche said this weekend helped the team’s confidence as they prepare for more Big East games.

‘We’ve gained some confidence over the last couple of weekends that we’re a good team and we can compete with any Big East team,’ LaMarche said. ‘We know we’re a good team and we deserved to be in the Big East just as anybody else and need to get out and prove it.’

The players are hoping the newfound confidence can guide them through the road games.

‘This weekend we played really well,’ Quigley said. ‘So we can hopefully feed off of that and keep going. We’ll take the confidence and hopefully play as well against the teams even though we are not home.’

Whether it is confidence or being home too long, one thing is for certain: The team is ready to get on the road, something Kaup said the team wouldn’t have wanted before the stretch.

‘It’s a confidence boost, but since we’ve been home so long, we’re all excited to get on the road,’ Kaup said. ‘We’re excited to get out there and show people who we are. We were looking forward to our home stretch, now we’ve played our home stretch and now we’re excited to go away and show West Virginia and Pittsburgh who we are.’

Published on October 23, 2007 at 12:00 pm