University of Delaware Athletics
Maria Bellinger Leads Blue Hens Into 2019 Season
8/28/2019 10:12:00 AM | Volleyball
Senior Maria Bellinger is by far Delaware volleyball's most prolific attacking player. An athletic and intelligent outside hitter, Bellinger was a First Team All-Colonial Athletic Association selection after leading the conference in kills per set in 2018.
But as Bellinger enters her final season in blue and gold, she will be taking on an even bigger role.
"She's always been a leader in her play, but she hasn't ever been a kid that's super vocal," head coach Sara Matthews said. "She's really stepped into that role this year, so that's been fun to watch."
"I know that freshman year I depended a lot on our senior leadership, and it's crazy to look back and think that's me now," Bellinger said. "That's the job I have to fill and the role I need to fill. As a player, it's really about having to grow and become a leader and set yourself up to become a role model to other players on your team."
While she is growing into being a more vocal leader off the court, Bellinger is already a bona fide star on it. Not only did her 4.38 kills per set lead the CAA, it was the 19th best mark in the NCAA last year and the second best single-season number in the history of Blue Hens volleyball.
Bellinger became just the 14th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000 kill mark for her career, doing so in just three years. On Oct. 7, 2018 she set the Delaware modern era record for kills in a match with 34 at Elon, then five days later racked up 33 more against Northeastern.
"She's always had a really high volleyball IQ. She comes from a family of volleyball people, her mom is a coach," Matthews said. "So she's really understood the game, but I think where we've seen her evolve the most is her shot selection. She's gotten to the point where she can hit any shot and feel comfortable with it."
"I just don't hesitate or over-think it too much," Bellinger said. "I try to see the court at all times to not always hit harder, but hit smarter."
Hitting smarter instead of just harder especially helps when Delaware plays out of system. A volleyball team is out of system when a poor dig or pass leaves the setter with limited options of who to play the ball to for an attack. Because of the high quality of opposing attacks in college volleyball, playing well in those situations is crucially important.
"As a pin hitter you have to be good playing out of system, and I'm very comfortable doing that," Bellinger said.
Bellinger accounted for roughly a third of Delaware's kills in 2018. Matthews wants to spread out the swings more as the Blue Hens evolve and move into 2019, but don't expect Bellinger to be any less effective.
"We're hoping to spread it out a little bit more this year so she doesn't have to take quite so many swings," Matthews said. "We think she can still provide the same production for us that she has in the past, but hit for a higher percentage because hopefully we're going to put her in a situation where she can have better opportunities to have some more success."
Of the 17 players on the Delaware volleyball roster, six are seniors and six are freshman. With such a gap in age and experience, the seniors inevitably have a vital role in shaping the culture and future of the program. While Bellinger is the centerpiece of the Blue Hens' offense on the court, her most important job might be the one she has off the court setting the example for her teammates.
"It's really important," Matthews said. "The senior class will set the standard for what the freshmen will know our program to be."
"The legacy anybody looks to leave is the legacy of a player that left it all out on the court, and didn't leave here with any regrets about what she could have done to get her team to where she wanted them to be," Bellinger said. "I think all the seniors this year are kind of on the same page with that. We're willing to do whatever we have to do to get us there and to leave our younger teammates in a place to continue it after we graduate."
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But as Bellinger enters her final season in blue and gold, she will be taking on an even bigger role.
"She's always been a leader in her play, but she hasn't ever been a kid that's super vocal," head coach Sara Matthews said. "She's really stepped into that role this year, so that's been fun to watch."
"I know that freshman year I depended a lot on our senior leadership, and it's crazy to look back and think that's me now," Bellinger said. "That's the job I have to fill and the role I need to fill. As a player, it's really about having to grow and become a leader and set yourself up to become a role model to other players on your team."
While she is growing into being a more vocal leader off the court, Bellinger is already a bona fide star on it. Not only did her 4.38 kills per set lead the CAA, it was the 19th best mark in the NCAA last year and the second best single-season number in the history of Blue Hens volleyball.
Bellinger became just the 14th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000 kill mark for her career, doing so in just three years. On Oct. 7, 2018 she set the Delaware modern era record for kills in a match with 34 at Elon, then five days later racked up 33 more against Northeastern.
"She's always had a really high volleyball IQ. She comes from a family of volleyball people, her mom is a coach," Matthews said. "So she's really understood the game, but I think where we've seen her evolve the most is her shot selection. She's gotten to the point where she can hit any shot and feel comfortable with it."
"I just don't hesitate or over-think it too much," Bellinger said. "I try to see the court at all times to not always hit harder, but hit smarter."
Hitting smarter instead of just harder especially helps when Delaware plays out of system. A volleyball team is out of system when a poor dig or pass leaves the setter with limited options of who to play the ball to for an attack. Because of the high quality of opposing attacks in college volleyball, playing well in those situations is crucially important.
"As a pin hitter you have to be good playing out of system, and I'm very comfortable doing that," Bellinger said.
Bellinger accounted for roughly a third of Delaware's kills in 2018. Matthews wants to spread out the swings more as the Blue Hens evolve and move into 2019, but don't expect Bellinger to be any less effective.
"We're hoping to spread it out a little bit more this year so she doesn't have to take quite so many swings," Matthews said. "We think she can still provide the same production for us that she has in the past, but hit for a higher percentage because hopefully we're going to put her in a situation where she can have better opportunities to have some more success."
Of the 17 players on the Delaware volleyball roster, six are seniors and six are freshman. With such a gap in age and experience, the seniors inevitably have a vital role in shaping the culture and future of the program. While Bellinger is the centerpiece of the Blue Hens' offense on the court, her most important job might be the one she has off the court setting the example for her teammates.
"It's really important," Matthews said. "The senior class will set the standard for what the freshmen will know our program to be."
"The legacy anybody looks to leave is the legacy of a player that left it all out on the court, and didn't leave here with any regrets about what she could have done to get her team to where she wanted them to be," Bellinger said. "I think all the seniors this year are kind of on the same page with that. We're willing to do whatever we have to do to get us there and to leave our younger teammates in a place to continue it after we graduate."
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Players Mentioned
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