PLAYOFFS

With the regular season finally concluded, there are no more excuses, no points to be won, it just comes down to the teams that have worked hard all year long to secure their spot in the final 8 and doing whatever it takes to win and advance.

This will be an even more enchanting series, coming against not only the #1 team in the league but also against our closest rival in Loimaa, Hurricane.

You'll be lucky to find an open seat at either Hall this week

Since last year, in 7 matches against Hurricane, both Halls have been packed and full of energy, added the thrill of the playoffs and there is no doubt that both home teams will have a huge advantage, even with the opposing team's crowd coming in with large numbers.

This is truly going to be one of the most exciting playoffs series, with both teams full of confidence and ability, Loimaa and Raisio will be the place to be to find the best volleyball in Finland in the next couple days.

To get a little more anxious, below are a two videos of Ossi and myself throughout the year so far. Can't wait for the challenge and can't wait for a packed house as we come back to Kerttula Saturday night. See you then.

Until next time,

Dustin (Jenkki #1)

A different path, to achieve a similar goal

After falling to a much improved Etta last week, the mood was pessimistic at best, everyone was so focused on the goal at hand to return from Oulu with 3 points. Leaving with 0, there was an assortment of different emotions, trying to figure out what went wrong instead of refocusing on the next game, which would be pivotal against a Korso team, coming into Raisio on a hot streak.

The coaches and the organization, made an interesting decision, following that loss. One, that affected our season for the better...
canceling our practice the day before the game.... to go laser tagging.

It was so odd, hearing the new schedule on the phone but it was just the right ingredient, to get us back on track. We meet that Friday afternoon, split the teams into 3s, young guys, old guys and then the coaches plus the handicap (Iiro and Kimmo). We played two rounds but it felt like a life time, there wasn't one guy without a smile on his face the whole time,  the mood was great and any pressure the team felt was gone for those 2 hours we were there.

Ossi, not only did it with his shoulder but with his will and energy, affecting his team and the home crowd.

With a blank mind, heading into the Korso game, we were still unable to take an early lead, lead by the dominate play by their older universal player, Korso was able to send us into the locker room, looking for answers. With some great words from our captain, we went back out with a new found confidence, rallying behind both setters, Ossi, swinging high and hard over the block and Duncan, able to do it not only from the front row but from the end line with his serve. It all just came together and the mood in Kerttula became a steady wave of consistent clapping that never stopped for the home team, all the way until the 15th point in the 5th set.

It was one of those matches, where you know all the struggles, hard work and even at time loses are worth it, just to get a glimpse of that feeling of overcoming everything and finding success with your teammates and friends. And I can't wait for more of it, we have a long road to go into the playoffs and I know we will be up for the challenge.

Until next time,
Dustin (Jenkki #1)

The Big Push, another American in town

With 4 games left, this is where the fun really begins, the halls fill up, the eyes of the Finnish volleyball world become fixed to every point filling the standings and the pressure and anxiety is as thick as snow. Tonight will mark the first of 3 home games at Kerttula to end the regular season and it will be a great one, with the newest Jenkki coming to town, opposite, Matthew Proper.

Theres not much I can say about him, that this picture can't. He is a physical beast. Very strong, very tall and with a great jump to go along as well. What will make the game even more exciting to watch is with Saimaa coming off a huge win against Muurle last night, only the 3rd team to do so at their home hall.'

With all these ingredients assembled, it will be another great night of volleyball in the best hall of Finland. Hope to see all of Raisio and can't wait for what will be a very exciting and competitive night of volleyball.

Below, is a little documentation of our recent trip to Sampo. We played great  but at the end we were only able to capture 1 point. One of the things that makes us a great team is our team chemistry, as you will see everyone gets along great, lots of smiles and of course lots of coffee. Can't wait for tonight, see everyone at Kerttula.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwitVuWMA4M&context=C36a5b25ADOEgsToPDskLeipgTKbCDZV8j3onQ06VE

Until next time,
Dustin (Jenkki #1)

Inside look at Loimu's special training

The playoffs are getting closer and closer, for us, being within such few points of so many teams, we've had to kick practice up a notch, getting in the mind set of playoff volleyball. Even though, we were able to steal last match from up north in Lapland, we have another huge task ahead this Saturday, against Muurle.

Like last year, I look forward to the great atmosphere, which the playoffs brings to Finnish volleyball and Kerttula a like. Hopefully, we can get that feeling going early with 4 home matches left, fill Kerttula up and start bringing in that playoff atmosphere that is right around the corner. Our first chance is this Saturday at 17:00 against a very strong Muurle team, who is looking for a little pay back. I know we have been working harder then ever and we are waiting and ready to play again for our home fans and we can't wait to see more and more fans enjoying the hard fought matches to come in the next following weeks at Kerttula. See you Saturday!

Also, little sneak peak into our special morning sessions. No one has been working harder in the training sessions latley then Tuomasy, even if he doesn't agree so much with the workouts... Hope you enjoy and hope to see more of the best fans in Finland Saturday, enjoying the hard fought battle every point of the way.

Until next time,
Dustin (Jenkki #1)

Loimu Warrior

It's been an interesting year so far to say the least. With no snow until the middle of December and the amount of games increased, its been different and a struggle at times for us, trying to find consistency within such a great year, full of strong teams. One thing hasn't changed though, our ability to come to the training with high spirits and ready to out work the rest of the league. Which can be and has been personified by one person, that guy being #5, Mr. Rumpunen.

Since, I set foot in Kerttula last year, till now, Ossi has personified in what our team is trying to do this year and that is to outwork the competition. Coming in the gym every day, no matter how his day was outside Kerttula, finding and giving all the energy he has for the training period. Even though frustration and pessimism has leaked its way into our locker room, time after time, he has lead with his actions, in the training hall, up lifting the spirit of the team and leading with his efforts, fueling our training environment and in my mind one of the huge reasons, that we have been so successful in 5 game matches this year. We still have a lot of work to go, to get where we want to be but I am sure of it, we are all capable of the work and are ready for the challenge, especially #5.

Being apart of Loimu, one of things I have found I've enjoyed the much, is the passion that everyone who puts on a orange and black jersey comes to play with, especially Ossi. Below, you can see how important he is to the success of our team, not only with his play but with his on court attitude. But to any Loimu fan, its just the standard they have become accustomed to, having the pleasure to have Ossi on their side, personifying the pride in wearing the black and orange

Until next time,

Dustin (Jenkki #1)

Tuomas' big night, The Return of Jimmy.

It was a sore for the eye, for the fans at Kertulla for the first two sets against Muurle, Wednesday night. They were firing on all gears, going into the break, up 2-0 and looking to steal 3 points, sealing up a quick 3 game win. With some motivating words by our captain, during the break, we were quickly refocused and took the court back by storm, with Ossi opposite of the setter and an unfamiliar leader to the casual Loimu fan, Tuomas Koppanen.

The youngest player on the roster, Koppanen has really come into his own this year, playing not only with us but with Division 1 Parma. It's been tough road, switching between games and practices with both teams and once with us, being the youngest of the bunch, taking his share of the jokes from the older guys on the team. But none of the less, the respect is there and he has earned it, it was easy to see at Kertulla on Wednesday, passing with confidence, able to consistently swing high and hard for kills and coming up with big plays at the net when we needed him most.

Hard work, paying off for Koppanen

But the win, was a great team win, besides Tuomas coming into his own, Ossi was able to set the tone quickly, able to contort the ball to his will, hard, soft, over the block, he looked like he had never left the position from October 2010, when he was selected the best player of the Month. Playing without error, lead to others handling the ball much better, Garret, having one of his most dominant matches so far, with Jani Sippola, controlling not only the flow of the game, but the right side block, shutting down their left side attack throughout the 4th set. This lead to a very competitive 5th game, where are closers in the middle, Sami and Henri. Who were able to come up with some huge plays to shift the momentum, most notably, Henri's huge block on the right side moving the game to 14-11 and out of reach for the visitors. And cannot forget the image of Olli, making his mark in Loimu black and orange with his big solo block.

The first sight of Olli in Black and Orange

With a great win, comes even a greater challenge tomorrow night, when our neighbors Hurrikaani visits, with a former face in Jimmy Hernandez. Hurrikaani has had a fantastic start to their season, rising to the top of the league, with a much different look to their team, most notably the addition of Jimmy. Fortunate enough, to spend my first year abroad with Jimmy as a teammate, I was able to take a lot from him and the professionalism he comes to work with day after day, making him one of the most dominate players in the Finnish SM. His ability, to have the upmost focus, whether its a playoff match, practice or morning practice, where half the players are below the age of 18, he was always getting better, which of course was contagious, leading without words, other teammates to the same intensity and focus.

Never one to back down, one of the most passionate and exciting players in the league.

It was easy to also marvel at his attacks and game changing defensive plays but one of his best assets as a teammate was to take on his individual accomplishments and use them for the better of the team's momentum. Consistently showing his passion and celebrating other's success on the court and be able to show no need for concern and confidence when things were going poorly.

Always focused, no doubt a big reason at Hurrikaani's success this year

Jimmy, no doubt had a lot to do with our team's success, being not only a great teammate but a great friend, with that said, I can't wait for tomorrow's match as it will be one of the most electric games to be played this year at Kertulla and I know we can't wait for the challenge to knock off the #1 team in Finland at the moment. Can't wait, hope to see you all there.

Until next year,
Dustin (Jenkki #1)

The Return of Jose and Loimu on a Pizza

Tomorrow marks our first home game in over 2 weeks, since our last home game and our dominant serving performance, beating Sun Volley in 4, in front of a great home crowd. Tomorrow, also marks the return of 2010-2011 Loimu setter, Jose Carrasco.

Jose, never shy of making the "big play"

Jose, one of the only recent foreign setters for Loimu, had the tough task of replacing Simo-Pekka Olli last year. In the beginning, much frustration and misconception filled the air, with the lack of common language with the local Finnish players but Jose worked hard and with the help of Jimmy, picked up the basics which were needed to communicated and be successful throughout the year.

After November, Jose and Jani were able to lead us to an impressive 12-1 run, finding Loimu in first place in early February. Unfortunately, with illness and Ronald's injury, we dropped 3 of our last 4, dropping us into 5th place going into the playoffs and found ourselves against a tough Valepa team, who was able to eliminate us, ending our run.

Even with the language barrier, it was easy to see, either as a teammate or a fan in the stands that Jose played every game with great intensity and passion, always looking to make the big play. Whether it was a set across the court, going quick 3 meters off the net or hitting one of his trademark jump serves, he was always anxious to get the fans on their feet at Kertulla. With this said, tomorrow shouldn't be any different

Ignoring their place in the standings, Kokkola is a team composed of some of the best young talent in Finland, added one of the biggest position 6 in the league, in Bogomil Anachkov and the aggressive setting and serving of Jose and Kokkola will be a very tough test for us and the home fans. None less, a very exciting game to watch and I hope we can fill the stands in Kertulla, delivering another great dose of Loimu volleyball. Game starts at 17:00.

Lastly, I'm pretty excited to announce, that Loimu not only has a two game winning streak but their own pizza! Pizzaline, located a short drive away from the center of Raisio, has just realized the official "Loimu pizza". Consisting of chicken, pepperoni, kebob meat and jalepenos, which Garret, Duncan and myself created. A nice balance of protein and spiciness, a perfect Loimu treat.

Besides pizzas, they offer salads and pastas, some of our favorites being the salmon pasta (Garret) chicken salad (Duncan) and my personal favorite the chicken pasta. Anyways, the reason I bring this up is, their is a nice discount after every Loimu game, with the purchase of a Loimu game ticket, you receive the lunch price, which I hear was a very popular spot after our Sun Volley match. Almost too big of a surprise for the owner as he told me, even though there is plenty of room but no doubt another gathering spot to hopefully celebrate another Loimu win.

Another Friday night, another home game and hopefully another big win in front of the best fans in Finland, hope to see everyone there in their best black and orange.

Until next time,
Dustin (Jenkki #1)