Oct. 28, 2015

By Paul Watley | @PRWatley

ARLINGTON, Texas - Entering the 2015 season with no returning starters at middle blocker, UT Arlington coach Diane Seymour turned to a pair of untested freshmen in Marisah Ingram and Zhanelle Geathers.

Ingram and Geathers have made the most of their opportunity as the duo has teamed up to become a dominant force at the net. Through 23 matches this season, the pair leads the team in blocks, combining for a total of 182 blocks - third most in UTA history by a freshmen duo, and best since 2008.

"It's a little bit similar," Seymour said, comparing the 2008 duo to the 2015 version. "Christy Driscoll had redshirted and then became a first year player that year and Emily Shearin was a true freshman, just like Marisah. There are some similarities. Now the style of athlete that they are is totally different, but some of the similarities are that we are asking a lot out of them, that every day they come out and do the best that they can."

In addition to their spot in UTA history, the twosome has also made an impact at the Sun Belt and NCAA level. Ingram and Geathers enter this weekend as the third-best blocking duo in the Sun Belt, while holding the most combined blocks by a pair of freshmen. At the national level, the duo holds the second best blocking mark by a pair of freshmen, trailing the 196 blocks put up this season by UTEP freshmen Kylie Baumgartner and Maddie Morgan.

"Honestly, they've exceeded my expectations a little bit, sometimes a lot," Seymour said. "It's very difficult from the level of play that they came from to transition to be a middle blocker at the Division I level and we are a quality program, no doubt, as blocking has been one of our strengths. They've done a really good job adjusting to this level of play."

Having such a big role in her first season on UT Arlington's campus came as a surprise to Ingram, who credited her coaches and teammates with helping make the transition from high school volleyball to college volleyball a smooth one.

"It definitely caught me off guard," Ingram said of her contributions in her first season. "I didn't expect to come in at this level and do this well as I did, but I don't think I would have been able to do it without the help of my coaches and teammates."

While Ingram and Geathers have been able to step onto the court this season and impress the coaches and fans, the path to success has had its bumps in the road. Ultimately the freshmen have been able to fight through the struggles to make their first season a memorable one.

"It's been tough, but its been fun learning," Geathers said of the transition from high school to college volleyball. "That year off being a redshirt really helped me learn and become more prepared than I would have been if I just played my freshman year."

Geathers, a two-time Sun Belt Freshman of the Week, has provided a consistent threat offensively and defensively, averaging 1.85 kills and 1.01 blocks per set, while hitting .350. Ingram's stat line has seen averages of 1.1 kills and 1.13 blocks per set in her first season at UTA.

While the pair has received help from coaches and more veteran teammates, they have also been able to rely on each other through the process of adjusting to Division I volleyball.

"I look up to Zhanelle even though she's just a year older than me," Ingram added. "She's my go-to person. If I don't know something about the program or how to do something, she will know what to do so she does have a big impact on me."

Geathers echoed the sentiment of Ingram, saying that the pair has stuck a harmonious balance in their time at UTA.

"We learn from each other," Geathers added. "If she doesn't know something, then I'll probably know it, or if I don't know it, she will. We just learn from each other and work for each and are a good balance with each other."

Despite the historical numbers that the duo is putting up, Seymour believes that the freshmen have only begun to tap their full potential.

"They are good athletes, straight up," Seymour said. "Their ceiling is so high. They've barely scratched the surface of the level of volleyball that they can achieve during their time here."