By Lincoln Shryack

George Mason junior outside hitter Kyle Barnes knows all too well that the fortunes of a volleyball team can turn sharply from one season to the next. 

Barnes was just a freshman in 2016 when George Mason won the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Tournament final, the team’s first conference title and NCAA Tournament berth since 1988. The precocious rookie even saw a little action against eventual NCAA champion Ohio State in the team’s quarterfinal loss, signaling bigger and better things to come for 2017. 

But while Barnes’ role increased significantly in a solid sophomore season, the Patriots endured an injury-riddled and frustrating follow-up to their dream 2016 campaign. George Mason had to grind their way to an uneven 13-14 record in 2017, missing out on the EIVA Tournament entirely just a year after standing atop the league. Plans to stamp their authority on a competitive conference were put on hold.

Needing one more win to be crowned regular season EIVA champions, George Mason hosts Harvard on Senior Weekend. #GetPatriotic

Preview: https://t.co/iWHkdxOL2Y

— Mason Men's Volleyball (@GoMasonMVB) April 12, 2018

For Kyle Barnes and his teammates, the mission of 2018 has been to rebound off a sour season with an initial goal of hosting the EIVA tournament. And with just two regular season games left against Harvard this weekend, the first-place Patriots control their destiny to right the wrongs of 2017 and accomplish their mission. A single win against second-place Harvard this weekend would bring EIVAs to George Mason’s home court in Fairfax, Virginia.

“We expect to win both of the games this weekend against Harvard, and we will achieve our first goal that we wanted which was to host EIVAs,” Barnes said. “That will be good. And then we’ll go into the tournament ready.”

A healthy team has been critical in the turnaround thus far, and so too have the drastic improvements of several players, among them Barnes.

Barnes has already collected two EIVA Offensive Player of the Week awards this season and has registered his career-high 14 kills on five separate occasions in 2018. Barnes’ hitting percentage is up to 0.275, an improvement of more than 50 points from last year and currently sixth in the conference. Work with the George Mason coaching staff to refine his technique and add to his physique has clearly made a tremendous difference for the third-year outside hitter. 

“My hitting just came this year," Barnes said. "Joe Norton, our assistant coach, helped me with hitting high instead of hitting into blocks, so I don’t get blocked as much. Over the hand and not really into the meat of the block.

“I worked hard in the offseason honestly. I put on a couple more pounds and [improved] ball control."

ANOTHER ONE!@kylebarnes33 tabbed @EIVAVolleyball Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. #GetPatriotic

Release >>> https://t.co/YvlQHNtneU pic.twitter.com/YEBq27eNDN

— Mason Men's Volleyball (@GoMasonMVB) March 26, 2018

Some added bulk has added extra power to his game, which along with an improved technique at the net has made him one of the most feared offensive threats in the EIVA. He currently ranks in the conference’s top 10 in both kills and hitting percentage. 

A re-tooled Barnes is playing much more confidently, and it’s helped George Mason get back on track.

“I’m not really trying to miss the block and take power off the ball. I’m just going in and hammering, just going like 90 and 100 percent every time instead of trying to place the ball,” he said.

While Barnes’ improvements have been crucial to George Mason’s redemption tour, many other factors have made the 2018 team a different animal than the mediocre squad from a season ago. Among them, Barnes’ fellow outside hitter and de facto team leader Christian Malias has been back in the fold after missing all of 2017 with an injury. With Malias back, the Patriots not only have returned a key statistical player from their 2016 team, but also the on-court vocal leader. 

Another catalyst has been the play of sophomore opposite hitter Hayden Wagner, who has developed into the EIVA’s premier finisher in just his second season. Wagner leads the league in kills per set at 3.60—leaps and bounds better than the 1.15 he averaged during his freshman year. Like Barnes, he has won two EIVA Offensive Player of the Week awards in 2018.

Those two plus Barnes have helped make 2017 feel like an exception and 2016 more like the rule. A tough, five-set loss to Penn State last Saturday at home halted their perfect conference season, but Barnes thinks that the narrow loss despite playing poorly means good things for the rest of the season.

Packed house here at the RAC! pic.twitter.com/qvqx4aLIsZ

— Mason Athletics (@MasonAthletics) April 7, 2018

“We lost by three points in the fifth set and we played D-minus, C volleyball, so as long as we play a little better than that . . . we missed 24 serves," Barnes said. "We did a lot of stuff that we usually don’t do. We just need to practice what we missed that game and we should be fine."

George Mason won’t have it easy against Harvard on Friday and Saturday, as the Crimson come in having won six straight. The visitors could steal two from Mason if the home team can’t fix the errors they had against Penn State, and the Patriots would be forced on the road for the EIVA Tournament. 

But Barnes isn’t thinking about any of that. The much-improved junior, a key figure in George Mason’s turnaround this season, believes his squad is ready to atone for last year’s failures and even add to the legacy of the revered 2016 team. Barnes says his favorite moment at Mason is still the tournament title victory from 2016 that clinched an NCAA berth, despite the freshman not even playing in that game. He wants to change that.

Now with his team far removed from the frustrations of 2017 and his role greatly increased, Barnes feels that his new favorite moment is coming soon.

“I think it will change this weekend when we host.”