EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Now that the Hoosiers are five games into the season, we can start to recognize patterns and form opinions, both good and bad for this Indiana team. In the first five games the Hoosiers record stands at 3-2 following the victory against Southern Indiana on Monday. A bright spot through every game in this opening stretch has been sophomore setter Teodora Kričković.
Kričković showcased an impressive freshman season which included First Team All-Big Ten and First Team All-Big Ten Freshman team honors. She started and played in all 33 games in her debut season and was a big reason why the Hoosiers set program records last season. Over the summer Kričković played for team Serbia in the 2026 U22 European Volleyball Championships. She was a captain for team Serbia, and she earned a silver medal as Serbia would go on to lose to Italy in the championship game.
With so many accolades this early on in her career, it is hard to imagine how she can top her freshman campaign. She is starting to make a case though. This season, she is off to a great start, picking up right where she left off in Europe. Head coach Steve Aird has nothing but high praise for her and is hoping that her time in Europe playing for team Serbia has helped her become a better leader on the court.
“She’s special,” Aird said after defeating Texas A&M this past Wednesday. “When she becomes a great leader, she is going to become one of the better players in the conference. She is working on it and it’s a hard thing to do while coming to a new country and getting acclimated.”
It is easy to tell that Kričković has Aird’s trust and is the focal point of the Hoosier offense. In the three games that the Hoosiers have won so far this season, Kričković has had at least 45 assists in each of those contests. How many assists did she have in the two losses? Twenty-two and 24. The difference is large enough to say that when the offense doesn’t give her opportunities for her to set the ball, the offense will struggle. Five games is a small sample size, but I believe these numbers will tell the story for how the season will go for Indiana not only offensively, but as a team.
The offense is built around her and her ability to spread out the ball amongst her teammates. It does not seem like the Hoosiers’ coaching staff is trying to hide this fact either. In almost every possession, it seems like allowing Kričković to set the ball is a priority. Players like Jaidyn Jager, Ella Boersema and Victoria Gray are all having great starts to the season and a lot of that has to do with Kričković and her ability to facilitate the offense.
With Kričković being so heavily involved in every play on the offense, it is important that her leadership skills grow. Another pattern that can be seen so far in this young season is the communication amongst one another on the court. In the losses to both Louisville and Tennessee, the Hoosiers seem frazzled and outmatched both offensively and defensively. They lacked good communication with one another, whereas in the Georgia and Texas A&M victories, everyone looked on the same page and communicated with each other throughout every set.
Indiana will finally make their home debut this Thursday against Cal Poly followed by Eastern Illinois on Friday. These two games will serve as more good practice for the team to nail down their communication with one another before Big Ten play begins. During these games, Indiana should continue to find ways to get Krickovic the ball, and it will be interesting to see if she can step up her leadership and communication with crucial Big Ten games right around the corner.
