When a ball hit the ceiling in a game at the Utah State Tournament three weeks ago, Syracuse’s Canadian hitters started to cheer. They thought they had won the point.

But the point went on.

‘I feel like a lot of the Canadians played in America at least once in like a tournament before they came, but even this weekend — in Canada the ball isn’t allowed to hit the roof,’ middle blocker Samantha Hinz said, ‘and the ball hit the roof in a game this weekend and all the Canadians cheered, but no, there was no point.’

But the slight difference in rules is only one of the growing pains a Syracuse team with a heavy international influence has had to overcome this season. Head coach Jing Pu has experience handling a variety of backgrounds and helping the players adjust to the American style of play. Since 2004, Syracuse has boasted a roster that features at least three players from outside the United States. For the most part, it has been Canadian players from Quebec, Ontario or Saskatchewan, but there have also been players from China and one from Puerto Rico.

In 2011, though, Pu and the Orange have taken it to another level. The Orange has 11 players from Canada, China and Puerto Rico. SU added six more international players to the roster to the five already on the team to start this season. The six new players from Canada and China make it the largest international recruiting class in recent memory for SU, and they are also being called upon to fill the void left by the departure of three seniors.

The Orange still does plenty of recruiting in the United States, but its unparalleled presence in Canada has helped SU’s recent run of success on the court.

‘I don’t think it’s so much that we’re focused in recruiting international players,’ assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Kelly Morrisroe said. ‘It’s kind of an untapped resource up there (in Canada).’

And SU’s high number of international players comes in large part because other teams are unwilling to recruit in a largely unknown market, unaware of how exactly the Canadian education and athletic systems work.

‘There’s definitely competition, but more so with players here in the United States,’ Morrisroe said. ‘A lot of other institutions aren’t necessarily as familiar with the Canadian system because it’s a little bit different than the American system.’

In Canada, students attend primary schools for 12 years before going to college, as opposed to the American system of kindergarten through 12th grade in high school, a period of 13 years.

But Syracuse’s success recruiting international players isn’t just a product of its familiarity with the international system.

Pu, who came to the United States from China, can relate to the foreign players. Pu graduated from the Beijing Sport University before coaching the women’s volleyball team from Qinghai Province, China. That experience has been an undeniable benefit in recruiting Chinese players.

‘Obviously, with our two Chinese players that’s huge,’ Morrisroe said. ‘That’s almost an easy sell.’

Even for the Canadians, the Orange’s international tradition is a major part of most of their decisions to play for SU.

‘That definitely played into my decision,’ Burlington, Ontario, native Andrea Fisher said of the Canadian presence. ‘I’d known a bunch of them already, so I was able to talk to them and see how they liked it here, and they all had really positive feedback about it.’

However, Noemie Lefebvre of Terrebonne, Quebec, said the Canadian influence didn’t affect her decision-making process at all. She views the United States as not being any different than Canada.

‘I don’t really take Canadian players as international,’ Lefebvre said. ‘It’s very similar … Canada is not really different from the States.’

For the most part, Canada and the United States are similar enough — aside from a rule difference or two — that there aren’t too many challenges that come with adjusting to the American way of life for the Canadian players.

For Chinese players Ying Shen and Qian Zhao, though, this adjustment can be much more difficult.

Not only do Chinese and American cultures have many significant differences, but the language barrier has also been tough to deal with on the court from time to time.

‘Every once in a while there’s some confusion, but really it’s all right,’ the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native Hinz said. ‘We work through it.’

For a team with so much international history, the language barrier is surprisingly something new. Pu knows how to handle it because he had to overcome that barrier himself.

‘He is a lot more understanding of language barrier things,’ Oakville, Ontario, native Nicolette Serratore said. ‘He’s really good at explaining and helping everyone to understand and be on the same page.’

With nine new freshmen and the influx of international players, being on the same page is even more important this season. The young players are being asked to replace an experienced group of seniors from last season.

Sarah Hayes, Mindy Stanislovaitis and Hayley Todd all played in at least 31 matches for the Orange last season.

On paper, it was going to be tough for a largely inexperienced SU team to make up for the production from outside hitters Stanislovaitis and Todd.

A trio of freshmen has stepped right into their place on the court and on the stat sheet. Serratore, Fisher and Shen have all become immediate contributors for the Orange.

‘Coach Pu mostly talked about Nico and Andrea,’ Morrisroe said. ‘He wanted them to come in and make an impact. Ying was a little bit of an unknown. He hadn’t seen her play in a while. … She’s been a nice surprise.’

All three have played at least 41 sets this season and have combined for more than six kills per set.

But while the three international players have stolen most of the headlines replacing Stanislovaitis and Todd, Ohio native Julia Mindlina has been key in replacing defensive specialist Sarah Hayes. The freshman has contributed 85 digs primarily playing in a reserve role.

And as international players continue to have success, so does Syracuse. The Orange has finished above .500 in each season since 2007, dipping below .500 in the conference just once in those four seasons.

‘Because (most schools) don’t recruit as much in Canada, all the top players are sort of still in Canada, so it’s good for the Americans to go up and take the top players and bring them here,’ Hinz said. ‘There’s going to be some good players out there that we can get.’

The new Canadian players on this team are proving to be a key part of the SU program this season. And they’re learning the minor rule differences that caused some confusion earlier in the season.

On Friday against South Florida when a ball hit the ceiling, the Orange learned from its mistake at Utah State and played on to win the point. The young players are adapting and overcoming the growing pains as the season goes on.

‘In the U.S. everything’s better,’ Serratore said. ‘The passing, the hitting, it’s faster, more consistent and really just a little more intense, too.’

dbwilson@syr.edu