The beginning of the volleyball season is going better than expected for all the girls from freshman to varsity. There have been many ups and downs from all teams, but as their head coach, Maddie Speelman says, “Scores don’t write our story, we do.”
Captains of the JV team, sophomores Julia Sandoval and Brooklyn Mower, can both agree that the season is going great; however, there is room for improvement in all teams.
Sandoval explains how her team definitely has their losses, but every team will always have a loss. Over time, she became more mentally and physically tough. There are instances where she recognizes the need to build confidence and understand that she should focus on playing with her team rather than individually. Sandoval’s pregame song is “Loyalty” by Kendrick Lamar (ft. Rihanna) because it helps hype her up, and as Sandoval says, “It’s a fire song.”
Mower agrees with Sandoval, noting that her team has more losses than wins, but they are still learning to play as a cohesive unit rather than individually.
For Mower individually, she has many goals for herself and wants to work towards something good. Even if practices can be hard and tiring, she wants to move forward and get her reps. One thing Mower explains is that her team regularly forgets that volleyball is also supposed to be fun and not so serious, so she thinks her team really needs to learn how to play together and become more positive after every point, whether that is loss or a win. Mower wants to be able to adjust and become more reflexive and even more mentally tough. Mower’s pregame song is “Take Me Out” by Franz Ferdinand because it hypes her up and gets her more confident.
For the sophomore team captains, freshman Brooklyn Coleman and sophomore Addyson Agulia, it’s the same case. Both Coleman and Aguila can agree that their teams can have their moments, but they always push forward and play harder than before.
Coleman explains there is room for improvement, both mentally and physically, for all the girls; however, they all do great with each other. Coleman wants to do her best and not give up, no matter what situation she is put in. Her goal for her team is to play even better together and have more effective communication on and off the court. Coleman does not have a specific pregame song; however, any song featuring Carti or Rihanna will be enough to get her hyped up.
Aguila happily explains how her season for her team is great, even if there have been times her team feels like giving up, they look forward. Aguila definitely thinks her team will have a comeback. She wants to become better than ever and smile on that court more than she has ever before. Agulia’s pregame song is “BlueBerry Faygo” by Lil Mosey because it really gets her in a mood and hypes her up a lot.
For all the seniors, this is their last season, and they want to make it their best season yet. Senior Averie Durflinger says the season is going way better than it was in past seasons, and her confidence is significantly better. Durflinger has been playing since middle school. She hopes to make it to state, and she wants everyone to play as a team. She would want to go back in time and block a D1 commit again. Durflinger’s pre-game song is any song played in the locker room with her team.
Senior Paityn Carson would also agree and says the season is going really well, especially because of the coaches, and there has been a lot of improvement. Carson has been playing volleyball for seven years and, for herself, she wants to improve mentally a physically. She never takes a moment with her team for granted and loves to give her friend, Durflinger, a kill. Carson does not have a specific pre-game song, but she loves it when her team plays upbeat songs, especially “Baby” by Justin Bieber.
All the coaches in this program, Coach Maddie, Rogers, and Chloe, want all the girls to show who they really can be and show their full potential. Yes, they can be strict; it’s because they care and want the girls’ future in volleyball to be bright. Coach Maddie goes far for her girls. Whenever she gets the chance, she will have mental days to help her players not be nervous for a game, learn ways to turn negative thoughts positive, and even learn to have more fun. She wants her girls to push through hard times. Coach Maddie always says don’t go to the minimum just, “go a little more.” Many fans are excited to see how the rest of the season will go and will be there the whole journey.
