Frosh/soph girls volleyball prepares for a difficult season ahead
October 1, 2017
Despite their most recent loss against the Santa Margarita Eagles, the lower-level (“frosh/soph”) girls volleyball team currently has a record of 6-2, including pre-season games.
“Because of our school’s tremendous success in sports, we are put into one of the most difficult brackets for league,” freshman defensive specialist Sofia Lujan said. “So we have to practice twice as much, and we also need to make sure that we stay focused on the game when we should be.”
In order to prepare for the difficult season ahead, the team has been practicing consistently for the past month. The girls practice Monday through Friday for two hours each day and work on a variety of volleyball techniques.
“Footwork is [a] big part of volleyball because we need to know how to do it in order to play” freshman starting setter Sara Silvala said.
There are currently 18 girls on the team but not everyone gets to play every match. For example, there are about five setters, and only one or two gets to play in a game. In a regular volleyball match, there are six girls on the court, including the setter.
“When we work at practice we have to give a 110 percent and we have to have a good attitude and cheer our teammates on in order to play,” Lujan said. “Our coach does not play everyone. We play if we work hard and then, if we do get to play, we have to play hard.”
At practices, the girls learn new techniques and strategies in order to “bring their game to a different level,” according to Brittany Reese, who coaches the girls freshman volleyball team.
“The biggest part of helping the girls prepare for the season ahead is by helping them work together and learn how to work together,” she said.
According to Lujan, the coaches and returning players help the new members acclimate to the team which has allowed the team to work harder and become closer.
“When I first joined the team everyone was nice to me and our coaches were especially nice because they helped us get into practicing with such a big team,” Lujan said.
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