As the 2019 volleyball season ends, I’m going to recap the season and highlight some outstanding players, not just from varsity but every team that played this season, including high school JV and middle school D1. Starting off with the middle school team, they showed great improvement in their team as the season progressed. Some of their players definitely stood out this year, like Ari C. ‘24, Sarah M. ‘24, and Emma H. ‘24. Each of these players are going into high school next year and could be potential assets to the varsity team based on this year’s performance. The middle school team was undefeated, which is the best success of any volleyball team this year. Ryan Griffiths, who coached their team, said, “This team did an amazing job of coming to class every day with a positive attitude and a growth mindset.” Clearly, their spirit and determination definitely paid off.
Ryan also coached the high school varsity team. Ryan said that ending the season without a chance in the playoffs was hard, but nonetheless, it was incredible. They really came together as a team this season. There were a lot more players on the team this year than in past years, and some girls really made our jaws drop this year: Maise M. 23’ stood out as a freshman with her ball blocks at the net, and Puja C. ‘20 who was the team’s libero (leader) and consistently had really good passes that were the building blocks for all the great plays we saw. She was named the all-league leader for digs (passes) this season.
There are some JV players who are excited to potentially be on varsity next year. For instance, the JV team setter, Sayuri 22’ really held the team together and played an incredible season. One of the JV coaches, Frances Tee said, “It’s amazing how she got to every single ball. Even when I didn’t think she was going to be there, she always surprised me.” Another player that really improved and rose up was Saher P. 22’ who became a stand-out player with her blocks and hits. The team in general also improved so much together. Frances said that despite the team’s losses this season “it was still a big win to see players successfully executing their newfound skills and team work on the court.”
All the coaches said they feel like the volleyball program is in a really good position right now looking ahead to next season. The coaches all had very positive things to say about the next volleyball season. Frances said, “I’m excited for next year because everyone has improved so they will continue to grow and mature as players.” She also said she thinks many of her players from this year will go on to varsity, and those who stay on JV will help strengthen the team by helping the team become closer and more consistent. Ryan has similar thoughts on next year: “I am thrilled about where the Volleyball program is right now. We have robust numbers, a strong culture and the future looks bright.” I know I’m looking forward to seeing how all the teams move forward. Nice season Haus!
