By Chris Parker
Fordland volleyball will be looking to turn things around after a four-win season in 2020. The Eagles have not finished above .500 since 2017.
Leading this year’s version of Fordland volleyball will be senior Lauren Hale (middle) and juniors Grace Grandel (setter) and Mikah Suter (right side).
“Mikah has natural leadership built in, so she will be fine tuning those skills. Her athleticism comes from a long line of athletes within the family. She plans to do everything she can to continue that,” Fordland head coach Ronni Cummins said. “Lauren wants to make a name for herself this year, and she is moving up confidently in the team. She has a natural passion for volleyball and she makes the team better by remaining positive and understanding. Grace was pushed up as full time setter last year and flourished. She will be ready to work on the skills necessary to lead her team to more wins. Grace is learning to take charge on the court and do what is needed to get the most out of each of her teammates.”
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Tessa Feeback (senior libero), Shelby Thomason (sophomore middle hitter), Emma Trotter (outside hitter) and Aubrey Husky (junior) are also returning to the lineup.
On Feeback: “She is returning this season from taking some time off and we are excited to see her hit the court. Tessa has a confidence about her that seems to boost her fellow team mates. Being an athlete comes natural to her,” Cummins said.
On Thomason: “(She) is someone that I know will make a huge impact for the team this season as well. She started middle last season and really absorbed the mentality of what it takes to block and hit as our secondary middle,” Cummins said.
On Trotter: “(She) has found her “swing” and has really impressed us with her front row hits,” Cummins said.
On Husky: “(She) has a ton of positivity and drive to bring the team up as a whole. She has opened herself up to be an amazing player in the last year and we are very excited to see her develop this season,” Cummins said.
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The varsity lineup will have a host of freshmen looking to compete for playing time led by backrow player Lilly Kindall.
“Our entire freshman group will be bringing a lot of new talent to the floor. They want to prove themselves and they are ready to put in the time to do that. Specifically, Lilly Kindall who started her volleyball career as an eighth grader last year and made tremendous efforts to be a significant part of the team,” Cummins said.
Fordland will still be a young team this year looking to come together.
“We have room for growth as a young team, which means that we will be making huge strides to be a stronger team as we develop. We have retained a large group of freshmen from last year, and we brought in a large number of new freshmen this year. Our girls can adjust and learn quickly, which makes for a great group of kids to coach,” Cummins said. “They need to establish a strong trust in each other, which comes with experience and playing time. Once they learn to trust their fellow teammates implicitly, we will be a very strong team.”
Fordland opens the season on Aug. 27 at Hurley.
“(We want) to grow and trust each other,” Cummins said. “We have such a great group of girls, and my main goal is to teach them to understand and embrace that between themselves to create a stronger unit.”
