By Chris Parker
Southwest volleyball is poised to take a step forward this season with eight players returning who saw action in at least 20 varsity sets last season.
“Experience (will be a strength),” Southwest head coach Steve Voyak said. “This team knows each other. We have five players who can kill the ball, and now they need to prove it consistently at the varsity level. (Laura) Henry is a strong setter but our ball control consistency must improve so she’s running the offense and not running all over the floor. Serving has a real chance to be a difference maker. We have six that aim and challenge defenses, but if can they do it consistently over five sets or an entire tournament remains to be seen. We have made some subtle changes to our defense and serve reception that we think will help the players be more confident and successful.”
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The returning players in addition to Henry are: Lyric Bernard (senior outside hitter), Juliauna Sierra (senior right side), Brooklynn Slye (senior right side), Riley Flippo (junior outside hitter), Montana Skelton (junior right side), Kaleigh Tull (junior middle) and Marissa Freeman (sophomore middle).
Bernard is an athletic and fast player who finished second on the team with 329 receptions and 277 digs last season. Sierra returns after a junior year where she had 117 receptions and 122 digs. Slye made the transition from middle to outside last year and has become much more consistent. Flippo can play back and front row. Skelton was one of the leaders on junior varsity last season. Tull has shown great improvement over the summer. Freeman will look to build off a strong finish to her freshman season.
Ivy Anderson (junior defensive specialist), Emma Outhouse (setter/right side) and Olivia Hnem (freshman libero/defensive specialist) will look to make varsity impacts.
Voyak will look for his experienced group to be more fundamentally sound this season.
“We are solid when we cut down on unforced errors like missed serves, hitting errors and easy digging errors,” Voyak said. “Some of those are physical errors and understandable but too many times we simply aren’t as mentally tough as our opponent. Those three phases were points of emphasis in the summer and will control through the pre-season and throughout the year.”
Southwest will travel to Purdy on Aug. 22 for a jamboree with Wheaton and Hurley also attending. The Lady Trojans open the regular season on Aug. 26 at the Verona tournament.
“We can be a dangerous team, especially if we get our minds right,” Voyak said. “We played 24 games over the summer, winning, losing and tying eight each. Our seniors really need to step up. We plan to read the motivational book Chop Wood, Carry Water by Joshua Medcalf, and we plan to do some extra hill running to remind ourselves of the challenge we face. We plan to work on the brain as much as the body.”
