Written by: Lily Amback – Managing editor & Ashton Snow – Staff writer
The New Palestine girl’s volleyball team seeks to reshape their image after the leave of their four core seniors.
However, four new seniors are taking the lead. Seniors Cara Steele, Kennedy Armstrong, Caylee Brown and Beth Comer are hoping to be a strong source of leadership for the rest of the team. But, leadership won’t just come from the upperclassmen.
“Our seniors were on the team since their sophomore or freshman year and they were good leaders, good players, and to lose them, it’s a deficit, but we’ve filled in and replenished with younger people and I think we can be stronger as a team,” Armstrong said.
Their season opener was placed at Scecina. The game ended in a 15-11 Dragon’s win in the fifth set. Armstrong finished her first game of the season with a double-double (10 digs, 23 assists).
“Sometimes, we can get low on energy, but I feel like if we are, then we can get back up pretty soon,” Steele said.
The team’s end-of-game rally helped them push through against Scecina and take home the win.
The team is hoping to keep this mentality throughout the entire season in hopes that it will lead them to a sectional win.
“The team has been working hard all summer and we are excited to get the season started,” coach Kelli Gabeheart said. “We have a very athletic group of players with a lot of talent. We have high expectations for this season and have goals to win our sectional.”
However, the outcome of games do not rely solely on the team’s mentality.
Last year, they had many tall seniors, and with their absence there is also the absence of height on the team.
“Our biggest weakness is probably our height. We’re not a tall team, but I think we do make up for it against huge teams. Our defense is great at being scrappy. Also, we find ways around the ball to score. We’re still powerful,” Armstrong said.
As of publication, the volleyball team’s record was 8-0.
The team believes that this record will stay positive throughout the season for many reasons, the main one being the adaptability of the team.
“I think we have a lot of flexibility and a lot of options, our team’s very versatile. There are so many different line-ups that our coach can run and I feel like each line-up will give us a winning chance for success. I feel like everyone can do everything and we’re all willing to work and to win. No player on the team is just skilled in one area where they can’t do anything else,” Armstrong said.
