The Bomber Girls Volleyball Team has started the season with a strong 4-2 record in the HVL conference. They have played some tough competition and have shown immense improvement. Their overall record including tournament games is 11-9. The team is strong due to the leadership of the 3 senior captains– Karsyn Winchell, Anna Otte, and Anna Ritz. This year’s senior class consists of 8 seniors, so leadership is a big part of the team.
“We definitely have a lot of chemistry on and off the court. Our team is very close and we love being with each other whether we are playing volleyball or not. On the volleyball court, I think it is very evident that we are close and love playing with each other” stated sophomore libero, Katie Tipton. Many of the girls also played together last year, so they keep growing closer. One of the most important things about this team is the support they have for each other and how encouraging they are to one another. They are a strong team especially because of the big senior class and the experience they have out on the court. Tipton describes “The greatest strengths we have so far in the season are our serve receive and our ability to problem solve. Our serve receive has gotten very strong since the beginning of the season and it’s very important that it stays strong because we cannot do anything without the first pass. Our ability to problem solve is also a very important aspect that our team has. We have some points that we dig ourselves holes but we always come back up and fight for points.” Not only do they have strengths but they have hit some weak spots due to having a shorter team. Tipton wrote “The greatest weakness we have faced so far in the season is probably our blocking. We aren’t a very tall team and that can be hard facing good hitters. We are getting better and better every day though!”
Senior captain Karsyn Winchell is a huge part of the team and has been since her 8th-grade year. Winchell stated “Some improvements I think the team could make before post-season is communication. Given we have lost many important roles from last year, we are slowly getting more and more comfortable with each other, but can always use more communication.” Everybody on this team has a positive outlook on the upcoming postseason. Winchell stated that the girls are looking forward to getting to play at the Civic Center in Rochester because of the environment there and the team is normally at their peak during this time. Part of this excitement for the postseason is also getting to spend more time with each other building and bettering their team chemistry. “Our team chemistry is honestly amazing. We all get along so well outside and inside of practice. We have a great group of girls and I couldn’t be more thankful for that!” Winchell described.
Head Coach Melissa Huseth stated “I am very proud of the defensive effort we have given as the season progresses, but I would like to see improvements in playing more consistent team ball and that starts with communication. We should be at a point in the season where we trust each other on the court more. We just need to keep focusing on the small things like serving aggressively, making fewer errors to push runs, and having great first ball touches.” When asked what the team’s goals are for the rest of the season Coach Huseth replied “Goals for the rest of the season would be to work hard in practice so that girls feel more confident in matches, focus on one opponent at a time, give our best effort and have fun along the way!”
The Bomber Girls Volleyball Team has a bright future ahead of them going into the postseason. Katie Tipton, Karsyn Winchell, and Head Coach Melissa Huseth had lots of positive things to say about the season so far as the postseason approaches. The team chemistry these girls have is strong and just keeps getting stronger. They have their next game on October 8th against one of their biggest competitions, the Byron Bears. With only three games left in the regular season, the Bomber Volleyball team hopes to make the best of what they have left.
