EAHS girls volleyball preview

(E-town’s key players this season include, from left, Megan Myers, Ally Stengel, Kelly Koons, Kelly Sebzda, Trisha Stauffer and Amanda Heisey.)

Head Coach: Danielle Bert, second season.

Key Returners: Ally Stengel, senior, setter; Trisha Stauffer, senior, libero; Kelly Koons, senior, opposite hitter; Kelly Sebzda, senior, outside hitter; Megan Myers, senior, middle hitter; Leigh Miller, junior, outside hitter/middle hitter.

After going through last year with a relatively inexperienced team, E-town returns a solid core of upperclassmen to lead them this year.

Stengel is now in her second year as the team’s setter and will be feeding the ball to all of E-town’s hitters.

Koons, Sebzda, Myers and Miller will all be relied on to get the majority of the Bears’ kills. They learned a lot from their first varsity seasons a year ago and will be back to carry the Bears offensively.

Stauffer is E-town’s libero. She is a smart senior and will show leadership on the court.

Key Losses: Emily Baughman, graduation; Kristen Lowe, graduation; Hannah Slack, graduation.

E-town wasn’t hit too hard by graduation, but it did lose three of its best players. Baughman and Lowe were both stellar defensive players and their serve reception and digging skills will be missed.

Slack was E-town’s strongest hitter last year and was also one of the team’s best blockers.

Key Newcomers: Rachel Dern, junior, outside hitter; Kayla Walmer, junior, opposite hitter; Megan Thomas, junior, defensive specialist; Amanda Heisey, senior, defensive specialist.

E-town is stocked with good hitters, and Dern and Walmer add to that mix. Thomas and Heisey will prove to be valuable immediately with their defensive skills.

Strengths: Serving.

According to Bert, the Bears serve the ball well and, more importantly, are consistent with it. E-town will need to continue that in order to get into the playoff hunt.

Weaknesses: Serve receive.

The Bears are lacking in serve reception, which is where players like Stauffer, Dern and Walmer could come in. If they can limit opposing aces, and get the ball to Stengel to set up E-town’s big hitters, the Bears should finish about the .500 mark.

Outlook: Now in her second full season as head coach, Bert has a good feel of her players and their progress has been evident so far.

“Our goal is to have a never give up attitude, which we have been doing well in practices so far,” she said.

The Bears are a close-knit group and have good on-court chemistry, which usually leads to lots of points being scored and matches won. E-town will rely on its returning players for leadership and to keep the atmosphere positive throughout the season.

E-town rebuilt last year and now has a solid core to take the necessary steps back to contention. Bert gives them stability at the the coaching position and is now in her second season working with the same players. That work should begin to pay off as the Bears take the court beginning this Saturday.

Bert is confident that her team will use its leadership and unity to make a move toward the top of the section standings.

“We should have a winning season and will work together as a team,” she said.

Watch for the Bears to be in contention for a league playoff spot.