Coach Kristie McDevitt says the Oxford Varsity Volleyball Team is excited to start the new season.
‘This team is awesome,? said McDevitt. ‘They are so supportive of each other and we are going to base our season off that energy.?
Beginning her second year with the team, McDevitt said she’s having fun coaching such a strong team. Even though they lost six seniors, McDevitt is optimistic the power of her returning seniors will fill the gap.
‘We’re going to hold our own,? McDevitt said. ‘We have four returning seniors and that’s a good thing.?
McDevitt believes the strong leadership of co-captains senior Vanessa Collier and junior Shana Jones combined with the experience of returning seniors Darci Kujawa and Allison Zonsius will give the team a strong chance to spike through districts.
In last year’s districts competition, Zonsius contributed six points, two aces, and 12 assists against rival Lapeer East.
‘All the seniors have good playing time and the juniors are able to move where they should be this year,? said McDevitt. ‘If we keep improving we’ll get past the districts and our rivals like Lapeer East.?
Juniors Lady Cats Lindsay Nieman, Mykala Salquist, Courtney Wright and Lisa Reile will bring full support to the net along with three ‘budding? sophomores who McDevitt said hold bright potential to the future of the team.
McDevitt said she is happy the team is not starting from scratch and plans to work on gaining overall hitting strength.
‘We have great hitting,? but other performance areas need work, according to McDevitt.
Not to worry, the need to build hitting strength is something McDevitt expected from the young team and is confident the athletes will continue to improve.
‘They’re just going to get better and better and that’s a good outlook,? she said.
McDevitt could hardly contain her excitement over the team’s performance at a recent scrimmage.