Angela Kelly / The Clarion Call
At the beginning of the season, the Volleyball Team had to welcome on three new comers.
There are three freshmen on the team this season.
“Every upperclassman welcomed the freshman so that they could feel comfortable. Our team has so much fun together. We have so much confidence in one another, we play very well together,” senior Joy Carey said.
When asked how she keeps her team motivated, Coach Jennifer Harrison stated, “The way we train has a lot to do with it.”
“We have a very competitive training environment and the girls know that every day their performance in practice both competitively and statistically will determine their success on the court,” Harrison said.
Clarion hits a ball past a Slippery Rock University blocker. (Angela Kelly / The Clarion Call)
The team talks about “specific goals that relate to our own performance and getting better both individually as players and as a team rather than talking about wins and losses.”
Coach Harrison said, “If we take care of the things we need to take care of both inside and outside of the gym, then our wins will come.”
This past weekend the team played in the PSAC Crossover No. 1 at California.
They took on and defeated Lock Haven, East Stroudsburg, Shippensburg, and Millersville.
During the Shippensburg match, Nicole Andrusz had eight kills and a .500 hitting percentage.
She also added four blocks to help the ladies with their defeat of 3-0.
Other key players during the match were Amanda Gough and Kellie Bartman.
The Millersville match also brought a 3-0 win. Kellie Bartman had 13 kills and five digs during this match.
Key players to help in this win were Danielle Brunot and Rebecca Webb.
“The team had a great performance. I’m pleased with their composure especially in the match vs. Lock Haven. They stayed very confident even when behind in the match,” Harrison said of the matches.
“They also pulled out some close games with other opponents, which shows determination, confidence and poise. This is a big difference from last season,” coach Harrison also added.
Tuesday brought the lady Golden Eagles to a five game winning streak.
The team took on Slippery Rock in Tippin Gym.
Gough added 29 assists, 10 digs, five blocks, and a kill to her personal stats. Kellie Bartman chipped nine kills, five digs, and four blocks for Clarion.
“The biggest thing for us is to stay consistent both offensively and defensively. Slippery Rock is a fantastic ball control team and for us to hang with them we will definitely need to lower the number of errors. They will dig ball after ball and force you to make errors,” said Harrison.
Clarion’s Carey feels the team is performing well.
“Our team is doing really great, we haven’t peaked yet and I don’t even think we’re close. Every game we get a little bit better and have a better chance of winning the PSAC,” Carey said.
The team will take on Glenville St. Thursday at 7pm in Tippin Gymnasium.
A new PSAC rule this year counts all mandated PSAC matches in the conference standings, including PSAC Crossover matches.
