This year, the Girls Varsity Volleyball team had their first game on March 16. The team is made up of five seniors and three juniors this year.
The seniors this year are Sasha Chiriboga, Ava Maselli, Kristina Ashton, Andrea Camacho-Tenreiro, and Samantha Stanely. The juniors being Inaya Stanford, Morgan Williams, and Angelisse Lopez. Andrea Camacho-Tenreiro had recently celebrated a big accomplishment of over 500 kills since freshman year. Her teammates and coaches were all very supportive and proud of her.
Camacho-Tenreiro said, ” 500 kills is something I’ve dreamed of since freshman year, but it wouldn’t have been possible without all of the support in the volleyball program.”
Stats from previous seasons
Out of the 29 games they had last season, the Girls Varsity Volleyball team won 25 of them. Only 3 of those wins did they have to go into overtime into a third set. Out of the 4 games they lost, 3 of them went into the third set as well. Each year, going back to the 2017-18 school year, there have been fewer losses. Overall though, a 25-4 record is very good and they are hoping for an even better season this year.
Stats for this season so far
The first Girl’s Varsity game of the season against Westfield was their only loss of the season, as of right now. This did not set them back at all and they came back stronger at every other game since then. Against Piscataway, South Brunswick, and JFK, they won both sets, 2-0. In their most recent game on March 23, against Old Bridge, they ended up winning 2-1.
Team bonding
A team that has connections on and off the court with each other makes communication more established and better during games. Varsity and Junior Varsity practice together so they can create a good bond through practices.
Ashton, a senior on Varsity said, “Knowing who your teammates really helps us be able to understand each other during games.”
It is just harder to connect with the Freshman team since they don’t see each other as much, but after they move up to JV, they will be able to start knowing each other more. This year has created a boundary between some, but Ashton feels the Varsity team has a really strong bond with each other. She describes how the energy at practices and games is amazing because of how motivational everyone is toward each other. They also can joke around with each other, learn together, and grow together as a whole team.
Spectators allowed
Some sports have not allowed any spectators, but right now volleyball is allowing each player to have two spectators. They all must be over the age of 18 and have to be related to the player in some way. The players are grateful for being able to have people watching them, but it stills feels a bit off to them not having any students.
Ashton stated, “The fact that we can’t have our classmates at the games with us has changed the energy quite a bit so we really have to rely on each other to help motivate us.”
She also mentions how even though it’s different than previous years, she is glad parents are allowed to watch. Especially with this being her last year doing high school volleyball.
