By KAITLYNN LITTLE, reporter
Monday, Oct. 1, 2018
The Sterling College junior varsity volleyball team hosted Barclay College Tuesday and won 3-1. This was their second time playing and winning against Barclay, and their third win of the season.
“At the beginning of the game, we weren’t playing at our full potential. We won the first two sets, then lost the third one, which made our team get really competitive,” freshman Alexis Carmichael said. “We fought back during the 4th game, and at the end our confidence grew and we were able to win the game.”
Junior Madaline Carr also felt proud of her team and thankful for how their examples keep her positive and keep her striving throughout the game. After the game, she was able to see areas they could improve upon.
“I think that Barclay provided us with a good challenge,” she said. “I think my team blocked well, and we made a lot of great hustle plays to come out on top. But, I would like to see my team work on communicating better and continuing to be brave in tough circumstances.”
Junior varsity coach Tamara Heitschmidt was proud her team didn’t let the third match defeat them and how they were able to comeback in the final match. She said she felt the game showed evidence of what they’d been working on in practice.
“Our middle hitters are doing a better job of being an option on every play. Getting them in the air early and trusting the setters to get them the ball. We are working on increasing the trust all the way around,” Heitschmidt said. “I feel like we saw a bit more of that tonight against Barclay. Whatever role that was given to them, they each put their signature on it.”
The varsity volleyball team hosted St. Mary’s University following the junior varsity game Tuesday and lost 3-0. This was not their first loss, but they have won nine games so far.
“I am disappointed on how our team confronted University of St. Mary because I know our team could have beat them,” senior Alexandra Reid said. “Sterling fought at some points during the game but experienced a lot of pressure. We were not playing confidently and were scared to make mistakes. After each set, we all came together on what we needed to work on and how to play better in each set. We tried to remain as positive as possible as the game did not go our way. To be honest, this was a horrible game so it is hard for me to respond about it.”
Though the game was a tough loss for them, varsity coach John Harding noticed the women’s competitiveness and improvements.
“I was a little disappointed in how we started the match, but I was pleased with our resiliency and the way we kept fighting to the end. Throughout the game, they made some good adjustments and continued to improve on some of the things we have been working on in practice the past few weeks. We have been working on running a faster offense and finishing games well. We showed some improvement in both areas tonight,” Harding said.
Harding also mentioned that there was a unique moment that was important for their team during the game.
“One moment that stands out is in the third set of the match when we asked our team to attack a defensive player on St. Mary’s Team that was struggling on defense,” he said. “They executed the plan very well, and it helped us catch up and take the lead for a while.”
Despite the score, both coaches felt that their teams improved during, and because of, these games. Both of them feel that a game and the season is more than wins and losses.
“This team is filled with amazing girls, and they all bring different strengths,” Heitschmidt said. “They have fun with each other while playing and they do a good job of remembering how lucky and blessed they are to be able to be a college athlete.”
Warrior Student Media 
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