Hawks benefit from strong returning nucleus
A core set of returning starters is allowing Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn head volleyball coach Cheryl Kroese to feel good about her team as this 2023 season gets underway. “When you have your setter and your libero and your two middles, that’s a pretty solid start,” said Kroese, who will again be assisted by Michele Wagner and Jenny Nassiff.
Reprising their roles from last year are senior libero Abigail Otto, junior setter Frankie Mohni and junior middle hitters Abby Douma and Kylee Schiphoff.
“I think, in general, our hitting is going to be stronger because my two middles have matured,” said the coach. “This is their third year of getting varsity experience. Frankie, too, with having her setting, I really feel like we’re already ahead of the curve in that we’re trying things that maybe we haven’t in the past.”
When asked about those new things being tried Kroese responded, “Just to be quicker, learning a little bit about where your pass is coming in from. When you get a chance to re-direct the ball away from the defense, being able to do that; being able to run some slides and quicks that maybe we maybe haven’t gotten as well in the past in some of those situations. My hitters are just a lot smarter. I also have options where I can move my hitters around in the front row and get them to come from different places. So, I’m hoping that being able to do that kind of keeps your defense on the other side off guard.”
The back row will feature a blend of old and new. The mix includes Otto and fellow senior Kinsey Schirmer along with junior Eliza Tewes and freshman Lindsey Van Es. “Having Abby in the middle back, she’s experienced and will take over that leadership role in the back row,” noted the coach. “I’m excited about that. I have some good options in the back row. I don’t think we’ll be quite as quick but they’ll work their tails off and they’re learning the game, too. Between Lindsey Van Es, and Eliza’s been real aggressive in the back row, she’s been learning it, and Kinsey will be back there, too, playing my help setter.”
Which leaves the outside hitters. “That’s kind of a positioning thing between Moriah (Otto), Eliza and (junior) Addy Sheeler,” revealed Kroese. “Hoping to fill, whether it’s the right side or my two outside hitters. I’m sure they’ll be in my lineup of filling those roles. What that looks like yet, I’m not sure who will go where. Moriah (a sophomore) had actually set at one time so she’s a great right side when I need her in that position. It’s a matter of also filling in a little bit of back row – which one of those I’m going to play all the way around and who I’m going to sub in for. I’ve been putting them in different scenarios and they’ve been able to flow with it real well. They know the game enough that I can change them up and I can put them in different situations, different places and they’re not only willing, they’re able to do it.”
There is, of course, always room for improvement and Kroese has the team working on drills to be more aggressive coming out of serve receive. “You can’t let them serve you five in a row and win ball games,” said the coach. “If we can shore that part up and learn how to get out of that situation, I think we’ll be strong.
An emphasis on spot serving in practice aims to make the team more effective when they have the serve. Said Kroese, “We’ve been working hard on drills with getting our serving solidified and actually putting it where we wanted to put it; some mental aspect drills we’re learning to be more aggressive on the serve.”
There is always a balance to be struck when it comes to serving. “In order to win games, you need to serve aggressively,” stated the coach. “However, I like to see the serve percentage high. I just want to be more aggressive with where we’re placing it so that we keep the other team off balance. As a coach, you will take a little bit lower serving percentage if you can be more aggressive and up your number of aces where you’re actually scoring points off of it, get more in a row at a time is a big thing, too.”
Another big thing on the volleyball court is communication. “They’re communicating better than they have in the past,” noted Kroese. “I think they’re learning the game a lot better, of understanding what we need to do to be successful to actually get on top of the other teams and be able to put the W’s on the board. So from that I feel good.” Kroese reminds her players that the communication can’t always come from the coach. “I want that to be more athlete directed where they’re communicating with each other,” she said. “If they can learn that, they took a big step in getting better out there on the court.”
With Unity Christian having left for the Siouxland Conference, Kroese sees a clear favorite to win the War Eagle. “I’ve got to believe Hinton’s going to be a powerhouse,” she said. The Blackhawks return senior setter Ashlyn Kovarna and sophomore front row phenom Bailey Boeve. Noted Kroese, “Boeve won National Player of the Year as a freshman down in Florida and she won it again this year on her AAU team in Chicago. I’ve never seen a young player that good that early. So, she’s scary good.” The other teams in the conference also present their share of challenges. “It doesn’t matter what night of the week you compete in the War Eagle Conference, you’re going to compete. It’s good,” said Kroese. “I think there’s a lot of level play there between us. You’re hoping that you can get the W on a lot of those nights. Upper third is where I’d like to be. I think that’s a doable with this group and I want them to know where we can land.” She added, “As far as the W’s go, you want to be above .500. We haven’t had that for a long time.”