Lady Trojans show promise in opening two matches

Editor's Note: The Lady Trojans picked up their first win of the season Tuesday evening with a 25-19, 22-25, 25-22, 25-23 victory over visiting Manhattan. Read more about the match in next week's Ledger.

While they were unable to pick up their first victory last week, there were plenty of positives in the opening two matches of the season for the Whitehall High School volleyball team.

The Lady Trojans fell in three sets Thursday to Townsend (19-25, 17-25, 25-22), and lost a tight five-set match Saturday at Big Timber (20-25, 25-23, 18-25, 25-17, 10-15).

Head Coach Kyla Simon said the match against Townsend was good in that it finally gave us a look at where the team was and where they need to go, adding they girls worked hard and focused on communication which is a great start.

"These first games are about fundamentals and mechanics and finding what works, and I think those things are on the right track," Simon said. "The great thing about the Big Timber game was that we got to play for so long. 5 games against a good team are the best practice you can ask for, especially early in the season."

Sophomore Maxine Hoagland led the team against Townsend in both kills and digs with six. Senior Kendra Klapan had a big day against Big Timber with 17 kills. Simon said Hoagland has adjusted really well to playing both front and back row, and Klapan really brought momentum when needed with a big swing.

Simon added senior Meagan Johnson was her usual animal self-running the defense with 37 digs against Big Timber, Brynna Wolfe did a good job of running the offense from setter with 41 assists last week, and Haley Briggs kept her serve consistent with three consecutive aces against Big Timber.

"Everyone played well and contributed which I appreciate," Simon said.

As far as positives from the first week, Simon said the girls never stop working hard and the mistakes they are making are mistakes made in an effort to do the right thing.

"As a coach, that's all I can ask for right now. We have younger players stepping into a varsity position for the first time and we have players playing spots they have never played before. They have done a great job adjusting and the players we have with experience have so much to do with that. We have some great leaders on this team. The first part of our season will be really focused on player development, so I appreciate the fact that every single player is willing to learn and to work hard," she said.

Over the next few weeks, the team will be putting a great deal of emphasis on their block.

"The block is the foundation of our defense and defense is what is going to win us games this year. Blocking and defense depend a lot on in-the-moment decisions. We want to have the tools we need to read a hitter, and read a setter, and anticipate what an offense is going to do. We'll be putting in a lot of work to be proactive with the block and up early rather than reactive in those situations. The teams in our conference are running quick offenses, so this is super important," Simon said.

The team will next be in action at home September 8 against Manhattan (after press deadline) and September 15 against Jefferson.