“This is the best team season we’ve had in awhile,” said senior co-captain Amelia Esenstad.
The varsity volleyball team has come out in the season a perfect 6-0 after a 3-0 win against rival Whitman on Wednesday, Sept. 30.
The Wildcats beat the Vikings 25-15, 25-14, 25-18 as freshman Stephanie Paul had 19 assists and five serve aces and senior Kathy Pao had nine digs. As the only team still undefeated at WJ, the volleyball team has begun to turn heads and catch the attention of the large fan base among the WJ community.
“The fan support has been unbelievable,” said assistant/JV coach Sylvie Ellen. “We’ve had more turnout for home and away games than ever before.”
The team has delivered no disappointments to the considerable number of fans who have come to support the girls while they have dominated on the court.
At this point in the season last year, the team was a respectable 5-3, but soon faltered and ended up losing four of their last seven to finish with a 7-7 record. The team also had an early exit in the playoffs, as Sherwood eliminated them in the first round. This year has hopes to be different.
“We have more height and more experience than in previous years,” said Ellen. “The team is very comfortable with each other and with the advanced level of strategies applied on the court.”
With critical players such as freshman Stephanie Paul and senior co-captain Anna Elder, the team is well on its way to an impressive season and a chance to make some noise in the playoffs.
“We work really well together and [have been] hitting the ball as hard as we can,” said Esenstad.
However Esenstad also recognizes possible areas for improvement.
“We need to work on communication on the court,” she said.
The team looks to continue their undefeated streak next week with big games against Churchill and soon after, Gaithersburg. The growing fan base has encouraged the team to rise to the occasion as the girls get set for the second half of the season.
“We’re on a roll and it would be great to continue with the intensity we’ve shown so far,” said Ellen.
