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09/10/2014 12:00 AMUnder the guidance of a new, but familiar face, the Guilford volleyball team aims to build upon postseason berths of the past two campaigns and have some of its SCC rivals take notice.
Former assistant coach Laura Meyer takes over the helm as head coach after a 2013 campaign that saw the Indians earn a Senior Night victory to clinch their second consecutive state tournament bid with an 8-14 mark while playing to a .500 mark in SCC Hammonasset Division action (4-4). Meyer does take command over a much younger squad, though she is confident that Guilford has the ingredients to cook up a fiery competitive spirit on the floor.
"We are a young team; we graduated seven seniors last year, all of them which played a majority of every game," said Meyer, who is assisted by JV Coach, Erica Mansi, Freshmen Coach, Kristy Kehoss, and volunteer coach, Brittany Landon. "We will be inexperienced, but what the coaches have seen in practice already is fantastic. The girls are working hard and are focused. Once all the new pieces mesh together, we can shock some teams. The SCC and state [tournaments] are always goals in the background, but we want to be competitive, keep improving and, win or lose, be pleased with how we played the game."
Leading Meyer's squad to the net will be senior co-captains Kay Horan and Hannah Magoveny, while Guilford welcomes additional leadership from the junior class in middle hitter Heather Wirth, Meredith Shank, and Sam Shank in the back row.
"Kay and Hannah bring good leadership. They are organized and make sure everyone on the team knows what it going on and feels a part of the group. They are both friendly and easy to talk to, which is good because they are someone any of their teammates would be comfortable talking to," said Meyer. "Heather is a middle hitter with a hard hit, and she can get up and block. She comes into this season as one of the only players with varsity playing time experience. Meredith is a lefty with a great swing. She can hit from anywhere on the court, and has already showed improvement from last year and will be a key player in the lineup this year. Sam has great court awareness and ball control, and we will look to her to take charge in the back row."
In addition to division opponents Hand, Foran, Law, and Hillhouse, the Indians will also battle with big SCC interdivisional squads of Mercy, Lauralton Hall, and Shelton. Although Meyer added that Guilford can hang with the cream of the conference crop.
"We play a few tough teams with Mercy, Lauralton Hall, and Shelton. But for most of our games, the teams are right with us. Hand is always a big game, and we will see Law and Foran, which are usually good matchups," said Meyer. "We are a young inexperienced team, but with a lot of athleticism. Once the girls get used to playing together at this level, they may surprise teams."