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10/29/2014 12:00 AMThe Morgan volleyball team is having another dominant regular season with a strong offensive attack and a great deal of that can be credited to one of the most accurate servers in the Shoreline Conference in Emily Popp.
The junior setter, who also plays softball for Morgan, was influenced by dugout teammates in former Husky Lily Dawson and current senior Jen Dawson to try her hand on the volleyball court. In her third season, Emily has totaled 624 assists in 20 matches while serving with 96.5 percent accuracy and 124 service points for 19-1 Morgan.
"It's just been a lot of practice and also practicing on keeping my focus," says Emily on her accuracy. "I also have to look at every serve in the moment and worry about putting it over and in play. I simply relax, take a breath, and just serve the ball."
When it comes to being sharp as a tack for her serves, Emily is a technician who makes sure every detail is perfect right down to her positioning and ball location on her hand.
"The toss is the key thing for me to do. You have to make sure the ball is in front to give you more power on the serve," Emily says. "You have to be following through and not be leaning back. I always step right where I want to hit it and just go straight and follow through. I make sure everything is on balance and the ball has to hit my hand in the right spot."
In the seconds before the whistle blows, Emily has a ritual that gets her in the right rhythm prior to making her move.
"I get the ball, spin it in my hand once, and then once the whistle blows, I spin it again," says Emily on her pre-serve routine. "After that, I just dribble it and take a step before I serve."
Morgan Head Coach Joe Grippo adds that Emily acts an offensive coordinator for the Huskies and has been a perfect fit filling in for some big shoes.
"She is our setter and runs our offense and she has filled in for the MVP of the league last year in Lily Dawson admirably," says Grippo.
Emily says that both the minutes and responsibilities have added up for her this fall, yet feels that's benefited both she and the squad in keeping her on her toes and Morgan's win total rising.
"It's a lot of pressure running the offense because I was on varsity last year, but I wasn't a main role player and it was hard to get used to in directing our offense," Emily says. "You have to see where everyone is and also mentally and physically move into the game. In the beginning of the year, I was shaky, but the first few games within that role took some of the pressure off. My teammates are also a big help by letting me know what to do or not to do."
The Huskies avenged their lone loss of the year on Oct. 15, when they handed Haddam-Killingworth not only its first defeat, but also, its first set loss of the campaign. Emily explains that a victory like that gives Morgan the momentum it needs to stay on top as conference and state champions.
"The HK win was a confidence boost. We all knew the feeling after that loss against them the first time and that feeling going into the second game gave us motivation," says Emily, who thanks Coach Grippo, plus her teammates, family, friends, and BreakOut Athlete. "Our goals are the same as last year, which are to win both Shorelines and states. We are really working hard at it and just need to really focus on coming together."