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11/21/2017 11:00 PMThe Valley Regional volleyball squad had one of its most successful years in program history this fall, and senior captain Hannah Clark played a heavy hand in that success by making things happen at the setter’s position. Hannah wound up earning All-Shoreline Conference Honorable Mention for the Warriors, who finished with 20 wins and then made some noise in both the Shoreline Conference and Class M State tournaments. Hannah also helped lead the team with her sense of humor and a relentless work ethic that set high expectations for everyone.
Hannah considers Valley’s success this fall the pinnacle of her volleyball career. She believes the Warriors did so well because they established goals at the beginning of the season and then fed off each other once they got the ball rolling.
“I think we started the season really fearlessly, and we didn’t have anything to lose. We all had a common goal, I think. Once we got into a good winning streak, we were all really excited and pumped up,” says Hannah, an Essex resident. “When someone did something great, everyone was affected by it. It helped us form a cohesive team. It helped us have the success we did.”
On a personal level, Hannah remembers how proud she felt when she was named one of Valley’s captains. The fact that she got to share the captain’s duties with teammates Electra Cassells and Jessica Paholski made the whole experience even better for Hannah.
“I was really excited when I was named captain. I was also happy when Jessica and Electra were there with me. We’re so different, but we’re such good friends,” Hannah says. “I think being captain, it was nice to have an audience on the team listening to what we were saying. We wanted every player not be afraid to make mistakes and to be excited to play and keep a passionate outlook on the game.”
One of the reasons Warriors’ Head Coach Kathy Scott named Hannah a captain was because she knew how well Hannah communicated at an important position on the floor. Scott adds that Hannah was always willing to accept feedback that helped shape her into a better player.
“Hannah, as one of our captains, is known for her great sense of humor, her sincere and effective communication, and her ability to include everyone,” Coach Scott says. “She is a very hard worker, a great teammate, and worked tirelessly to make her hitters successful. She was always open to feedback and eager to get better technically every day.”
Coach Scott’s faith in Hannah as a captain mirrored the faith she had in Hannah when she picked her to play setter. Hannah remembers that Scott penciled her in as a setter from the get-go.
“I always was a setter right from the start. They just picked me out as having good hands, and that’s what I’ve always been,” Hannah says. “I’m very tall on the court, and I think my hitters know me really well. Having that connection and communication really helps. It helps to get the kills.”
Coach Scott feels that setter is one of the most demanding positions on the court, especially from a mental perspective. Thankfully, Hannah had the necessary skills to thrive in that role and finished the year with 635 assists to go along with 90 aces.
“The setting position is much like the quarterback, and there are so many aspects of the game a setter needs to master,” Scott says. “A setter needs to be a great athlete, aggressive, technically sound, have a steady court personality, work hard to bring the team together, and make good decisions when the hitters are hot. Hannah is a competitor, and she came through this season on all accounts.”
Hannah says that one of the unique aspects of setting is deferring to your teammates for the first hit of a volley in order to set up that hitter’s attack.
“That’s one of the trickier things,” Hannah says. “You are the last person to get the first ball. If it’s coming right at you, then get it, but where I am on the court, I’m positioned so that there’s always someone in front of me.”
Hannah adds that the most important thing of all for a setter is to read and react on the court and make split-second decisions without choreographing strategies to your opponent.
“You have to make smart decisions on whether the pass will give you the ability to run a quick set or whether you need to adjust it accordingly,” she says. “It all depends on the pass. I’ll yell, ‘Go, go, go!’ if it’s a short set. If it’s a regular one, it’ll be more calm. Usually, they know. It has to be a pretty perfect pass to run that kind of thing.”
As Hannah now looks back on her high school volleyball career, she thanks her teammates, Coach Scott, her mother Beverly Clark, and former Warriors’ setter Leah Sopeneski for their support. Hannah also thanks her fellow captain Cassells and Cassells’s mother Jill for motivating her to try out for the Warriors.
“Electra’s my best friend, and she always knew she was going to play volleyball in high school. I am really close with her mom, too,” says Hannah. “She was always telling me about her past with volleyball and her championship. I think Electra set out to follow in her footsteps, and being good friends with her, I was also inspired.”
In the end, Hannah feels grateful to have played on such a close-knit team whose athletes shared in other’s successes, while challenging each other to perform their best.
“Every single person has a piece in the game. When someone is on, it inspires everyone else to work hard and be on and play well together,” Hannah says. “I think knowing each other so well also lets us adjust to when everything isn’t perfect and work through that.”