Colby Hornets Volleyball Season Preview
Coaching staff
Head Coach: Wade Oehmichen
JV Coach: Kendra Pagel
C – Team Coach: Liz Baumgartner
Key returners:
We are returning six varsity players, which helps us in playing experience but with the shift in offense and defense strategies, everyone is learning a new system which will take time but should elevate the team as a whole.
Key newcomers:
We have a few very talented underclassmen that show great promise in becoming great volleyball players. Some of the upperclassmen are adapting quickly to the new system and we have seen drastic improvements in defense and passing. At this rate, we should have a very strong showing this season.
Conference outlook
Our conference is wide open, with Columbus Catholic and Neillsville both graduating key outside hitters, one of which lead the state in kills last season.
Gilman had a young team last season and should be even better this season.
We finished fourth in the Cloverbelt: East last season and would love to move up the list this season. We size up well with most teams in the conference and we will lean heavily on our key attributes this season.
Keys to your success this season:
We have some very talented athletes, the real key to our success this year will be managing the mental aspect of the game. Learning new things is often challenging and takes time, and with a short season and only so many practices between matches managing frustration and learning from mistakes will be what ultimately determines how far this team will go.
Behind the scenes: Who are some of the people that help your program succeed?
I have an absolutely spectacular coaching staff, Kendra Pagel and Liz Baumgartner. Both are outstanding coaches and I don’t know what I would do without them. I cannot give them enough praise for all that they do for the program.
We also have a good number of volunteers that come in to help us at practice with the teams, we have been trying to elevate the intensity and skill level of competition for our varsity team to help solidify defensive movements. We are extremely grateful to these people for taking time out of their schedules to help the girls this season.
Coach’s comments: anything else you’d like to share?
We made a big push this offseason to fundraise for some much-needed equipment (like volleyballs, coaching boxes, a severing machine, etc) and the amount of support by local businesses and community members was just inspiring. It did not take long to meet our goal and had great showings of participation at events by parents and even fellow students.
2022 Central Wisconsin Fall Sports Schedules: Links to School Schedule Updates
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Author: David Keech
David Keech is a retired teacher and works as a sportswriter, sports official and as an educational consultant. He has reported on amateur sports since 2011, known as 'KeechDaVoice.' David can be reached at [email protected]
