by Arjun Singh ‘12

Sophomore Makayla Roy spikes a ball September 18 in a match against Einstein. photo by Brett Melnick ‘12

The girls’ volleyball team comes into the season with confidence, enthusiasm and high expectations. They ended last year’s undefeated season by winning the Maryland 4A State Championship and look to continue their success this season.

The Lady Warriors are ranked 2nd All-Met and are the top ranked team in the Maryland 4A Division and the consensus favorite to win another championship. The other teams know this as well, and facing Sherwood likely is the biggest game on their schedules. “By winning states last year we have [put] our name out there,” said junior setter Maddie Moyer. “So everyone knows who we are and their expectations for us are higher than ever.”

Coach Brian McCarty aims to prepare his team to work hard and improve in all phases of their game. He expects each player to perform well and work hard to improve their individual skills as well as their team skills. Throughout the season, the team will rigorously practice and prepare for each game and also learn about their strengths and weaknesses from each game.

“The beginning of every season has new expectations and team goals. A lot of players are expected to step into new roles, especially those moving into a captain/leadership position,” said McCarty. “There are always aspects of the game we can improve on and we just have to continue playing hard in practice to get better.”

The team has started out strong with two hard-earned victories against Good Counsel, 25-16, 25-13, 25-19, ranked 6th All-Met and Broadneck, 25-18, 25-15, 25-22, ranked 8th All-Met. Sherwood currently has a 5-0 record thus far. With returning players, including the Gazette’s reigning Player of the Year, junior Alex Holston, as well as Moyer, and seniors Megan Hewitt and Sydney West, Sherwood continues to improve from last year.

Because most of the starters played with each other all of last season, they have developed a chemistry that will give Sherwood a chance to greatly improve their teamwork. The team looks to get all of their players involved on offense in order to make it better and more dynamic.

“Each person has come back to the team with more experience on the court. This year we can run a more complex offense,” said outside hitter Hewitt. “We’re running more plays with quicker sets, and we’re spreading the ball around so that every one of our hitters is a threat.”

The team cannot afford to get ahead of themselves and drop winnable games. They must concentrate on moving on from each game and preparing for the next one. “As of right now we are not even looking at [the state championship],” said outside hitter Holston. “We’re just looking at the next upcoming game and looking forward to it.”

The girls’ volleyball team has the skill and talent to make it back to the championship game, but they need to take the season one game at a time and focus on the upcoming games against Walter Johnson on October 18 and undefeated Damascus on October 28.

“To get back to the state final we need to continue getting better in practice every day. We can’t control what all the other teams in the state are doing, we can only control us,” said McCarty. “So, we want to make sure we are giving it all we’ve got to be our best prepared for whoever we face along the way.”