by Joe Lavoie ’14

Before its loss on October 17 to Damascus, the Volleyball team won as 68 consecutive five set matches on the way to three straight state championships. Each of the four years, the team have some of its best players graduate. And yet they keep on winning… again and again and again. One constant amongst these teams, is the maturity and talent of the young players being called upon step up.

“Playing on varsity as a sophomore helps with my skill because I play against much harder competition in practice and games,” said sophomore hitter Kendall Kahn. “Also, I gain more confidence when I make a good play. All of this will help me with future tryouts and matches.”

This year, sophomore setter Ariella Rodriguez has stepped up after replacing graduated setter Maddie Moyer, who made the all-county team senior year. Rodriguez so far has 65 digs along with 19 kills in her first season as a starter for the Warriors.

“Ariella is an experienced player so she’s already been able to step up and help lead the team. She has great hands and is a smart player on the court,” said senior outside hitter Makayla Roy. “I love playing with her; she brings a lot of energy and excitement to the team.”

It’s not only Rodriguez, though; freshman Kaiya Heyliger-Powell has come up huge at middle hitter, racking up 57 kills up to this point in the season. A lot of the development of the freshman and sophomores come from the teammates they play with from day to day in practice. Powell is lucky enough to be playing beside one of the top outside hitters in the county in Roy. By having Heyliger-Powell play on the same line as Roy as well as junior outside hitter Julia Gajewski-Nemes, the Warriors are set for this year as well as next year, when junior Kristen Stitzlein will be able to step into Roy’s place.

“Kaiya is a great addition to the team; she works really hard and brings a lot of positive energy to the team,” said senior Kasey Rosen.

One reason for the continuity is that the majority of the volleyball team attends Physical Education teacher Bonnie Gilchrist’s camp. Gilchrist in partnership with Magruder girls’ volleyball coach Scott Zanni, has run this camp for kids of all ages since 2004 to improve their volleyball skills. This camp is run through Olney Boys’ and Girls’ Club, not only to help Sherwood volleyball players but also to spread the popularity of volleyball through the younger ages. In addition to young players learning from playing on the varsity level, the Warriors’ JV team has had a run of its own, not losing in three consecutive seasons.