by Matthew Kauffman ‘23

Sherwood’s girls varsity volleyball team celebrates a win against Einstein at Dig Pink.  Photo taken by Sherwood Athletics

Roughly halfway through the volleyball season, Sherwood has lived up to the expectations of their highly talented roster, coming in at a hot 8-0. Led by senior outside hitter Sophia Kluska and Salisbury commit senior middle blocker Gwen Eustace, the Warriors have displayed dominance over their competition by controlling the flow of the game and dominating on their attacks.

This dominance was on full display against Einstein on October 4 at Dig Pink, the annual fundraiser for breast cancer awareness. Sherwood handled Einstein in three sets (25-17, 25-8, 25-13), dominating all aspects of the game in front of the largest crowd they have played for all season. The most advertised and anticipated game of the regular season ended somewhat anticlimactically, which was anything but unexpected. Although it was not their cleanest match so far, the Warriors won in quick and decisive fashion. “It is fun especially when you can hear your friends cheering for you, but it’s also a little stressful because there’s pressure on us to play well,” said Captain Sophia Kluska of playing in front of the large crowd.

It was obvious from the first practices that the Warriors had talent, but talent is not the only reason for the team’s success. They are a close-knit group, which can easily be seen during their matches. When they are playing at their best, they are playing at their best together, and they make sure to pick each other up when a mistake is made, as compounding mistakes is often the difference between a win and a loss in volleyball.

In several of their games, the Warriors have fallen behind briefly before storming back to win by a significant margin. This happened in the season opener against Northwest and again in a competitive match against Churchill. Both times the team cleaned up their mistakes and reclaimed control of the outcome, winning in four sets against Northwest and sweeping Churchill in three.

The key to winning these close games has been two-fold. They are, so far, a better team from top to bottom than their competition. Even though some opponents have impressive talent, no one has been able to match the Warriors overall roster strength. Secondly, they have been able to outlast their opponents’ stamina. It has seemed as if every gym has been brutally hot, but the Warriors have not let the stifling atmosphere tire them out.

Sherwood plans on continuing its success throughout the rest of the season and carrying the momentum into the playoffs. “We plan on having focused practices with high energy for the rest of the season to keep up this level of play,” said Kluska.