MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — When you are smack dab in the middle of a pandemic, and also when your programs are at very different levels, the metrics for success can be vastly different.
So, for the Preston and University High volleyball teams, Monday night’s tri-match, which included Brooke, was considered by their respective coaches as a pair of wins.
For the Hawks (5-3), a pair of straight set victories (25-18 and 25-15 against Brooke in the opener, followed by 25-8 and 25-18 over Preston in the final match) brought their overall record above .500, and brought a smile to the face (safely behind his mask) of veteran head coach Donnie Godfrey.
“We played pretty well, pretty consistently against Brooke,” he said. “We were solid, and at this point with having lost a month of our season any time we can play solid volleyball, I’m happy. It almost feels sometimes like we’re starting the season over, so if we stick with good, fundamental volleyball, it’s a step in the right direction for us.”
Godfrey handed out special praise for the serving games of both setter Payton Foulks, who was able to put UHS way out in front in Set 1 against the Knights, and libero Anna Voris, who helped close out Set 2 for the win.
“Any time you serve well, it puts a lot of pressure on the defense,” he said, “and that can take some of the pressure off your own defense. Also, Payton and Rachel Shockley, our other setter, did I nice job of spreading the ball around and putting our hitters in good spots. If we continue to concentrate, we’ll be fine.”
For Preston’s enthusiastic first-year coach Zeb Lewis, his Knights’ play last night — despite a disappointing straight set loss to Brooke (14 and 8) in the middle match — was cause for hope, if not celebration.
“It’s been a tough time for us up until the last two weeks or so,” he admitted. “We haven’t been competitive, certainly not as competitive as we’re capable of being. Slow decision-making, tentative play, almost all of it because we’ve been trying to cram five years of volleyball fundamentals into six weeks of practice.
“But lately,” he continued, “you can see the light starting to come on. The communication is better, the spirit is better, and we’re starting to enjoy the game much more. And you can see the results in the second set against University. We were right with them point for point (the match was knotted at 17-all before Voris’ service splurge took the Hawks to match point). I told the girls that if they had played that way against Brooke, they win that match.
“So, for us, it’s all about having the confidence and consistency to do it against everyone we face. I’m proud and excited for the way we finished up the night, and I hope we can carry it forward.”
Both teams continue their seasons at home Tuesday, with the Knights hosting North Marion at 6:00 p.m. and the Hawks against John Marshall at 6:30 p.m.
