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Volleyball Preview 2008 - 2009
who said they can't go undefeated?
NEIRAD enilno edition
A 140- match winning streak is unheard of in almost every sport played. But for the Darien High School Girls’ Volleyball team, this record has become a reality up until September 12 when the undefeated team fell to Greenwich 3-1. With the end of the season last year, Girl’s Varsity Volleyball achieved a 140-0 record over the last five years. In total, that led them to 16 league titles over the past 19 years. But as of this year the unstoppable team has competition in the FCIAC.
“We would like to continue our undefeated record and win FCIAC's and States,” senior captain Phoebe Maglathlin said earlier in the season hoping to keep the undefeated streak alive.
Winning is not the only item on the team’s agenda: “It’s less about the pressure to win and more about the pressure to perform at our very best every time we take a step on the court,” junior Colby Billhardt said.
The team did face many challenges coming into the season and most of the team knew it would be tough to keep the undefeated record. The volleyball program lost five seniors: Ally Taylor – an all American selection, Taylor Willis, Lindsay Lyons, Evelyn Cordner and Alex Stevenson. But Ally Taylor did have faith in her teammates at the end of last season saying they will retain their dominance on the court even without her top-notch skills.
"I think the team will do really well,” Ally said. “Looking at past years, we have lost seniors, but we have been able to come back really strong. It’s about the coaching and we have a lot of pride in our school team. I have trust in them because they are very driven individuals.” Ally is now a freshman who plays Division One level volleyball at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.
Players coming through the ranks will ease the transition: “senior Chloe Drimal started volleyball her sophomore year and has improved dramatically. She’s just a great athlete with height which is perfect for her position; she will definitely be one of our main forces next year” says senior captain Phoebe.
Phoebe also cited her senior co-captain Emily Cordner and fellow seniors Sam Stevenson, Lauren Miller, and Shannon Moore. “Emily is an amazing setter who has learned a lot from her sister, Evelyn, and is a big leader on the court. Sam’s power and serve and Shannon Moore and Lauren Miller’s defensive skills will take us far,” Phoebe said.
The team hopes that with their senior leadership and drive that they will be able to bounce back from this loss and continue the teams tradition of excellence. The program will keep its practice schedule of 24-hours of practice per week dispersed over a six-day period. (They have Saturday off) These hard-working athletes thrive under pressure and are likely give DHS more hardware to be put in the school’s award case this year.
