Wingate volleyball team anticipates a fresh start this season

WINDOW ROCK

Unlike most programs, the Wingate volleyball team has not experienced the ebbs and flows of trying to rebuild a team.

This season, however, head coach Karen Malone will have to find players to fill in the roles of the dominant players who graduated last season.

The only player returning from last season’s state-bound team is senior setter Paige Pinto.

“I am a really at a loss and I don’t know who my powerhouses are going to be,” Malone said. “I know my strength is going to be Paige because she is a solid setter and she knows the game and she understands the rotation.”

With the setter position already established, the fourth-year coach said the hitting position would be played by committee.

“Paige is probably going to be the backbone of my team,” Malone said. “The other girls played JV last year so I don’t know who exactly will be my top hitters but I did have 48 girls that came to tryout, which is awesome.”

With that, Malone said the first week of practice was interesting as the bevy of tryouts showed some promise.

“I’m looking at this year as being a new team definitely,” she said. “I am seeing a lot of talent from my younger players that are coming up and that has been very inspiring. So many of the girls are very talented with some being incoming freshmen and some transfers from other schools.”

Malone was quick to note that during her second year of coaching, she went through a rebuilding year but those girls powered through some early adversities and went to state. She is expecting the same from this year’s batch of girls.

“I am looking forward to it being a building year,” she said. “Just because they are young doesn’t mean they are not going to perform, and I have been quite pleased with the girls’ performance at practice.”

Like her previous three years, Malone said the goal is to get back to state and win a state championship.

“The experience the girls gain at that level has always been so good for them,” she said of competing at the state level. “It’s been an eye-opener for them and it’s something they play at the collegiate level.”

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