By Chris Parker
Bolivar volleyball enters a transition year after graduating a five-player senior class that included the team’s two leading hitters from last season’s 12-win team.
“We are so thankful for the culture and competitive legacy of leadership left by our senior group,” Bolivar head coach Kyle Smith said. “(There are) definitely some questions to be answered by our staff and underclassmen going into this upcoming season.”
The Liberators return a pair of key contributors in Megan Howard and Heidi Roweton.
Howard earned honorable mention all-conference honors as a sophomore after she finished third on the team with 262 kills.
“Megan is a special player and clearly as a third year varsity starter will have some expectations placed on her from those outside our program,” Smith said. “Internally, our discussion is more of an increase in leadership responsibilities not statistics. The statistics, positions, etc. will all be answered as we develop and move through the season.”
Roweton led Bolivar in digs (382) and serve receptions (919) as a freshman.
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“Heidi came in as a freshman and was one of our best serve-receive passers in the gym last summer and earned her spot as a starter on varsity,” Smith said. “Her defensive skills and aggressive serve will still play large for us; however we will most likely look to her as an offensive weapon as well this year. Beyond all of that her energy and enthusiasm for others is a spark that her teammates love.”
The rest of the roster will feature a mix of returning varsity players and some players moving up from junior varsity.
“We will have a lot of new faces coming up from years of experience on our JV team along with some varsity returners that collectively have worked over the summer to come together as a unit,” Smith said.
Smith will look for the 2023 version of Bolivar Volleyball to play a slightly different style.
“The past couple of years we have relied on an explosive sideout offense and aggressive serving, and while we will still see some of that, our athletes are coming together more focused on team defense and transition work with improved ball control,” Smith said.
Bolivar will host Hillcrest, Osage and Buffalo for a jamboree on Aug. 22 before opening the regular season on Aug. 26 at the Branson Invitational.
