By Chris Parker
Galena volleyball has posted three-straight 30-win district championship seasons winning 98 combined matches in that time frame.
A fourth straight district championship is a goal for this year’s Lady Bears volleyball team.
“Galena volleyball has won 98 matches the past three years with three district championships, a final four appearance, a quarterfinal appearance and numerous tournament wins,” Galena head coach Joe Miller said. “Although we have graduated a number of great players the past few years our goals and expectations have not changed; we expect to compete for another district championship and advance to the state tournament. It will be important for us to stay focused on getting better every day in practice and applying what we do in practice to game situations.”
Galena returns one of the state’s top hitters in Mel Rice. The senior outside hitter put down 632 kills which was a single-season record for Galena and No. 2 for the entire state last season. The reigning SWCL Player of the Year also led Galena in digs (495) and serve receptions (577).
“Mel will once again be the main focus of our offense this season in addition to also playing back row defense,” Miller said. “She is also one of our best servers, so we are expecting her to lead the team in aces this season.”
Ava Watson is a returning senior setter/right side hitter.
“Ava was strictly a right side hitter last season but will be moving to the setter position this season,” Miller said. “Although she has never been a setter, she has really good hands and a good understanding of the game, so we are excited to see her develop over the course of the season. Ava played in every varsity set last season and gained a lot of experience. She will be counted on to be one of the team leaders this season.”
Junior middle hitter Maddy Bilyeu returns after tallying 46 blocks last season.
“Our goal for Maddy this season is to improve her block totals and to also get her more involved in the offense,” Miller said. “She is a smart player so we are expecting her to expand her playmaking abilities on the front row which should lead to more kills this season.”
Jaiona Bailey is a junior libero who had 495 receptions and 314 digs last season.
“Jaiona was a starting DS player for us last year and will be stepping into the libero position this season,” Miller said. “She was one of our top players in serve receive last season and we are expecting even better numbers this year. Her defense has gotten better and better the past few seasons, so we are counting on her to be the defensive stopper on the team. Her 314 digs last season were impressive, but we are expecting even better numbers in her junior season.”
Chloe Simpson was the lone freshman to play on varsity last season playing in every varsity set.
“Chloe played in every varsity set last season as a freshman,” Miller said. “We used her as a passer last season, but we are expanding her role this season to include some rotations as a setter. During our summer league she was given the opportunity to be a setter and did very well with it so we will continue to work with her on this new position.”
Kaidynce Boan (junior OH), Audrey Dozier (junior MH), Norah Wyant (junior MH), Shanice Gordon (sophomore DS), Skylar Smith (sophomore DS), Addison Williams (freshman setter/DS) and Marlee Hemmerling (freshman RS) will all compete for varsity sets.
“We can score plenty of points with Mel leading our offense,” Miller said. “If we can continue to improve our defense and passing, we should be able to compete against any teams on our schedule. We also have several really good servers so hopefully we can put some pressure on our competition by serving aggressively and forcing bad passes.”
Getting the ball to Rice will be something Galena has to work on with new setters taking over this season.
“With two inexperienced setters on varsity this season, it is going to take some time to develop that hitter/setter chemistry that every team needs to be successful,” Miller said. “We will also need to expand our offensive options to include other hitters besides Mel. Mel will get her points, but we will need to get some other players contributing to the offense in order to be more balanced on the front row.”
Galena opens the regular season on Sept. 2 at home against Greenwood.
