Lady Bulldogs exceed own expectations
Melea Burke
With Kaylie Durglo providing backup, Mission senior Sara Nerby returns the ball during a game at the divisional tournament. Nerby is one of four seniors leaving the team after the 2012 season.
Melea Burke
Libero Emyli Gillingham fires off a serve during divisional tournament play two weeks ago.
Melea Burke
Melea Burke
Loren Erickson tips the ball over the net during divisional play.
Melea Burke
Melea Burke
Melea Burke
Senior Stephanie Lewandowski plays with focus during the divisional tournament.
Melea Burke
Emilie Charlo, a sophomore middle hitter, dominates the net against Troy during the divisional tournament.
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MISSION — The Mission Bulldogs volleyball team graduated seven seniors last year. Coach Kendal Anderson said of the 11 on her team this year, only four had been on the team the year prior. Of these four, only three had playing experience.
“At the beginning, before the season even started, we were ranked last,” Anderson said. “Not a lot of people expected much from us.”
Taking this to heart, seniors Loren Erickson and Sara Nerby went into the season with a very different attitude than most competitive high school teams. Their motto was, “Just have fun.”
“We didn’t have high expectations, so it was fun to do what we did,” Nerby said.
“We still had things we wanted to accomplish. We still had expectations, but it allowed us to be a little more focused on the important part — having fun,” Erickson said. “At the beginning of the year, Sara and I were like, ‘OK, if people don’t have high expectations of us, we’re just going to have fun and do what we do.’”
And what they did surprised many.
The Lady Bulldogs finished the season with an 11-7 record and entered the divisional tournament in second place, a far cry from preseason projections. While they didn’t advance far in the tournament, it surely wasn’t for lack of effort.
“I was really proud of the girls,” Anderson said. “With the way the season went and how the younger girls had to step up and improve.”
The younger girls Anderson was referring to were her eight junior varsity and freshman squad players. These players had never competed at the varsity level, so stepping up and performing under pressure was a feat in itself.
Nerby agreed, saying her younger teammates had stepped up to the challenge.
“They had to step into way bigger roles with more pressure than last year,” their coach said. “It was nerve-racking for them.”
Helping to make the transition easier, Anderson said this was her least drama-filled season of all time. Players got along very well and supported each other throughout the season.
“I really liked bonding with the girls,” Nerby said. “I didn’t know them very well, but we came together and connected and it was fun.”
Both Nerby and Erickson, who graduate this spring, said the thing they’ll miss most isn’t games or practices, but their teammates.
Anderson said she’d learned more from her players this year than they’d learned from her, and that, “They’ll be sincerely missed and impossible to replace.”
“(The seniors) were so helpful. For me, as a coach, (the seniors) taking on and helping out those younger girls is (what) I’ll miss the most,” Anderson said.
While the season may be over, Anderson is already looking forward to next year.
“I think it’s definitely going to be different than this year,” she said. “A lot of rebuilding is needed, and I’m looking forward to the younger girls who played this year stepping (into) leadership roles next year.”
“I think we had a pretty good run,” Erickson said. “I’m sad that it’s over, but there comes a time when it has to be over.”
Erickson encourages her younger teammates to work hard in the off-season and spend time in the weight room.
“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the hard work put in during the weight room,” she said. “Hard work pays off, definitely.”
