By Sophie Grabiec
Sports Editor
With another preseason in the books, the Washington College volleyball team looks to incorporate their underclassmen into rotation this season, as they only have four upperclassmen on their roster.
Seniors Lizzie Baden and Kaitlyn Marino are accompanied by juniors Cassie Kowalski and Olivia Portera, while seven sophomores and six freshmen will contribute to game play.
The Shorewomen used their time in preseason to try new rotations and utilize different players after losing Taylor Horan, Sarah Bentley, and Alaina Geissberger, all standout graduates from last year’s team.
Baden said this year’s squad had a successful showing in their scrimmage versus Kean University on Saturday, Aug. 25.
“We have small things we need to fix, but overall we have really good players this year — freshman and returning — that can really push the team to the potential of possibly playoffs,” she said.
While there was no final score at the end of the scrimmage, Baden said, “We tried different rotations and overall we clicked really well on the court. We do need to keep practicing to get where we want, though.”
The volleyball team plans to be competitive in the Centennial Conference this year, with high hopes of competing for the championship.
To get there, however, they will need to improve upon their conference record of 3-7 from last season.
As for fans of WC volleyball, Baden said they can expect “close games and high energy.”
The Shorewomen will have their first opportunity to put their practice into action on Friday, Aug. 31 at Center Valley. On Friday, the volleyball team will play Baruch at 5 p.m. and Colby–Sawyer at 7 p.m.
They will host their first home opener on Sept. 18 versus St. Mary’s (Md.) at 7 p.m.