After a disappointing losing season last year, the Malibu High School girls volleyball team is looking to excel in 2010. The team is already off to a 3-1 start. With a good number of players moving up from the freshman/sophomore and junior varsity teams to join the returning players on the varsity squad, this year’s team has many old and new faces.
“[This year’s team] is very interesting in the dynamic that we have girls from all different teams, which is the first time that I’ve had that happen,” head coach Carlos Gray said. “There is still some meshing that has to happen.”
Leading the Sharks as captain this year is the team’s only senior, Sienna Masiello. She said the Sharks will have an improved record over last season, and attributes the Sharks’ early success to the team’s motivation and drive.
“ I think that we will do better this year because everyone wants to win and wants to work for it, so they’re ready to put in the hard work and achieve our goals,” Masiello said.
Masiello said she would like to conclude her final season feeling accomplished and satisfied.
“My goal for this year is to leave my senior season feeling happy and satisfied that I did everything that I wanted to do this season,” she said
Gray also recognizes the team’s depth as a reason for the Sharks’ strong star. With many returning and talented players, Gray said that he can go to a multitude of girls to play well.
“We are very deep,” Gray said. “I can bring several players off the bench that I can count on to do their jobs.”
The girls participated in a large amount of summer training, with intermittent practices in July and a large number of beach practices in August. In addition to the routine training and skill-building drills that are common to every sport, Gray has made it a priority for the team to practice hard and competitively.
“I have tried my best to foster a competitive attitude during practice,” Gray said. “ I want them to compete against each other so they learn to compete against other people.”
Gray also does not guarantee any starting lineup spots from week to week, allowing the players to compete for them. This is a strategy that has contributed to the team’s success thus far.
With the motivation, drive, and talent that the Sharks have already demonstrated throughout their summer practices and the early stages of their season, players and coaches believe that this team has the potential to make some noise in the Frontier League.
“We just need to play to our potential,” Masiello said. “If we play to how we know we can play, then a lot of teams will have trouble with us.”
While Gray believes the team has the talent to win the Frontier League, he would rather take the season one game at a time than look too far ahead.
“I am very hesitant about putting a season goal out there,” Gray said. “I would rather take it one game at a time. I believe this team physically has the potential to win the Frontier League, but that has yet to be seen, so I don’t put that out there as our singular goal for the season.”
Standing in the girls’ way from a league title are a good number of teams, but Grace Brethren stands above the rest as the Sharks’ main obstacle that they must overcome. The Sharks played Grace Brethren earlier this season in a tournament and lost in a close contest. The Sharks know they must work hard and improve their team and individual skills in order to realize the goal of a Frontier League title.