Coaches: Amanda Donaldson (head coach), Katie Pascoe (assistant coach)
Top Returning Players: Dalilah Rivero (11), Kayla Taylor (12), Kayla Thienprasiddhi (10), Dylyn Williams (11), Andrea Yepez (12)
Top Newcomers: Izzy Kim (9), Hannah Oh (9), Olivia Urias (9)
Last Season: The girls varsity volleyball team finished the Freeway League, ending with an 8-2 record with both losses coming against La Habra High School. The team still managed to place second in the league, securing a CIF playoff spot in which the Lady Lancers reached the quarterfinals.
Outlook: With high morale and new goals, the Lady Lancers are ready for Freeway League play.
“As coaches, players and schools, we want to win,” Donaldson said. “But the true-found goals are that we need to have fun and make sure that we are learning and getting better.”
The team started off the season by securing fifth place overall in the Irvine Queens Court Tournament Saturday-Sunday, Aug. 5-6.
“We’ve never placed that high in that tournament before,” Donaldson said. “So far, we are ready to slay.”
With new middles being included, this season, the Lady Lancers hope to add to their list of victories.
“Without giving too much away, we have a dynamic offense through and through,” the coach said.
Not only will the new strategies provide an upper hand, but the squad hopes to make a difference this season with confidence and a positive nature.
Captain Taylor said she hopes that the team will be passionate on and off the court.
“As a team, I think that we can have more energy and be louder on the court,” she said. “We need to stay confident.”
Top returner and outside hitter Thienprasiddhi said that the team’s chemistry and the capability to enhance its teamwork has significantly improved and will be an asset to the players this season.
“This year, we have done really well working together,” she said. “We have won all of the preseason games so far [as of Aug. 23] and we improved a lot.”
The team lost in a home match to Kennedy High School during the quarterfinals of CIF last season, but plans to advance deeper into CIF playoffs this year.
“That night, the better team won, but we are back working hard and hope to make sure that we can put up a much bigger fight,” Donaldson said.
The Lady Lancers will play their first home match of the Freeway League against Sonora High School on Monday, Sept. 11, at 5:30 p.m.
