Coaches: Amanda Donaldson (head coach), Katie Pascoe (assistant coach)

Top Returners: Eniko Barta (11), Yasleen Hawkins (12), Sue Kang (12), Isabelle Kim (11), Hannah Oh (11), Kayla Thienprasiddhi (12), Olivia Urias (11), Reagan Williams (10)

Top Newcomer: Gabriela Simon dos Santos (11)

Last Season: Finishing with a 22-7 record and winning first place (7-1) in the inaugural Crestview League, the Lady Lancers continued their streak of dominant seasons since their CIF quarterfinal feat two years ago.

The team fell short to Aliso Niguel High School (21-10), losing 3-0, in the first round of CIF-SS Division 2 playoffs, putting an end to its playoff run, despite reaching semifinals and the state competition the previous season.

Outlook: Emphasizing team chemistry, the Lady Lancers aim to defend their league championship title and extend their CIF run.

“Our goals are just kind of small ones, one week at a time, one match at a time,” Donaldson said. “Obviously, we want to stand here and say, ‘Hey, we want to win league again;’ then, obviously, the girls do have goals too, like being able to take it further in CIF.”

Outside hitter and captain Thienprasiddhi is excited for the second year of the newly-formed league.

“I feel pretty good about our team because we have a lot of returners; our starting lineup is really similar to last year, so it’s just we have a new setter, [Kang], so that’s just the only real or big difference,” Thienprasiddhi said.

In fact, for the first time in five years, the Lady Lancers will take on this season without a freshman on the team, the head coach said.

“The cool part about you know most of the team returning is that everybody is a little bit older, a little bit more experienced,” Donaldson said. “And that’s a really fun piece of the puzzle that several of these girls have played together, and besides our transfer [Simon dos Santos], all of them have played on the same team; it’s cool to have that coming full circle.”

To reach their goal, the head coach said she hopes to watch efficient and smart play.

“But as for being able to beat teams, it’s not going to be, who can hit the ball the hardest; it’s which teams got the most volleyball IQ,” she said. “Last year, we got to really show off and take down and compete with some really amazing teams because our ball control really held us in there.

“We’re looking forward to do the same, and maybe even hopefully bring out a little more physicality to that too.”

Though full of hope, Donaldson has high expectations as anticipated results won’t come easily.

“No one’s going to give us anything — they gotta earn it, which is hard to do when you’ve got a big target on your back,” she said. “But, we’ve earned that target, and I’m confident that they’re gonna grind it out this season.”

To fulfill her role as a returner and leader of the team, Thienprasiddhi hopes to maintain her level of play throughout the season.

“I think just playing consistently is the biggest thing because I feel like if I’m off, then my teammates will probably worry,” the four-time varsity athlete said. “Also, I think having good energy on the court and not getting down on myself is important, so they don’t have to worry about me and they could think about what they have to do for the team.”

As a transfer from Brea Olinda High School, opposite hitter Simon dos Santos said she decided to move after talking to juniors outside hitter Urias and defensive specialist Melody Sonboli, teammates at ACT Volleyball Club in Yorba Linda.

“I played club volleyball with [Urias] and [Sonboli], who are both on the Sunny Hills volleyball team,” Simon dos Santos said. “It started as a joke, but then I was really thinking about it; it was a better option for me to play volleyball at a high level and challenge myself academically.”

Third-year varsity athlete Urias said she aims to step into the shoes of a leader.

“I think our team chemistry is pretty good and we all get along,” Urias said. “I plan to fulfill my role as a returner by leading a little more, being louder on the court and supporting everyone, especially like the new people who I haven’t really had the chance to really build a deeper meaningful friendship with.”

The Lady Lancers kicked off their season at the Irvine Queens Court Tournament Saturday-Sunday, Aug. 2-3, finishing 13th (2-3), and at the Portola High School Tournament on Saturday, August 16, finishing tied for 5th. Though there’s room for improvement, Donaldson said she already notices her team’s positive change.

“We’re all just trying to find that groove, find that tempo,” said the head coach, who praised her team’s defense at the Portola tournament. “We’re great at passing, we’re great at serving, we’re great at defense; there’s just moments where your mindset has to be strong and make sure, as a group, those skills that we’re so good at, don’t all of a sudden take a little dip and hurt us instead of help us.”

Donaldson said she looks forward to the Tuesday, Sept. 23, and Thursday, Sept. 25, matches against Cypress and Canyon high schools, respectively. The Lady Lancers went 1-1 against the latter last season.

“It’s time to see who’s going to take both games this year,” she said.

Following the summer tournaments, the team won its first preseason match at home against Esperanza High School, 3-0, on Tuesday, Aug. 19.

“I thought the team did OK together,” Thienprasiddhi said. “I feel like we’re still making messy plays, but we’re still winning by a lot, which was good, and it felt good to win our first match.

The Lady Lancers will play their first league match away against Yorba Linda High School on Thursday, Sept. 11, at 6 p.m.