Scott Swanson
If there ever were a year when things came together for the Sweet Home volleyball team, this may be it.
Back for the Huskies are nearly their entire starting line-up from last year, a group of girls who have played together since they were in fifth grade.
With a new coach, Alicia Meier, at the helm last year, Sweet Home rolled to a 13-6 record and second place in the Sky-Em League, behind Sisters, and then won a play-in match at Cascade before losing 3-1 at Baker in the first round of the state playoffs – a defeat that Meier said the Huskies are using to build for this year.
“I think they really learned a lesson,” she said. “It’s not over till you get that third game. One focus of our coaching staff this year is to be mentally strong, not making mental errors and to bounce back from errors.”
With the core of eight seniors, many of whom have started for four years, and some talented newcomers, Meier is optimistic that the Huskies can go farther. And the returnees make the loss of seniors Bethany Marner and Ashley Coch-ran to graduation less painful.
“This is the year I think the girls have been waiting for,” she said. “Not only am I excited, but they are too. The emotional part of it can hold a team back. These girls are getting along well and they’re emotionally confident.”
Back are seniors Tiffany Miller, named the team’s outstanding player last year and a first team all-league selection, Brandi Trewin, who was also first team all-league, and Annie Whitfield, named second team all-league, and junior Megan Graville, who was also second team all-league.
Four of the returnees, seniors Brandi Trewin, Tiffany Miller, Hailey Fisher and Devyn Makin, played club during the off-season and it’s made a difference, Meier said.
“They’ve come back and they didn’t lose much over the summer,” she said. “It’s rare for such a small school to have girls playing year-round.”
She said that the varsity roster has been bolstered with the arrival of sophomore Danielle Landucci, a transfer from Corvallis, who also has played club.
“She’s talented and she brings some fresh blood to the court,” Meier said.
Two other newcomers, freshman Jordan Miller and sophomore transfer Alena Davis, from Lebanon, also have club experience.
“This year we got pretty lucky with some transfer students,” she said.
The other returnees from last year’s varsity are seniors Emili Riggs, who is back after having to sit out nearly all of last season with a shoulder injury and Sonya Cor-liss. Moving up from last year’s JV are sophomore Amanda Hubbard and senior Jadyn Baskin.
Meier believes Sisters will be the team to beat in the league this year, as the Outlaws ran the table last season and lost only a few players, but the Huskies are looking beyond the league, aiming to go deep into the playoffs.
“Crook County won (the 4A title) last year and they had almost their entire team return,” she said. “Those teams are going to be tough. There’s no doubt the competition is tough. But Sweet Home can play with them.”
She said that the Huskies may be able to surprise some teams this year.
“I think we’re still underdogs,” Meier said. “We were kind of on people’s radar last year, but we’re still under radar for a lot of people. We have talent. The girls have been playing a lot this summer.
“We lost two senior players that were good role models but we pretty much have the same team returning and that puts us at an advantage in our chemistry, girls playing next to each other, and experience.
“This year they know what they expect from themselves. Our goal is the next step: the final eight.”