Momo LaClair and Paige Stepanian
Staff Writers
September 28, 2017
Since August, Jamesville-DeWitt High School’s Varsity Boys and Girls Volleyball teams have been working hard to achieve their goals for the season. The girls are hoping to defend their title as sectional champions, while the boys are working towards winning a sectional title for the first time since 2014. In order to achieve their goals both teams have been putting in many hours of work in the gym.
As captains of the girls team, seniors Alex Payne and Amy Shen have been actively preparing their teammates for their sectionals run. They have been doing everything they can in order to win sectionals for the second year in a row. “We’re doing team lifts, and practicing really hard on Saturdays,” says Payne. Using their strong leadership skills, the two help run practices and give important pep talks before games.
The team lost three senior starters and although the team chemistry wasn’t affected, the captains believe that the overall skill level of the team went down. To fill in these roles, underclassmen had to step up. “There’s a lot of teaching and learning,” says Shen. The team builds chemistry by enjoying eating together, and especially making runs to Wegmans. They also have pasta parties and refer to themselves as the “Penne Gang.” Everyone loves hanging out with each other even when they aren’t on the court; the team is “a lot of fun,” says Shen.
Even though the girls do have a lot of fun, they’re still working toward being the best team that they can possibly be. Their current record is 6-2, with losses coming from Cicero-North Syracuse and Oswego. Keeping their losses in mind, they are preparing for what is most likely going to be a sectional title game against Oswego. Knowing that they are their greatest competition, they have been structuring their practices around beating Oswego and targeting their weak points.
The Lady Rams aren’t the only team gearing up for sectionals. Captain of the Varsity Boys Volleyball team, senior Owen Farchione has also been preparing his team for a successful season. As captain, his role is to “ensure the volleyball players are doing the right thing and having great technique.” Being the captain of a newer team, Farchione has a big role in carrying out practices and making sure that players improve throughout the season.
As a “tight knit and diverse group,” the boys are 3-3 with their losses coming from Central Square, and CNS, who beat them twice. They are hoping to qualify for sectionals this year and maybe even win the sectional title. However, this won’t come easy. About half of the team is inexperienced, and many haven’t played volleyball prior to this season. Yet, the team “meshes well together” and has been putting in the time and effort to get them to where they want to be, says Farchione.
There have been lots of long and grueling two hour practices so far this season, after school and early on Saturday mornings. During these practices the boys prepare to play against some of their greatest competition such as Living Word and Central Square. Farchione hopes to have the boys ready to compete against these next level teams by the time sectionals rolls around. Playing these teams will help them prepare for their sectionals run.
Be sure to go out and support both teams throughout their journey to sectionals. The girl’s next home game is Tuesday, October 3rd and the boy’s next home game Thursday, October 5th. Be there!
