By: Gracie King | Contributing Writer
With eager and prepared eyes locked on their goal, the South Alabama Womens’ Volleyball team will be heading out of state this weekend for two back-to-back tough matches. On Friday, October 18th, they will be playing the UT Arlington Mavericks at 6:30 pm. The next day, they will be playing the Texas State Bobcats at 6:30 pm. Coach Meekes Rydell is preparing her team well.
At practices, there was no talk of the opponent they are facing; there was only talk of what they can do to better their own game. “Consistency wins games–as a player and as a person” Rydell said preparing her team to be the best they can be is especially tough for being one of the road for these two games. As they continue to work on consistency as players, they are also working on their confidence as a team. The coaching staff and players agree, consistency and confidence go hand in hand.
This work ethic and driven attitude has obviously brought great results to the team as they are 14-6 so far this season including 5-1 in the Sun Belt Conference play. They’re looking to improve their record this upcoming weekend as well as “hoping to make a statement,” as Defensive Player of the Week, Ashlyn Roberts, puts it.
Roberts, a senior defensive specialist, is working hard on improving her game and motivating her fellow teammates. Her goal this week is to be named Defensive Player of the Week once again, and contributing to working on overall team consistency. “Our coach always tell us that defense wins games. Most of what we work on is defensive play in practice,” Roberts said about preparing for the upcoming matches. She says that this year is about making statements, especially against Texas State this weekend.
The team is currently working on being more sure of themselves when taking defensive digs and then returning them offensively. “It’s all about getting our numbers up,” said Roberts who currently has 306 digs overall for the 2019 season.
As a team, the players are working towards being more cohesive, offensively and defensively. Their continued efforts show that they have something to prove in the conference. Of course, they have all of the support from everyone at South Alabama.
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