Squads settle in to play

The dust has settled at West Valley High School.

A year ago, on the eve of the Eagles’ first season in the Great Northern League, the gymnasium was an oasis in the middle of a schoolwide remodeling effort.

“It’s all done!” coach Drew Wendle said. “It’s all finished and we don’t have any more construction to worry about.

“In fact, we had 1,500 people here for our open house. I was blown away. It just goes to show how many people we have here who care about what we’re doing and are excited to see our new home.”

There is excitement, too, for a young volleyball program that found itself in the thick of the playoff race a year ago.

“Six or seven out of the eight players who will make up the core of our varsity have played club volleyball,” Wendle said. “That’s important, especially considering the quality of volleyball played at the schools in this area.”

Wendle’s young Eagles returned to class this week – a move the coach welcomes.

“I think it really helps to get back to class and get into a routine,” he said. “It’s a little tough for me. I go from spending eight hours a day being a volleyball coach to working six hours a day and spending three hours being a volleyball coach.

“Now you know the kids are up and in class, you know when they’re eating and you know when they’re going to play. It’s good to have that kind of stability.”

The Greater Spokane League again promises to be the state’s toughest league. The two top class 4A teams in the state, Mead and Lewis and Clark, both return with strong squads. Junior Oceana Bush from LC was named the most valuable player at the U-18 AAU national tournament during the summer, leading a Spokane Splash team led by Panthers and Tigers to a national championship.

Central Valley Bears

The Bears are young and feisty.

“We’re not very tall,” coach Chad Coupland said. “We’re going to have to concentrate on playing really good defense and wear people out. We’ve been doing a lot of outside work off the court to get ready. I’ve had the girls out running hills and getting themselves ready to fly around and play great defense for two hours every game.”

Coupland will start sophomore Shannon Giusti at setter.

No surprise, Giusti started at that position a year ago and has played that position for Coupland’s club teams since she was 12.

Her favorite target, sister Allison, is a senior outside hitter who will return from shoulder surgery at mid-season.

“She played as long as she good, concentrating on playing defense,” Coupland said. “When that got done, they went in and fixed her shoulder. She’s still working hard and is getting close to being ready.”

“We only have three seniors on this team,” Coupland said. “Alyssa Hood and Amanda Carlstrom are the other two, and we’re going to need them to lead the way.”

The Bears No. 1 option is gone, however. Kristin Telin, the team’s 6-foot captain a year ago, went from leading the Bears to helping the Spokane Splash win the national championship in Orlando, Fla. She’s now at Carroll College.

East Valley Knights

A year ago, seven out of the 10 players on coach Jim Dorr’s varsity were sophomores – meaning the majority of the team returns intact.

Right side hitters Kathy Tate and Randee Nunnally are this year’s only seniors. Tate, a 5-11 middle hitter, gives the team a solid middle block that features three players 5-10 or taller.

Juniors Kelsey Kurtz and Desi Rainey took over as setter a year ago and both return.

“Kelsey is going to be our starter and Desi will come off the bench,” Dorr said. “They both played a lot of club volleyball over the summer and there’s no substitute for court time. Kelsey went to the national tournament in Michigan and Desi went with her team to the volleyball festival in Reno.”

Middle blocker Amanda Hiebert and outside hitter Justine Simpson, both juniors, are three-year varsity performers.

“Amanda and Justine are doing just exactly what seniors are supposed to do,” the coach said. “Amanda, especially, has really stepped up. She is so smooth in what she does that she can really fool you. She jumps well and we’ve been working with her to improve her block. In the past she could just out-jump opponents. This year we’re fine-tuning that a bit.”

Kirsten Kelly has done a good job filling the big shoes takes over the role of libero from graduated senior Pam Eatock.

“I hate to compare them because Pam was a senior last year and she’d played that position for several years,” Dorr said. “But Kirsten has picked up so fast that I’ve been really impressed.”

Sophomore Allie Riggin also has impressed the coach. The 5-10 outside hitter has soaked up coaching like a sponge.

“If you tell Allie something and coach her, she goes right out and does it – even during a game,” Dorr said. “Most kids will need to practice and practice to respond to a change of technique like that.”

University Titans

First-year coach Mark Weis takes over the program after serving as assistant coach to Amanda Velasquez a year ago. Velasquez left after the season ended last year, giving Weis a chance to work with his new charges over the winter and throughout the summer league season.

“I’ve been just really pleased with the way the team has worked and they attitude they’ve all brought to turnouts,” Weis said. “We have some good experience back. That’s the good news. How far that will take us in this league and against teams like Mead and Lewis and Clark is another question altogether.”

This year’s U-Hi squad includes 5-8 senior left-side hitter Kasey Jurich, who earned second-team All-GSL honors a year ago. Eileen Chatfield, a 6-foot middle blocker, also is a returning starter.

Senior Lisa Reich moved from outside hitter to setter a year ago and returns in that capacity. Senior Hailey Parrish, a defensive specialist a year ago, also sets.

“We’re going to use two setters quite a bit and will have both of them in the game at the same time, at least at first,” Weis said. “We’re going to have a strong bench to work with. We’re playing a non-league game at Bethel on the other side of the state and I’m looking forward to taking this group on the road.”

Senior Chanel Ratkovich returns as a defensive specialist. Seniors Diana Drury and Jessica Rasmussen, both 5-7, saw plenty of action as outside hitters a year ago.

West Valley Eagles

The Eagles were young a year ago. So, what happens a year later?

“We got even younger,” Wendle laughed. “We graduated a pretty good senior class and replaced them with freshmen.”

The schedule has been kind to West Valley to start the season. After playing a jamboree Friday, the team had a week off from competition to settle in to start the school year.

“I really think this week came at a good time for us,” Wendle said. “We can use another good week of practice before we go into playing for real.”

Junior setter Alyssa Wold already is a three-year starter, earning All-GNL first-team honors a year ago. Senior hitter Melissa Mauro also earned first-team all-league honors in her first injury-free season in two years.

Wold’s sister, Bailey, joined the Eagle varsity a year ago as a middle hitter and returns this year to pick up where she left off. Luryn Abrahamson, a 5-foot-11 middle hitter, also returns.