Volleyball play days are much like football jamborees as it gives players and coaches alike a chance to perform under game conditions on a big stage where the results don’t count.
You know the old saying about put up or shut up? That’s exactly what we’re talking about here.
The late, great Catherine Neeley and the legendary Susan Ingram Thurman started this play day many years ago when Neely was coaching at East Ridge and Thurman at Red Bank.
The names have changed and so have the times, but the tradition is still the same as six teams gathered at Red Bank on Saturday while seven more showed up at Ooltewah for a day of competition and a chance for newer players to get a bit more experience before the regular season begins on August 14.
Sale Creek, Tyner, Hixson, Calhoun, Dalton and host Red Bank gathered at Red Bank while teams from Davidson Academy, CSLA, Signal Mountain, Lookout Valley, Bradley and the Homeschooled Patriots joined the Lady Owls in the Ooltewah gyms.
“Today has been a really good day for us as we’ve been trying to focus on ball control and putting the ball down,” said Sale Creek coach Erin Briner, entering her fourth season leading the Lady Panthers.
“I know it’s still early and the season hasn’t even started, but we have the potential to be the best we’ve ever been at Sale Creek. We’re replacing some key players, but we have a lot of different strengths and we have a bunch of kids really eager to get on the court,” Briner added.
Nikki Bryant has the head coaching job at Tyner for the first time after several successful seasons at Tyner Middle School. She played for coach Pat Conard at Lookout Valley, so she has a pretty good handle on what her kids can expect.
“These kids know a little bit about volleyball, but we’re just trying to teach the fundamentals of the game. It’s all about experience at this point and we can only get better as the season progresses,” Bryant said before her final match with Sale Creek began.
“I just want to keep offering encouraging words to these girls as we’ll be facing some tough completion when the season begins,” she added with a smile.
Diane Tench is the head coach at Hixson for the first time after serving as an assistant under Robert Catlett for a number of years. She knows there’s a lot of work to be done, but she’s eager to get started.
“We’re learning how to work together as a team and that’s what makes a day like this so important,” she said following her team’s match with Calhoun.
“We have a bunch of kids with attitudes, but they’re all good at this point. We still have an awful lot of stuff to work on, but we’re just trying to limit unforced errors and to control the things we can control," Tench added.
Christy McElhaney has been the coach at Bradley for a long time and she’s looking forward to seeing just how much her team can accomplish and just how far they can go. The Bearettes graduated six seniors, but have four players back with extensive experience, so time will tell for the girls in black.
“Right now, we’re just trying to figure out which combinations work best, but days like this give us a chance to do just that,” McElhaney said after her team’s match with Lookout Valley at Ooltewah’s Edward Foster Gymnasium.
“We have a chance to be a pretty good team, but we’re trying to find where all the pieces will fit,” she added.
Jennifer Redman is back on the sideline at Signal Mountain after a few years away and is thrilled to be able to coach her daughter Emily as she enjoys her final high school season.
“We’ve looked pretty good so far as most of these girls have really stepped up,” Redman admitted between sets.
“I’m really excited as we have a great group of young ladies and have a chance to be pretty good. We just need to find out who can do what and we’ll be just fine,” she added.
Elaine Peigen has been coaching at Ooltewah for a long time and is really feeling good about enduring several seasons where her teams weren’t as good as those in the past. Time will tell as this new team develops a chemistry that hopefully will produce a successful and happy post-season run.
“Things are much better now as this is a breath of fresh air,” Peigen expressed after her teams match with Signal Mountain.
“We’re coming along, but we just want to give them a chance to get out and play and that’s why this event is so important for us. We just want to play well as a team while being quick and fast. If we do that, we’ll be just fine,” Peigen concluded.
There are still a couple of weeks of pre-season workouts before it all starts for real on Monday, August 14.
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)