Lady Dragons may be starting special season
Every year is different. But there are years when coaches know when they are going to have fun coaching a team.
Carroll volleyball coach Ryan Mitchell thinks he may have one of those in 2015. That takes nothing away from the 44-4 journey he had with his 2014 squad. However, there’s something about the youth on this team that has him excited.
The Lady Dragons went 9-1 last week and finished fifth at the Pearland tournament. But the week included a win over Plano West, which wound up finishing third. Senior outside hitter Megan Porter had a big weekend.
Carroll suffered its only loss to Houston Clear Creek, a game in which he said his team didn’t play well in any facet. But that’s when Mitchell discovered which way he should go.
“We’re a relatively young group, and I was wondering how we were going to approach this because we still had two more matches to go,” Mitchell said. “Right now, this team is at a point where I need to coach them more. This team wants to learn and wants go get better. They want to do well out there.”
The difference from the 2014 Region I semifinalist squad was that pretty much everything was in place. That was a veteran team where each player knew her role.
With this talented 2015 squad, there are still some tweaks Mitchell can make with his lineup. That may or may not impact the overall team record. Carroll could actually finish this season with fewer wins but could be playing better in November.
“There’s a little bit of truth about getting energized about kids who want to take the mindset of not settling,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said he’s not sold on the idea of going to the 5-1 from the 6-2 he used exclusively in 2014. Mitchell used both alignments in the opening weeks and saw good results.
It’s unclear if Mitchell will make a decision anytime soon. But he has two really solid producers between junior Lisie Kit and sophomore Sheridan Webb.
“We struggled to score in some cases and then went to the 6-2,” Mitchell said. “Right now, I’m testing both based on match-ups. Lisie is a really physical player, so there certain things I like about the 5-1. But we lose a hitter. I don’t know which way I’m going to go yet.”
A long summer
Junior outside hitter Haley Hallgren felt the effects of a long summer of playing beach volleyball. Dealing with a fatigued shoulder, Mitchell sat Hallgren for the first two matches of the season against Plano West and Richardson Pearce.
But she was well enough to return to the Pearland tournament and turn in some dynamic performances. She led Carroll with 16 kills in win over San Antonio Churchill.
“She’s one of my best players,” Mitchell said. “We had her do some physical therapy to get the shoulder strong again. I’m not going to risk anything for the rest of the season for a couple of early season wins.”
Notable
In case you didn’t know, arch rival and fellow 7-6A member Coppell won the Pearland Tournament … Carroll played Plano on Tuesday and is in the Allen tournament this weekend.
This story was originally published August 17, 2015 at 4:09 PM with the headline "Lady Dragons may be starting special season."