HICKORY, N.C. — The Catawba Valley Community College volleyball team hopes to build on its second-best national finish heading into its fall 2021 season.
Madison Pogue enters her second season as head coach for the Red Hawks after leading the program to a 21-5 overall record and 10-0 mark in Region 10 play this past spring.
After having their fall 2020 season pushed into the spring 2021 due to COVID-19, Pogue said that the short offseason has been an interesting experience for both herself and her players.
"It's a little different because we didn't have that long offseason we are used to," she said. "As much as I missed them a lot, I felt like it was really short. This fall is more normal because we're having our normal preseason. We're ramping up at the same time we usually do. We are doing our bigger trips this year. I know it's not normal for them because they haven't experienced that here yet, but it feels a little more like home to me after having played here."
The Red Hawks return several key players from last year's team that won its first game at nationals for only the second time in program history.
Sophomore setter Amber Barker is back to help guide the Catawba Valley attack after recording a team-best 748 assists (8.8 per game) during this past spring.
Barker is one of five returning Red Hawk volleyball players who saw significant playing time this past fall, including outside hitter Carter Gibson (221 kills this past spring), middle hitters Kennya Sykes (137 kills, 51 blocks) and Delaney Conner (114 kills, 79 blocks) and libero Abbey Smith (182 digs).
"We have a lot of talent that played in nationals," Pogue said. "Yes, we are missing (outside hitter) Aasia McNeill, who graduated, but we have talent back that is going to be really good for the end of the season."
New to the fold for Catawba Valley are four new faces — freshmen Brooke Rowland, Gracie Harrington and Grace Nelson and transfer Hayley Stull, who comes from nearby Lenoir-Rhyne.
Pogue has been impressed with all four of her additions.
"Gracie is one of my utility players," Pogue said. "She is very smart and has great IQ. That's what I love about her. That's why she gets put into a lot of different positions and scenarios. Hayley is a powerhouse of a hitter. We're excited about her. We love Grace Nelson all around. She can pass, swing and do it all. With Brooke, I've never seen anybody as fast as her on the court. We added the pieces I think we needed to. Now it's about playing together, keeping our culture the way that we have it and pushing for excellence."
With only 11 players on her roster, the size of her team is a little bit of a concern for Pogue.
"Our focus is going to be all about taking care of your body," she said. "We have a very long season — longer than we did last year. It's kind of an adjustment to our mentality and taking care of our bodies for the long haul. It's going to be a challenge with this long of a season and this small of a team. That's where chemistry comes into play and knowing the person beside you has your back."
Conference play will be a little different this year with the Red Hawks competing into the newly split Region 10, which features two divisions — East and West.
Catawba Valley is in the West Division along with Surry, USC Lancaster, Davidson-Davie, Guilford Tech and USC Salkehatchie.
"Since the conference is split, we have to play teams in our division twice and then in the playoffs we cross over," Pogue said. "I think it's a little weird. I know some other sports do that as far as having a big enough Region to do so. I think that crossover in playoffs is going to be a little bit interesting because you're playing teams you haven't played all year."
Helping to strengthen the Red Hawks for a postseason run will be several trips that will test their skill this season, including journeys Walters State in Tennessee, Wallace State in Alabama and the return of their host Valley Invitational, which was not held last year due to COVID-19.
"I think the strength of our schedule is as good as it can be," Pogue said. "This year, we're going to Walters State and Wallace State. We're playing Monroe College. We're playing strong teams in our Region and very strong teams out of it. I think it's going to be a well-balanced schedule that will get us ready for that late season push."
The Red Hawks kick off their season this Friday and Saturday at the Owens Express Invitational in Perrysburg, Ohio.
Catawba Valley, which starts the season ranked No. 12 in the nation by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), faces No. 11 Grand Rapids and Mott community colleges on Friday at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., respectively.
They finish competition at the event on Saturday with an 11:45 a.m. match with Macomb Community College and a 3:15 p.m. match against No. 2 Parkland College.
"There's nothing like seeing that level of competition from the first of the season," Pogue said. "It definitely gets my girls in the right head space. This is the best competition we're going to have for a little bit. We are focused on getting their mind wrapped around that and improving. It doesn't matter if we win or lose right now. We need to get better every time we are on the court. Going into this weekend, my mind is on getting better regardless of the outcome."