Scott City volleyball wants return to state final four

~ The Rams return an experienced group from last year's Class 2 runner-up team

SCOTT CITY -- The Scott City volleyball team is hungry.

A year after falling in the state championship match to Hermann, the Rams have worked hard to improve and are ready for another shot at a title.

"We can already taste it, we're so excited," senior Stephanie Essner said. "Every time coach mentions it, we get chills. We know we can be up there in November and it's exciting."

The Rams will take the court with five of their six returning starters and add three new juniors to the mix. Anna Laitinen, a foreign exchange student from Finland, is the lone starter from last season who doesn't return.

Scott City ophomore Katie Hogan is one of five returning starters from last year's team that finished second at the state tournament. (Southeast Missourian file)

With all of the returning talent and newcomers, the team refused to take its foot off the pedal during the summer.

Most of the girls played club volleyball, a few worked individually and they came together to take first place in the Osage summer league.

"We're not overly confident," said senior Brooke Simpson, who led the team with 336 kills last season. "We're going to have to work hard to get there. It's not just going to be handed to us."

Besides the numerous camps, the team has been conditioning two hours a day four days a week for most of the summer.

"We got to state and we had no idea what to expect," Rams coach Haley Jennings said. "We thought we were prepared. We got there and we found out it's a whole new thing. Ever since then they are more determined than ever to go back and try and bring home first place. They've been in the gym. Most of them play club all summer. We've been playing Osage all summer. I think they're more determined now than they were last year."

Katie Diebold is among three senior starters returning to the Rams' lineup.

Jennings added that the team attended a team camp at the beginning of the summer with Murray State assistant coach DongPing Fang.

Although the Rams boast a talented lineup with a year of state experience, they know what they have to do to make this year more successful.

"We look at every game, every night," Jennings said. "We don't try to say we are working for districts. We're working for our first game and every game after that. You try and keep them grounded. Last year we only had one loss going into the state tournament and a big reason was because we took every game that night. We weren't trying to say, 'Oh let's look ahead toward next week when we have four games this week.' We just try and look at every game and not worry about anything else."

Added Essner, "With new players this year, every practice and every game is going to make us jell better for further down the line."

With the lofty expectations, it can be tough to stay focused on the task at hand.

"We know what talent we have and we know where we can go this year," sophomore Mikah Simpson said. "We have to make sure we don't get a big head. It's hard to stay focused."

The team said one of its greatest strengths is the relationships among players, which could help it overcome any obstacles during the season as it pursues another deep postseason run.

"It's like real rare to get a group like this," Mikah Simpson said. "We all love each other on and off the court. Any of these girls would do anything for us, on the court and off the court."

The team may be tight-knit, but that doesn't shield its competitiveness.

"We are hungry, very hungry," senior Jordan McFall said. "We're winning first."