Santa Rosa Academy’s JV Girls Volleyball Team comes together in a huddle before the game to motivate one another to prepare to beat Temecula Prep.

Though Santa Rosa Academy’s Girls Volleyball is split into two teams; Junior Varsity and Varsity, the foundations of the teams stem from the same principles. Working hard, helping your teammates, and building a sense of trust with one another. The game of volleyball is not solely reliant on one person, hence six players are on the court at a time. So, when the teams come together and work through repetition after repetition, and push each other to be the best player everyone can be, the strength of the team grows together. Every day from 2:30 to 4:30, these girls all come together to give forth their best efforts for not only themselves but for the supportive teammates and coaches around them. Coming together to create harmonious plays, to build up to reach the goals we set for our teams, and to show fans what Santa Rosa Academy is capable of is something all of the girls can strive for.

An inside look behind one of Varsity’s practices. Starting middle Abigail Pulver crushing the ball after being set by Savannah Rudas.

So many things are critiqued after playing in a game, both on JV and Varsity. It’s an expectation that after the teams play out to the extent they have prepared, they will then evaluate how to improve for the next matches by working in situation-specific drills, trying to perfect basics, or trying something new that coaches haven’t thought of before. Practice is what makes everything tie together, and being able to not only identify and learn from mistakes but also to improve and correct those mistakes is what makes the “behind the scenes” so important. Without the tough work that goes unseen, the game wouldn’t be worth watching. Quoting from JV Captain Paloma Pedini,” A lot of athletes struggle with this feeling that messing up on a play is the worst thing you can do. Some feel like they’re gonna get pulled, some feel like they’re letting their team down, and some even feel like they’re proving their teammates and coaches right by messing up. But some of the best players I know-whether it’s in softball, football etcetera-act like they’re the best who’s ever lived. They act like they’re all that and it works; they fumble a ball and then the next play they’re MVP and that’s all people remember. And as long as you’re using it to bring your teammates up, it’s probably the best thing you can do for your team and for your skill level. There’s a reason coaches preach that the mental game is half the battle,” Paloma explains. Everything technical can be helped or improved to some extent with a lot of practice, but mentality is really what shapes an athlete’s performance.

Santa Rosa Academy’s Girls Varsity Volleyball Team comes 2nd overall in Cal Lutheran’s “Dive Into the Season” Tournament.

Enduring the fun yet challenging game of volleyball, these girls push past the mental blocks they set for themselves and let the results of hard work and connection make the results. Nothing is more rewarding than seeing everything you work for play out like you practiced and that is exactly what these girls all strive for everyday. Varsity Captain Aubrey Prior shares her thoughts, “Mentality is huge part of the preparation for facing big games and strong teams. The team is filled with talented girls, so it’s up to us as a team to play with everything we got and want to win! Everything starts at practice. The saying “Practice as you play” is so true!,” Aubrey explains. When the mental state of an athlete gets worse, the athlete has already been beaten. Being able to go through practice is what truly enforces all the hard work put into games, and how teams prepare and prep mentally.

Coach Sanders sharing a few inspirational words before facing a school we have never seen before.

“When preparing a practice plan I try to include drills that not only challenge the girls physically but mentally as well. There is a lot going on in the court and the players mind so being physically and mentally strong/stable is very important especially in critical moments. Best case, this all transfers over come game time and makes for a more calm and problem solving player/team,” Head Coach of Varsity Coach Culhane shares. Taking all that was learned from practice is the most challenging part. To be able to perfectly translate what new thing was taught, or trying to fix communication errors on the court is a pretty hard task. All of the more reason that the teammates around you should be lifting you up, just as our girls do.

Don’t forget to give our athletes an extra push by cheering loud in the stands! Hearing the crowd go cheer you on after making a great play puts everyone in the position to preform even better, and helps everyone play volleyball the way it was intended to be played.