A Look into the Holy Cross Volleyball Program
Photo by Paul Gillis
Academy of the Holy Cross Varsity Volleyball v. Paul VI on September 14
Being a student athlete is an impressive feat for many students at Holy Cross. Especially being a part of WCAC championship volleyball program, team members take pride in the efforts on and off the court.
Head coach David Geiser led the team with student leadership of varsity team captain Nicole Dao, junior varsity captains Sienna DeGross and Lauren Gaston, and freshman captains Gwyneth Pully and Julianna Cantrell.
Coach Geiser discussed the program and his expectations for the teams. “I expect the players to work together, as a team, and further develop their volleyball, team, and leadership skills. I expect the parents to support their daughters. I expect the team to be in a position, at the end of the season, to compete for a Championship.”
The program is well rounded, with students of various grade levels participating on each team. Freshman Addie Bounds plays on the varsity level. “I love the sport and I’m excited during the season,” she declared.
Geiser continued that he enjoys the blend of freshman through seniors — the juniors and seniors learning to lead and demonstrate composure, while the freshman and sophomores bring energy and enthusiasm.
Sports at the high school level are becoming increasingly competitive. Geiser explained that players at this level have to be self-motivated in order to be successful. To add to the motivation that players have on the court, during practices the teams utilized many drills and scrimmages where they keep score and statistics. Doing so gave players immediate feedback about how they were performing against their teammates across the net, as well as against other players at their position.
While the volleyball team had strongly defended the WCAC championship title, from 2012 until 2017, “winning six championship is a double edge sword”, stated Geiser. Although the team had a sense of confidence that they would be able to do it again, every team in the conference wanted to beat Holy Cross. Their season ended in the WCAC championship against Paul VI, with AHC coming in second.
Avery Kulak transferred into the class of 2020. She has taken journalism throughout middle school and her first two years of high school. She plays lacrosse...
