A year of rebuilding for ‘Cats
Published 10:53 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008
SNOQUALMIE – This season promises to be a much different one for the Mount Si Wildcats girls volleyball team. With the loss of two key seniors, Marissa Hill and Emily White, to graduation, the team has some major holes to fill.
But with a coach who knows how to mold winners, that may end up not being an issue. Bonnie Foote returns for her sixth year at the helm of the Wildcats program, and last year her team finished 10-4 in league play, 12-6 overall (excluding tournament play), and saw its season end early in the Sea-King District Tournament. Foote brings back a team that is experienced, although untested at this level.
“I would say that we’re very young, and they’re experienced as far as playing the game of volleyball, but they’re still very young and inexperienced,” Foote said.
Leading the returning cast is senior Erin Caldwell who was out all of last year due to serious injury, Foote is looking for a lot from her.
“She brings a pretty heavy arm offensively, and some good senior leadership,” Foote said.
Other key returning players include seniors Amanda Frost, Molly Stout and Alicia Elmore, and juniors Faith Hutcherson, Xandy Evans, Sam Riley and Noel Walter. The lone newcomer this season is sophomore Danielle Rehm.
Hutcherson plays softball in the spring and sees softball benefiting her play on the volleyball floor.
“It’s just teamwork. I love being part of a team. I love getting to know girls, and getting to play with them,” Hutcherson said.
The teams to beat once again this season are the usual ones in Kingco 3A, Mercer Islan, Issaquah and Newport. All three teams are well-coached teams that have given Mount Si trouble in the past. Foote seems at ease, though.
“I just care about us and improving daily. It doesn’t matter to me what everyone else is doing. My job is to teach them the game of volleyball and make it an enjoyable experience for them,” Foote said.
One can argue that the new $75 school sports fee will not affect sports with an off-season club team (like volleyball) since the athletes and their families already pay a lot of money to be a part of those teams with travel, fees and other expenses. Foote said the fee has apparently not been a problem with the volleyball program.
“We haven’t even heard a thing about it [the fee]. Hasn’t even been brought up by any of them,” said Foote.
Frost is looking to be a huge factor on this team.
“What I hope to do is be a leader on the team, and on the court, and in the entire program and I think we’re going to have a really good team. We have a lot of great players, a lot of talent in this gym, and I believe if we work hard and push and believe in each other, and believe in our coaching, I think we’ll be good,” Frost said.
Frost thinks this team can go quite far.
“Honestly, all the way. I think we can go all the way,” Frost said.
Foote, though, stressed being a competitor in the league.
“We’re going to have to work hard to be competitive this year. I really believe that,” she said.
