Clearwater volleyball ready to take next step forward

PIEDMONT — When the current seniors were freshman, the volleyball team wasn’t great.

Clearwater won three matches that season, and just eight individual sets. But every year has gotten incrementally better and the Tigers have a chance for their first winning season since 2014.

“We’ve got a good team and we’ve played some tough teams this summer. We took Ellington to three sets, played Poplar Bluff 24-26. So we’re right on the verge of, you know, there. We’ve just got to find it where we can take care of it finishing,” Clearwater coach Lisa Ayers said. “I think we can have a winning season this year. I look back on last year, and there were probably six games that we shouldn’t have dropped last year. It’s just mental, getting that mental toughness.”

After going 3-26-1 in 2016, the Tigers dramatically improved and went 12-17-3 the following year, and finished 15-18 last season.

Clearwater returns two of its big hitters in Elizabeth Gronski and Rachel Rowold, as well as both its setters in Emilee Chitwood and Amy Holmes.

This will be Holmes’ third season setting for the varsity team and Chitwood’s second. Chitwood led the team with 219 assists last season while Holmes had 201. Chitwood also got 34 kills to finish sixth on the team.

“I think it will allow us to run more offense. Instead of just keeping it simple, we can more sets, more shorts, maybe some backslides and try to speed up our offense,” Ayers said of having experienced setters.

Lizzie England will handle libero duties while Lexi Jordan, Laci Brown, Jordan McKinney, Lydia Elder, Hannah Johnson and Gracie Bayless could all be involved in the lineup, as well.

Gronski, Jordan, Rowold and Holmes are this year’s seniors, with six juniors, six sophomores and seven freshmen comprising the roster.

Clearwater graduated Faith Hoppe and Brianna Lawson, both key middle hitters, from last year’s lineup and Gronski and Rowold are most likely to step into those roles. Hoppe led the team with 217 kills while Lawson was second with 135. Gronski had 61 kills while Rowold got 54. Rowold was also second on the team with 10 blocks behind Hoppe’s 19.

Rowold, Holmes, Gronski and Chitwood all finished with at least 20 aces last season, as well, notching an ace on at least 10 percent of their serves.

The Tigers host a jamboree at 5 p.m. Aug. 27, and start the regular season Sept. 3 at Eminence. Their home opener is Sept. 19 against Puxico.