Faith Loves the Fearless

We were in Carly’s kitchen and I could smell the smell of summer, fresh grass. The smell of just made iced tea and Ellios pizza fills the room. We always had iced tea and Ellios but we never seemed to mind having it so much.We must’ve been laughing about something stupid because that seemed to be all we did that summer. All we could hear was Mackenzie going off about some Windham boy, nothing new. Then we started worrying about high school, also something we've been doing all summer. Being a freshman seemed so scary and we wanted to get as involved as we could. “Let’s play volleyball in the fall,” Kenzie suggested. I don’t think Camryn, Carly, and I have ever laughed so hard. Mackenzie had bought a volleyball the following week and all this was a joke. We laughed harder when she responded, “But I’m serious.” She tossed the pink and white Spaulding volleyball to me and I just stared at it. I threw the ball back to her, crying with laughter. Who knew we’d be making a trip to Sports Authority to get all the volleyball equipment just a short month later.

It was happening. We found the days and times of the doubles on the high school website. We all went to sports authority and purchased black Nike spandex, black mid calf socks, knee pads, and a volleyball. Doubles started on August 19th and so did the anxiety. We walked into the gym, shaking. Over the summer we had seen so many girls posting pictures on Instagram of all the volleyball camps they did and we hadn't left the couch. We had to run around the whole upstairs gym and I’m surprised we didn't walk out then because we were all out of breath. Thankfully, we stayed and survived the first day of double sessions. We had no idea what we were doing but everybody was very helpful. On the second day of doubles the freshman coach pulled me aside and told me to go to the second court. I was so nervous but it helped that I knew a lot of people over there. I tried so hard to be my best, but of course that wasn't too good seeing I hadn't played volleyball more than two days in my life.
Days passed, bones hurt, muscles were pulled and it was time for the cuts. The scary part was that I found out right before the cuts that I could now only make JV seeing as I was moved up to that court. I was so scared because I had no confidence in making JV because all those girls had played last year. It was time. They called the JV court out into the hallway to look at the roster and I wish there were words to even describe the feeling in my stomach. I scanned the list for my name. My eyes reached my name and a feeling of relief took over my body. Excitement. I was so excited that as a freshman I had made JV volleyball. However, I was very upset because all my other friends had made freshman and they were the only reason I tried out. All in all I was very happy with how we all made a team and I was even more happy that I was returning the next day to my new coach Christina on the JV volleyball team.
Weeks passed and practices got harder. Our coach had high expectations of this team
because we were told we had a lot of skill. A varsity assistant coach, Beth had come in a few times to help us with blocking, passing, or hitting. I never really talked to her one on one because I liked to stay quiet because I was just a little freshman. Until one day when she helped us with blocking. She made me laugh so hard and was so helpful. I would mess up my footwork or something and she would be right there saying “You’re ok.” I recognized those words and realized she was the one saying that throughout all the doubles because she could see I was beyond nervous. She has been there for me since day 1 and she’s my favorite assistant. She’s a tall, pretty lady that is amazing at volleyball. She was a middle hitter on Varsity for Salem High School so she knows a thing or two about the game. She has inspired each and every teammate of mine and nobody will deny it because she has been there every step of the way, helping every second.
Our coach Christina pushed us to be the best players we could possibly be. She made us run and run and run and we all complained but it was worth it. Our first scrimmage in Andover she could’ve given up on us with the score of 25-3 but she didn't. She worked harder and harder with us everyday for at least 2 hours. She takes the time out of her day and I don’t think she gets enough credit. I had no idea what I was doing when I started that Monday morning but she didn't care because I was coachable. All the drills we rolled our eyes over paid off in the in end because we all turned out to be extraordinary volleyball players. So a big thanks to her for putting up with a group of teenage girls everyday and helping so much. “Faith loves the fearless.” This is my favorite thing she said all year. This pushed us to play every game with no fear and faith will be on our side. I believe I have improved tremendously, because of her not giving up on me.

After spending over two months with these group of girls I’m so sad it has to end. We wrapped up our season with a tournament in Pinkerton. Nobody in that gym expected us to win any games because our season had been a little rough. We only got to play two games to nine so it was a little more nerve wracking than any normal game. I played every game which I was very happy about and then was everybody chances to put their all in. I’m not going to lie I've never seen that group of girls play so good together. We had had a shaky season between little fights and not winning much and I was surprised to see everybody put aside their differences that Monday afternoon and play real volleyball. We didn't end up winning the whole thing but I was extremely proud with the outcome. Even better, the varsity coach Romer had asked another teammate and myself to practice with varsity for the rest of their playoffs. It was amazing that just a couple months ago I was laughing, staring at this thing called a volleyball and now I can spike, serve, pass, block, and dive for this thing that seemed so impossible. I learned to try new things even if I’m not comfortable with it. Who knew making that trip to Sports Authority would actually be worth it.