The Papillion La-Vista Monarchs started their season off with a tournament this past weekend. For the 7 seniors, this season is going to be a sad one but lots of work needs to be done.
Competing at a high level is a standard for the Monarch’s, and maintaining this is often a difficult task.
“I think for our first tournament we did pretty well. We had some ups and downs but I think we came together and played as a team which is really important.” Senior Lauren Burden said.
Improvements are always needed. For such a high achieving team, improvement is mandatory to keep good standing with other competitors.
“As a team we need to improve how we start. I feel like we build up a lot of momentum and energy in the second or third sets but it needs to start as soon as the first set starts.” Burden said.
While always pushing to be better, focusing on the good is also needed. Getting through those tough matches especially, while thinking about how far they need to go helps uplift and push the team to a higher level.
“Even though we didn’t beat Papio South I think we were most proud of ourselves in that game because we played together and showed that we can potentially win with a little bit of improvement.” Senior Morgan Glaser said.
The Monarchs every year set goals they would like to focus on throughout the year. This year’s goals uphold the team to be better than the last.
“One of our goals for each game is to play loose. This was our very first tournament and we were all pretty nervous but we needed to put those nerves away and focus on the game.” Burden said.
Oftentimes teams have to ask themselves, Where is this going? For the Monarchs they use this question to motivate as a whole to prove just how far they will go.
“Hoping for a state championship but definitely somewhere in the top at state this year for sure.” Glaser said.
The Monarchs are coming back for another season with a high ranking from last year. This advantage as well as their bond will challenge other teams and show just what they are capable of.
“Our Bond. There are definitely a lot of new changes to the team but I think this team’s relationships with each other has never been closer.” Burden said.
“To ensure I have a good game I rely on my teammates and make every problem I might be having external so that my teammates will have my back and give me support while knowing they believe in me helps my performance.” Glaser said.
As the season gets into full swing the Monarch volleyball team stays focused on their overall goal while making sure they improve just to show that they can exceed expectations.
