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Mar 18, 2024

CVCA, Manchester girls volleyball season underway

By Jon | on August 24, 2023 AKRON — League play is one of the biggest components of any high school sports season.It’s the teams’ first chance to vie for a trophy and also an opportunity to battle

By Jon | on August 24, 2023

AKRON — League play is one of the biggest components of any high school sports season.It’s the teams’ first chance to vie for a trophy and also an opportunity to battle longtime rivals. For the Manchester Panthers and Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy (CVCA) Royals, facing each other on Aug. 29, it also represents their first Principals Athletic Conference volleyball match of the season.The contest pits the Panthers, a team looking to climb the PAC ladder, against one of the conference’s favorites in CVCA. Manchester head coach Allyson Mobley is eager to dive into a campaign she and her squad believe has the potential for big things.“They’re an exciting group and they’re very team-oriented. Our team is run by our five returning seniors and their strength is the fact that they’re playing as a unit and a team and they pick each other up,” Mobley said.These seniors include setter Sarah Eubank, middle hitter Korie Truan, libero Halle Hixson, defensive specialist Sarah Gissinger and defensive specialist Alex Lanze, who lead a young roster. They’ll be asked to deliver on the court and help young players such as junior Alli Hodgkindson, junior hitter Rachel Baker, junior Kamryn Duty and sophomore Ella Thomas step into bigger roles.One of the biggest challenges for the Panthers, according to Mobley, isn’t skill or athletic ability. It’s the intangible aspects of the game that will determine how Manchester fares.“The biggest challenge for us is because we have a lot of athletes it’s just getting the knowledge of the game and working together as a unit,” Mobley said, noting that the Royals are the first of several big challenges ahead. “We’re going to have to be on our A game. CVCA is loaded with talent, just as we are, but they do have a lot of upperclassmen who have played the game for a while at the varsity level.”The Royals are fresh off a 16-9 season and 9-5 PAC mark, along with two tournament wins last fall. This year’s team is considered a top contender for the league title by many.“We’re super excited about this team. Last year we were a really young varsity team with a lot of sophomores now juniors,” said head coach Brian McKnight. “There’s a lot of expectations with these juniors playing high-level club volleyball and having that varsity experience as well. The key is club volleyball and the good news for us is that a lot of our girls play high level club volleyball.”McKnight noted that with CVCA set to exit the PAC after this season, there is an extra impetus to win the league crown this fall.“We have two main goals — one is to win the PAC because this is our last year in it and we’ve finished second many times … this is my ninth year and we’ve finished second four times,” McKnight said. “Our second goal is we want to get out of districts after getting to districts last year.”His squad is counting on junior libero Hallie Hendrickx, junior setter Reese Donahoe, junior middle hitter McKenzie Neal, junior outside hitter Jenna Shedden, junior transfer Ellie Zoeckler, sophomore middle hitter Evy Durant and freshman outside hitter Mariah Howell to spearhead the attack this season.The two sides will also face off in a return match at CVCA Sept. 21, offering whichever side falls short in their first match a chance at revenge. It promises to be an exciting early match between familiar foes and one that will play a part in setting the tone for the PAC season ahead.In the year ahead, Mobley summed up her team’s outlook in a way that could apply for both teams.“Their goal is to keep striving for progress over perfection. We want to see progress for them every single day,” Mobley said. “One goal they’ve set for themselves is to advance out of sectionals and get their name on the banners in our gym as sectional champions.”