Heath Hutcheson, Campus Carrier sports editor
Berry’s beach volleyball team wrapped up their Berry kick off this past weekend. The event saw a win against LaGrange College 5-0 and a loss to Carson-Newman University 4-1.
Three pairs of players were victorious against LaGrange while the other two matches were forfeits. Sophomore Kara Schmit and freshman Kaylee Howell won the first match, freshman Becky Blaydes and junior Bella Boston won the second, and freshman Grace Mau and sophomore Kat Kelyman won the third.
Blaydes and Boston won their match against Carson-Newman University, earning the pair their second win of the weekend. Assistant Coach Rachel Ford commented on how she felt about the team’s performance over the weekend.
“Our coaching staff is very proud of the way our team played this weekend, just in the sense that we have a lot of young players on our team,” Ford said. “We have a freshman in every single one of our pairs, and they have handled the stressors of college sports with a lot of grace and we’re very proud of our upperclassmen for leading them well and showing the way.”
Senior Olivia Mallow, a member of the team also felt positively about the outcome of the event.
“We have so many new players on the team right now, and for how fresh we are, I think it was a really great weekend,” Mallow said.
Being able to have this event at home lifted the team’s spirits greatly when playing, and a solid step to the start of the season.
“It made for a very exciting environment getting to play at Briggs Beach for our first home tournament,” Ford said. “We always come away from playing at home very grateful because we have a beautiful facility with ample courts and a great student body environment that comes out to support us.”
The team’s head coach Catilyn Moriarty has recently been on maternity leave after having her baby in January, however dealing with her absence has allowed both the members of the team and the coaching staff to grow on their own.
“She had her baby about a month ago, but she is still very much involved in everything Berry volleyball, but I think her not being at every game now has allowed the team to grow even more as problem solvers,” Ford said.
In spite of her recent time of rest, she has recently been involving herself with the team a lot more than most would in her position, having traveled with the team just recently to Truett McConnell University on Feb. 17.
“I can’t say enough good things about our coaching staff. In her absence, the assistant coaches Ford and J.T. Oates have been picking up where she can’t be,” Mallow said.
Since Ford also coaches indoor volleyball, she spoke about some of the differences between the two, and the unique challenges that each team faces.
“In indoor volleyball, the coaches are able to talk to our team at any point,” Ford said. “When we’re out on the sand, we’re only allowed to talk to our team during time-outs or when we’re switching sides, so it means that our players have to problem solve a whole lot earlier than they would indoors.”
This Friday, the team will be traveling to Gulf Shores, AL for the Badger Beach Bash that will continue into Saturday, where they will face multiple DII and DIII schools.
“The cool thing about beach volleyball right now is that we have the freedom to schedule any opponent,” Ford said. “We’re not just scheduling DIII opponents, so we’re playing really good Division 1, 2 and 3 schools who have a lot of beach experience. Just by playing them. We’ve been learning a lot and we’re looking forward to more growth in terms of game knowledge, especially for our younger players.”