By Samira Calderon

There are many things that go with being a volleyball player. You may suffer with stress, anxiety, excitement and many more confusing emotions. 

As I was there to watch them play, it looked like they had so much fun, but there was a lot that was going on; they had to move fast to get the ball. They would get angry when they weren’t winning, but like everyone says it’s not about winning or losing, it’s about having fun. 

Most volleyball girls had the same experience as the others. 

Coach Brittany Polk said, “Coaching the freshmen team is really fun because everyone gets to play and everyone’s skill level is kind of the same, which means I can get all the girls involved.”

Being a volleyball player has many positive sides like creating new bonds.  

Leanette Melendrez, 9, said “I had about two years of playing volleyball and every time I joined I created new bond and meet new people.” 

 Struggles as a volleyball player

There are many struggles you may face when playing volleyball. 

Melendrez said, “One struggle I faced is having confidence in myself in order to play and not give up.” 

You also may face struggles in schooling. What do I do to get my assignments done? What if there is a quiz? How am I going to get all this work done before the quarter ends? All these questions matter when figuring out what to do to help yourself finish your school work. 

You may ask yourself, “Why did I join volleyball? All that made me do is get behind.” No, that’s not the case; don’t bring yourself down. All you need to do is make time and space so you can get it done and don’t have a negative mindset.

“As a volleyball player volleyball interacts with my schooling because when we have games, I get out of class early and it makes me behind on my assignments. There are many days where I have to stay after school to get my assignments. I mostly get behind when we take a little bit of notes because the next day I do not know what we are talking about until they explain it to me,” Melendrez said. 

You may get out of class early for an away game and it may make it easier for you to fall behind. However, this struggle can be overcome if you do not have a negative mindset, you manage your time wisely, and plan ahead.

Why should you join volleyball ?

You may have many more questions like why should I join? Would I make new friends? What if I don’t know what to do? This is all up to you.

Melendrez said, “I joined volleyball because many people inspired me so I gave it a try.” 

You might have people who may not inspire you or tell you not to join but, you have to follow your own path and do what is best for you. When you first join you may have doubts on why did I do this, but do not embrace a negative mindset. All you have to do is continue trying. 

SBHS’s freshman coach

Polk has been coaching for the volleyball team for about three years here at SBHS and decided to be the freshman volleyball coach because we didn’t have one. 

She said, “I didn’t have much volleyball experience. Coach Obongen had a staff versus student game and so I went and they expressed that they didn’t have a freshman team because they didn’t have a freshman coach, and I was like ‘I don’t have that much experience but that sounds like fun.’  And the next year after that, I started coaching for the freshman team.” 

Thanks to Ms. Polk now we can have our freshman girls play.  

What happens during practice?

Before practice starts they run around the basketball court to get their legs moving and do arm stretches to keep their arms strong and active. Practice is about two hours. They get three to four quick water breaks. 

Jasmine Toolan, 9, said, “Practice is good because it gets you moving and prepared for the next game.”  

They also learn to communicate with each other and work as a team. It can be hard because they might usually have mood swings and it can distract them. 

Brianna Medina, 10, said, “What happens in the gym stays in the gym and what happens out the gym stays out the gym.” 

This can be helpful at times because you don’t want to have negative emotions in the gym because something happened outside, but you don’t want to have conflict outside either because someone said something negative in the gym.