On Saturday, Aug. 29, the varsity volleyball team competed in a league-wide tournament at Eudora High School.

The team consisted of freshmen Ally Barnhart, Maya Bascom, Kaitlyn Bell, Kennedy Higgins, Loren Hinkle, junior Jackie Kennard and seniors Kylie Corneliusen, Allison Eaton, Aubri Hinkle and Molli Shriver.

Overall, the team took second place, falling to Louisburg in the championship match 25-23.

Even though the team took second, they feel the day was a huge success.

“I’m really happy with our performance. I’m proud of our demeanor and I know the girls gave their 100 percent today and had fun with it, and that was my expectation,” head coach Boris Quintero said.

With this tournament being the team’s first time playing together competitvely, Aubri was pleasently surprised with how far they made it.

“I was just hoping [we] would come out strong and do well. I wasn’t really expecting us to do as well as we did,” Aubri said. “Everyone was working together and helping each other out. We were letting each other know what’s open and giving constructive criticism.”

The team only had one loss throughout the day. Quintero believes this is because of their “…chemistry, hustle and skills. There are some people talking to hitters from the back row and telling them where to send the ball. That makes the play really smart,” Quintero said.

Everyone’s expectations were exceeded for the day.

“My hopes for today were to come out here and have fun and give our best and we accomplished that. We set up some goals as a team and individuals and I am happy to hear that when I asked them, they thought they met those goals,” Quintero said.

Aubri believes that the tournament helped the team to know where they are at.

“Today helped going into the rest of the season because it helped us see what we need to fix and how to play against certain teams. [The tournament] helped us see our strengths and weaknesses. It helped us look forward to the season,” Aubri said.

Corneliusen agrees, adding that taking second “…gave us a boost of confidence for future games.”

Even though the team did exceptionally well, they are not stopping there.

With the beginning of their season on the horizon, the team has high hopes.

“I just want us to come out strong, with energy, play consistent throughout the games and to hopefully win big,” Corneliusen said.