Spartans nearly go .500 on year
Experience helped shape the Ansley-Litchfield volleyball season in 2020, as the Spartans improved upon their 10-22 finish from a season ago by winning three more games. They also made a Sub-District Final for the second season in a row.
“I thought the lady Spartans had a successful season,” head coach Jamee Smith said. “We had many players that returned this year and we were able to improve upon last year’s season record as well as work on some key skills. We were in a large percentage of our games and were highly competitive for our lack of height and depth.”
Highlights on the season for the Spartans included finishing third at the Seven Valleys Volleyball Tournament in Callaway. In the third-place match, they swept Twin Loup who made a District Final in D2.
“I think some of our highlights were beating Twin Loup in the Seven
Valley’s Tournament,” Smith said. “They had given us a hard loss earlier so it was nice to battle back and win.”
They also had another solid showing in the Fort Kearney Conference Tournament. In the first round, they were able
to sweep S-E-M who had beat them twice previously in the year, and put up a good showing against eventual D1 state champion Pleasanton in the next round.
Heading into next season the team looks to be very competitive once again. They are only los
ing two seniors in Sydney Sweley and Starla Divine.
The Spartans leader in almost every statistical category this year was Carlie Bailey. For her accomplishments on the court, she was awarded Third Team Fort Kearney Conference honors.
“I think my favorite
memory is seeing the girls who didn’t play much last year grow and become confident,” Smith said. “It was wonderful to see new growth on our team. I’m really looking forward to next summer and next season.”