Volleyball Preview and Schedule Release: Mixture of Experience and Youth Drives Eagles
Coach Lanny Nihart enters his 37th season coaching women's volleyball at Faith with a fascinating roster that features an equal mix of youth and experience.
Six returning upperclassmen (many of which have two or three years of starting experience) are the foundation, while seven newcomers are infusing a mixture of talent and untapped potential that has Coach Nihart extremely optimistic about the upcoming season.
Nihart says the keys to success for his team this year are setting and getting stronger mentally:
"We had a good year last year, but to go up another notch, we're going to have to get mentally stronger, especially on the defensive end."
The Eagles face a challenging schedule in 2021, particularly the conference slate, which includes a slew of matches against powerhouses like Manhattan Christian, Ozark Christian, and Emmaus Bible College. Faith begins its season Saturday, August 28, with a home match against Champion Christian College at 1 p.m., followed by a second match against Kansas Christian College at 5 p.m.
A heavy road schedule at the beginning of the season is balanced by a heavy home schedule at the end, with eight of the final nine matches of the year on the Eagles' court. The conference tournament is October 29 and 30 in Joplin, Missouri.
The Eagles finished 12-9 a year ago and look to build momentum off that winning season. Last year's captain, Alicia Smith, has graduated, but Coach Nihart is enthusiastic about the maturation of this year's co-captains: Morgan Stephens and Rachel Kleczka.
"I don't always name captains," said Nihart. "They've grown in maturity levels. These two have shown growth, both spiritually and leadership-wise."
As long as the returning players' growth, maturity, and experience rubs off on the seven newcomers, and the team sets and defends well, the Eagles should be primed for a great season—another in the long line of success of Coach Nihart, who is approaching 650 wins as a coach at Faith.
The complete season schedule can be found here.
