EDMONDS — Expect to see more of the same from the Edmonds-Woodway volleyball team.
Though Warriors coach Mike Pittis is doing a little tinkering with his lineup, for the most part the nucleus of last year’s district playoff squad remains intact.
Edmonds-Woodway is hoping that experience will spell trouble for the rest of the Western Conference 4A South Division.
Pittis, entering his 14th season at the helm of Edmonds-Woodway, returns one of his deepest teams in recent memory and a team with high expectations for the upcoming season.
The slew of returners has enabled Pittis to work on more advanced strategies that could pay off later in the season. The difference between the first week of practice this season and last isn’t quite day and night but it’s close.
“We had a lot of kids that were new to varsity last year, so a lot of what we were doing … was kind of learning to play at that (varsity) tempo,” Pittis said. “Now with six or seven kids with quite a bit of varsity experience, we’re able to start kind of ahead where we were last year and get a little more complexity and not have to spend quite so much time with the basics.”
In an attempt to add some height to the lineup, junior Katie Trew, who played in the middle last season, shifts to the outside.
The move to add some taller players should benefit the team, according to Roma, who won the Class 4A state high jump title last spring.
“I think the positions we’re in now are going to work a little bit better,” Roma said.
Trew (5-foot-9), Roma (6-0), and Morgan Harter (5-9) along with Erin Greenwood (6-3) give the Warriors good height on the floor along with power.
“We have a lot of height,” said senior Lindsay Kline. “We’re going to take total advantage with blocking and spiking and stuff like that … we have hard hitters that can do a lot of things, not just slam the ball down.
“They know where to put the ball and their height helps them a lot with double blocks.”
Pittis plans on going with a 12-player roster and doesn’t see much of a drop off in talent. The newcomers to varsity have club experience. The roster is totally composed of juniors and seniors.
“We’re going to go strong 12 deep,” he said. “I like the intensity we have in practice. We’re pretty athletic.”
Roma also has confidence in the bench.
“No matter who we put in can do the job and get it done with ease,” she said.
Despite its inexperience last season, Edmonds-Woodway finished third among the 4A teams in the division and advanced to the Northwest District playoffs where the Warriors went 1-2.
The experience of playing three matches at districts is huge, Pittis said.
“We’ve got people at every position that played there (districts) last year,” he said. “It really helps us in terms of having some confidence … having a little bit of experience, I think their expectations are high coming in and they have a pretty good idea of what they need to do to get there and areas we need to really make improvement on.”
Pittis is looking to see more overall consistent play from his team and wants his team to be a better blocking squad.
The memory of the district tournament is fresh on the minds of the Warriors and doing everything they can to ensure a return trip is everyone’s top priority.
“We really want to go there,” Roma said. “It’s exciting to go to districts. You’re there with the big kids. It’s fun. It’ll push us even harder.”
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