The volleyball team at Edmonds Community College lost three sophomores last year, but the Tritons have recovered from the losses due to rigorous recruiting by coach Tony Miranda during the off-season.
“I’m not going to say they’re not significant,” Miranda said. “But I was able to fill the void they created.”
One of the recruits is defensive specialist Bridget Marasigan. The Jackson High School alum turned down an academic scholarship from a university in Oregon to play for Edmonds.
“Tony has a good way with words,” Marasigan said.
She met Miranda two years ago while playing club volleyball for him and fell in love with his coaching style.
“Tony wanted me to play here, and I didn’t want to play at a university yet,” she said.
Marasigan wants to improve her technique to the point where her movements come naturally. She’d also like to learn to ease up on herself.
“I’m really hard on myself and the lack of confidence gets in the way,” she said.
Marasigan believes her strengths lie in her attitude towards the game.
“I have so much love for the game,” she said. “It keeps me going.”
In addition to Marasigan, the new players are outside hitters Nicole Tuson (Black Hills), Mindy Rencher (Idaho Falls), Jennifer Albrecht (Bothell), Lindsey Bordeaux (Edmonds-Woodway) and Angela D’Amelio (Juanita); and setters Lauren Steenson (Battle Ground), Glenda Schuster (Timberline) and Emily Price (Juanita). Defensive specialist Anya Silva (Kentwood) and middle blocker Kim Mulka (Skyline) complete the line-up of incoming players.
“There are a lot of kids on the team making great contributions,” Miranda said. “We have a lot of strength.”
He’s noticed great depth in the roster and that each girl earns her chance to compete at matches during every practice.
But the fact that the freshmen outnumber the sophomores leaves room for improvement.
“They’re good in spurts, but not experienced enough individually,” he said. “You can be talented but not experienced.”
Another soft spot on the team is recruiting players that will commit to returning the next season. Last year, the team had seven freshmen. This year, two of the seven returned.
“It was more injurious not having as many freshmen return than losing three sophomores,” Miranda said.
His goal is to assist the current players in staying on track academically so they can stay eligible to compete.
Miranda coached volleyball at Bellevue Community College for four years. After taking a break from coaching, he joined the program at Edmonds where he spent three years as a volunteer and an assistant coach. This is Miranda’s first year as head coach of the Tritons’ volleyball team. He is pleased all of the recruiting responsibilities lie with him.
“I have confidence I’m making the right decisions,” Miranda said. “Whether I’m right or wrong is anyone’s guess.”
When he’s not coaching for Edmonds or traveling to recruit players, Miranda runs volleyball camps. Last summer he organized five four-day camps for local kids at Edmonds CC.
“A lot of them want to get better to play varsity,” Miranda said. “We want to help them develop as volleyball players and increase their love for the sport.”
Although Miranda recruited Marasigan after she played for one of his club teams, his goal isn’t to use the club teams as an outlet to recruit future players.
“If Edmonds is in their future then wonderful,” he said. “But that’s not the ultimate goal.”
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