Volleyball coach Betsy Manning will be looking for her 100th win this year at Maize High School, and the team will be seeking its fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament.
The Eagles return four starters from the 2011 squad that finished 27-15 overall. The girls advanced to the Class 6A tournament but did not survive pool play.
Their lone representative on the all-state team, outside hitter McKenzie Hartzog, has graduated. However, seniors Heather Engle, a 5-8 outside hitter, and Lexi Hartzog, a 5-5 libero, are back.
Mary Kangas, a 5-9 senior, also returns after she and Lexi Hartzog earned second-team honors on the all-league squad last season. Keiryn Swenson, a 6-1 sophomore, is the other veteran starter.
Manning will lead Maize after compiling an 89-40 record at the school. Her career record is 109-59.
The Eagles went 9-3 in the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League’s Division I and earned second place last season.
“I think this is the most athletic team we have had since I’ve been at Maize,” said Manning. “We have a lot of size in the front row and experience in the back row. Lexi Hartzog will lead our defense, and Mary Kangas and Keiryn Swenson will both be stellar hitters and setters. We have the largest class of seniors this season than any other I have coached at Maize.”
The girls will start competition Saturday, Aug. 25, in the AVCTL preseason tournament at Hutchinson. Their home opener will be a triangular Aug. 28, when Salina South and Great Bend will visit.
The Eagles return four starters from the 2011 squad that finished 27-15 overall. The girls advanced to the Class 6A tournament but did not survive pool play.
Their lone representative on the all-state team, outside hitter McKenzie Hartzog, has graduated. However, seniors Heather Engle, a 5-8 outside hitter, and Lexi Hartzog, a 5-5 libero, are back.
Mary Kangas, a 5-9 senior, also returns after she and Lexi Hartzog earned second-team honors on the all-league squad last season. Keiryn Swenson, a 6-1 sophomore, is the other veteran starter.
Manning will lead Maize after compiling an 89-40 record at the school. Her career record is 109-59.
The Eagles went 9-3 in the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League’s Division I and earned second place last season.
“I think this is the most athletic team we have had since I’ve been at Maize,” said Manning. “We have a lot of size in the front row and experience in the back row. Lexi Hartzog will lead our defense, and Mary Kangas and Keiryn Swenson will both be stellar hitters and setters. We have the largest class of seniors this season than any other I have coached at Maize.”
The girls will start competition Saturday, Aug. 25, in the AVCTL preseason tournament at Hutchinson. Their home opener will be a triangular Aug. 28, when Salina South and Great Bend will visit.
