Deer Park Volleyball Hits the Floor

When the Deer Park Lady Stags volleyball team takes the floor this fall, attendees may see them testing their knee pads, according to head coach Kristen Pinckney. While there may be taller lineups on the opposite side of the net, she emphasized that the key to success for her squad will be keeping the ball in play, with a motto of "Everyone hits the floor."

The idea behind this mentality is to get inside the heads of the opposition and force them into mistakes, Pinckney said. Junior Avery Ingwaldsen will be running the offense from the setter position. Pinckney said she anticipates using a 5-1 offense, which utilizes the same setter for all ro- tations versus a 6-2 that always features three front row hitters.

Ingwaldsen is touted by her coach as a potential impact player. Senior Myah DeSalles returns for her fourth year in the program as a blocker and hitter. Pinckney said she also hopes to have the services of senior Lucy Lathrop. She provides a 5 foot, 10 inch presence and the athleticism she has shown for three years on the softball field, Pinckney said.

Athletic junior Hailee Orgill returns with her role yet to be determined between outside hitter and libero. Fellow junior Kamari Smith along with Ingwaldsen will be looking to be impactful players. Pinckney said Autumn Marich and Taya Houser are expected to contribute at the outside hitter position along with tall sophomore Olivia Kern, who was added to the varsity roster midway through her freshman season last fall.

The previous two seasons, the 2A Greater Spokane League has been dominated by West Valley and Pullman. Pinckney said that those two squads may have "come back to the field" as they were hit hard by graduation. She added that the league race could be "wide open" without a clear cut favorite. The Lady Stags season opener is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 3, at 7 p.m., against Freeman, a former Northeast "A" League opponent and last year’s class 2B state run- ner up.