The Norristown volleyball team played a great match against Springford, which unfortunately resulted in a tough loss during last Wednesday’s senior night. The players tried their best and kept smiles on their faces throughout the game. The entire team played significantly well, but some notable players were Amiya Carter, E’yana Stead, Tanasia Ebo, Juwayriah Evans, and Safiyatou Jalloh. For the duration of the season, the girls have stayed in high spirits and have brought pride to Norristown.

The beginning of the first set started off with Carter as the server. The game started off with the other team scoring a couple of powerful shots, which soon became the girls’ biggest problem.

“It was challenging because we weren’t completely in ‘game mode.’ We never really are in the first set,” said Carter.

The Lady Eagles called a timeout for a quick breather. But Springford’s girls were scoring back to back with spikes that nearly grazed the boundary line.

“During the first set, I feel like we struggled with communication and focusing. Since Wednesday was the first time we’ve really had people come to support us, it was hard not to get discouraged with so many people watching,” said Evans. The first set ended with a score of 11-25.

Going into the second set, Jalloh was the first server. Springford began with smooth sets and spikes and The Eagles went down by several points. Racking points after points, Springford’s blockers were just too tall to be stopped.

“Personally, I’d say their middle blocker gave me a hard time because of how tall she was and how much work I had to do to hit around her block,” Evans said. Jalloh earned her mark in this set with her well-controlled serves and bumps that stopped numerous powerful hits. Ebo and Evans also stood out with their exceptional blocking. They did a great job at recovering the ball and communicating with each other. Although the other team had scored multiple points, the Eagles made sure to pat each other on the back and give each other reassuring smiles. The second set ended in a close 19-25 score.

The third set was full of anticipation, as it would be the deciding factor of whether the game would continue or not. Stead and Ebo were in the spotlight in this set due to their remarkable ability to save and serve. Ebo fired off bumps and recovered the ball countless times. She also single-handedly sent the ball back over the net, which left the crowd applauding. Stead stepped up and showed her ability to serve and keep the ball in bounds. Although the girls put their best foot forward, the third set tragically ended with an incredibly close score of 22-25.

These girls made sure to look on the bright side. Evans spoke highly of her teammates by saying, “We definitely had team spirit, nobody pointed any fingers, nobody argued. We just accepted our mistakes and tried to fix them as a team.”

“I think all of my girls tried their best and I’m happy we had a fun season,” said Carter, who also wants to give some special recognition to the senior girls because they put up a good fight. Evans believes Stead and Carter deserve some spotlight. And Stead emphasized that Carter played like a star player.

The Lady Eagles volleyball team played 19 games this year and hasn’t outright won, but these girls have put so much effort into this season and they won’t be disheartened. Volleyball is a tedious sport that demands numerous skills. Teamwork is a huge aspect of the game and these girls did a phenomenal job with it.

Evans wanted to share a little reminder with the readers: “Try to come and support the team next year, they’ll be playing at the high school again and it’s always nice to have a student section through the tough sets and the good ones.”