The Lethbridge College Women’s Volleyball team cheers after getting a hard hit down on the floor from left side, Kylie Morrison.
The Lethbridge College Kodiak women’s volleyball team stepped onto the court for the first time for the 2019-2020 season, ready to tackle an ACAC title after a strong season last year.
A fifth-year athlete is excited for this upcoming season to shock the competition with their fresh, young team.
The team hosted its home opener last Friday night while going up against the SAIT Trojans.
This year’s team is joined by seven first year players, making the team one of the youngest in the league.
However, head coach Anna Schwark thinks this year’s team will give the Kodiaks the opportunity to prove themselves in the league and show they can hold their place in the competition.
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The team wasn’t able to get the outcome they hoped, losing 3-1.
SAIT was able to win the first set 25-21 with the Kodiaks coming back in the second set, winning 25-19.
Despite the Kodiaks effort, SAIT was able to beat the team in the third and fourth set winning 25-14 and 25-17.
Schwark said when she took on the head coach role four years ago, she knew she wanted to make some changes to the program.
This included taking the recruitment process more seriously to find athletes that better suited the team.
One of those athletes included Harper Elwood, a Kodiak student-athlete that has played for the Kodiak’s volleyball team for the past four seasons. This marks her fifth and final season as a Kodiak.
Elwood moved from Sparwood, B.C. to pursue her love for volleyball and was pleased to find out that what she heard about the great coaching and team, was in fact true.
Schwark said every year Elwood has been on the team, her season has looked drastically different.
However, she has never lost her passion and has portrayed continuous resiliency.
Elwood played as a left side up until this season, when she had to take a step back and become a libero due to injuries.
She said she is enjoying her new position by being able to back up her teammates in any way she can.
The fifth-year player said she thinks the team will find success by having the common goal of being a good teammate.
She added that she thinks no team will be able to succeed if they cannot be there for each other during the highs and lows.
Elwood dealt with a challenge must larger than most teams have to face when her teammate, Emmalee Cherweniuk died in a car accident in March 2017.
The team was forced to remain resilient on and off the court, despite their loss.
“Before we step on the court and after O Canada, I always give a look to her [number] 15 poster up there and try to make her proud for every single game that I get to play for her,” Elwood said.
She also mentioned she tries to instill in the new players, to look at thing more than just volleyball and play for Emmalee as well.
The fifth-year player said she is excited to be able to see how the team will do against high ranked teams since this year’s Kodiak women’s volleyball team has so many new faces.
Elwood said she is excited for her future and hopes volleyball can remain in her life after retiring as a Kodiak.
