NAUGATUCK — The Naugatuck girls volleyball team lost a strong front row presence from last year’s squad that finished 16-8 and reached the semifinals of the NVL tournament and the second round of the Class L state tournament.
The Greyhounds do return a senior-laden group to pick up the pieces, and expectations are running high for a team that has compiled a 60-24 mark over the last four seasons under head coach Kevin Wesche.
“I’m excited about what we have coming back,” Weshce said. “These girls are tremendous athletes. What we are striving for now is to get them to play together as a team out on the court.
“I think we are going to be a much stronger team towards the second half of the season once they learn to play with one another. We have good leadership skills out there and some experienced players who will help the other girls play at the varsity level.”
Leading the way will be senior captains Taylor Hunt, Cailee Bergin and Jayla Piazza. Seniors Briana Tavares, Aryana Powell, Julia Pelliccia and Hailey Craft round out a senior class that is looking to set the bar high.
Naugatuck will also rely on a juniors Hailey Deitlebaum and Shannon Burns and sophomore Brielle Behuniak to add to the overall athleticism of the team.
“We did lose a lot of height from last year,” Hunt said. “But we have been playing together since our freshman year and if we continue to play as a team we can surprise a few teams.”
The Greyhounds had a penchant last season of giving the top teams in the league a run for their money, taking Woodland, Torrington and Seymour to five-game battles. But they don’t have the same height advantage as they had last year, so this year’s squad is going to have to rely on taking advantage of opponents’ mistakes to stay competitive.
“I think defensively we will do very well,” said Bergin, who will be the Greyhounds’ leading front row player. “Even though we did lose a lot of height up front, I feel we can make up for that with our overall athleticism.”
Consistency will be the key to a successful season, as Naugatuck dropped back-to-back games just twice during the season. It will come down to defense and keeping the ball in play, and that responsibility will fall on the back row.
“I feel very confident in our defensive abilities,” said Piazza, the Greyhounds’ back row specialist. “Some of our younger players are really naturals when it comes to keeping the ball in play. I feel we are going to do real well.”
The Greyhounds will open the season Sept. 8 at Kennedy and visit Danbury on Sept. 9. Naugatuck will host Woodland on Sept. 12 and Torrington on Sept. 14.
