Senior libero Julia Lima bumps the ball in play. The team swept Coral Glades 3-0 on its Senior Night, Nov. 16. PHOTO BY JAVIER GARCIA
Season in review How teams have fared in year of COVID By Javier Garcia, Sports Editor, and Eduardo Andrade, Editor-inChief
Ready to serve Like many athletes this year, the girls volleyball team had to grapple with the question of whether there would even be a season. “Because of COVID, I didn’t think there was even a chance to have a season,” Naja Taylor, senior middle blocker said. “But I think the school handled it really well.” To have a season during a pandemic required many new precautions. “It was amazing to have the
opportunity to play this year,” junior libero Victoria Ferreira said. “Our season was a little different and we had some surprises.” Wearing masks, tracking oxygen saturation and temperatures, and recording all this information in a daily report through Google Forms all were introduced. “We also have to be extremely careful because if anyone on our team gets COVID, we would not be able to play for two weeks and (we’d have to) quarantine,” Ferreria said. The pandemic has even affected how the players respond on the court.
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“Volleyball is a very close contact sport (with one another),” Taylor said. “Especially if your relationship with your teammates goes beyond volleyball. Playing involved a lot of hugging and cheering each other on after a good play… we do a lot more yelling than touching now.” Since it was so clear what was at stake and how easily it could be taken from them, this season felt more important than ever if they were lucky enough to secure one. Through weeks of deliberations and district workshops, practice time and preparation were gradually chipped away. Traditionally,
they would begin pre-season practices starting in July, but this season they started in October. “Especially this year with a shorter season, we have to give our all,” Ferreira said. This season was practically gone before these athletes’ eyes. Once it started, they were determined not to waste their chance, going on to a 9-1 record as of Dec. 4 and securing a strong win on Senior Night, taking all three sets over Coral Glades on Nov. 16. “The underclassmen really outdid themselves and all of us had a great time,” Taylor said. “It was better than I could have
