Tamalyn Tanis knows a thing or two about winning. In her seven seasons as the head volleyball coach at Cave Spring High School, the Knights have gone to five state championship games, winning four.
After losses in the regional semifinals to Hidden Valley in 2008 and Salem in 2007, Tanis hopes her team can get back to the state tournament in 2009.
“I’ve done this long enough to know what our potential could be,” she said. “If everyone does their job and plays to their potential, I think this group can go a long way.”
The Knights are off to a solid but unspectacular start, sitting at 3-2 on the season as of Wednesday. Cave Spring, due in part to admittedly poor scheduling by their coach, dropped their first two matches before rebounding to win three in a row.
“For some reason I had us playing in back to back games on the same day in September,” Tanis said. The Knights lost the first to Osbourn Park, one of the better AAA schools in the state, and fell in the second to E.C. Glass. “We were pretty flat mentally in that second game,” Tanis admitted. “Not good planning on my part.”
However, the three game winning streak (over Liberty Christian, William Byrd and Jefferson Forest) has shown what this team can become. The Knights are a young group with only three seniors on the roster, but they serve well and play good defense. One point of concern, though, might be a lack of size on the front line. Cave Spring graduated three players from last season who were all 5’10”.
“With not a lot of size, it just means that the girls have to do a better job of reading the hitter and knowing where they are going to go with the ball,” Tanis said – comparing the strategy with that of a chess match. “You can’t guess – you have to read and react and be decisive.”
The Knights are led by senior captains Emily Lawrence and Jocelyn Kellinger – two players who should help their younger teammates learn Tanis’ defensive approach. Kellinger, who Tanis calls “the anchor of our defense,” plays the libero position, and is the team’s primary digger and passer. Lawrence, a middle, serves two primary roles: blocking and transitioning from defense to attack. “She’s been pretty steady for us so far,” Tanis said.
As the team begins district competition in less than two weeks, Tanis is hoping that her younger players will continue to grow.
“It’s just a matter of getting their confidence up, and getting them to be aggressive and not hesitate,” she said. “In volleyball a second is a long time, and you can’t hesitate, you have to play fast. Right now they’re just getting adjusted to the speed of the game.”
Looking forward, Hidden Valley – a state finalist in 2008 – once again looms as the primary opposition for the regional championship. Tanis admits that a certain style of play can give her team problems – but remains confident the Knights can hang with anyone.
“We’re going to struggle against a big team that plays fast, since we don’t have a lot of height,” she said. “But if you can serve and play defense, you can hold your own against any team, and if we play to our capabilities, we can go far.” The Knights play Deep Run (Richmond) on Saturday.
By Matt Reeve [email protected]