The varsity volleyball team played their first home game last Thursday night in front of an enthusiastic Spartan crowd. It signalled the beginning of the fall sports season for East and expectations are high following the Spartans 3-1 win over Grand Island. The Spartans got off to a fast start in the first set thanks to a 5-0 run. East won the first set comfortably with a 25-16 win. They then dropped the second set 25-23 but came back after halftime to win the third and fourth sets 25-15 and 25-19. 

After the game, I interviewed junior libero Brooke Mccartney and I started by asking her what she thought the team did well against a good Grand Island team. “I thought the team did really well communicating with one another on and off the court and being able to bounce back quickly after a bad play.” She referred to the first set, when the Spartans got up 5-0 but later in the set, it got as close as 3. They were able to bounce back from mistakes like serving errors and serve receive that will disappear with more experience. 

To end our conversation, I asked how the crowd may have had an impact on the game and whether it makes a difference. Brooke said, “I think the crowd was a game changer tonight, we are so much more excited to to play when we have a pumped up and engaged crowd like we had tonight!” The Spartans will return home September 6th vs Lincoln North Star.