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Brutal year, but LHS had its bright spots
It didn't end well for the Liberty volleyball team, but some building blocks did emerge from the rubble of the Eagles' 4-17 season.
Freshman Elizabeth Wood and sophomore Katie Shaeffer couldn't keep the eighth-seeded Eagles from losing to No. 1 Loudoun Valley during the the first round of the Cedar Run District tournament last Thursday, but they'll return next season with some valuable experience.
Wood, a middle blocker, was called up from junior varsity midway through this season and still led Liberty in blocks with 12 in just seven games.
"That's just phenomenal for a freshman," Liberty coach Theresa Gore said. "She dominated on the block and that's why we brought her up."
Lindsay King was second on the team with 11 blocks in 21 games, but she's also a senior.
Of the five seniors Liberty will lose to graduation, Heather McInnis will likely be the hardest to replace. The outside hitter led Liberty with 126 kills on the season and also had a passing percentage of 56.
The Eagles also lose their best server (96 percent) in Brittany Aubrey.
Wood finished second on the team with a serving percentage of 94 and passing percentage of 56, while Shaeffer led Liberty 58 percent passing.
"It was really our freshmen and sophomores that led our team in passing and serving," Gore said.
Poor serving put Liberty in an early hole against Loudoun Valley, though. The Eagles sent four consecutive serves into the net to start the match and went on to lose that first game by 19 points.
"Talent-wise we were pretty much outmatched and you kind of expect that against the top team in the district," Gore said.
McInnis led the Eagles with three kills and Wood had two blocks.
Liberty's loss to Loudoun Valley was its 12th straight and it won just three of 39 games in that stretch.
"All in all the win-loss ratio doesn't show it, but the girls weren't bad," Gore said. "They played hard; they played well."
As for 2009, junior outside hitter Erica Davis will be another key returnee, while Gore noted the junior varsity has some other strong players coming up. But those players and the return of Wood and Shaeffer won't be enough.
"Individually, we had a bunch of good players, but I don't think we had the teamsmanship that we needed," Gore said.
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