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Storm youth volleyball camp sees high turnout
Many campers got to tweak their mechanics thanks to the coaching of many Cleveland players.
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The Cleveland High School volleyball team hosted a youth camp for elementary and middle school students July 22-23.
“A lot of girls start here, so we gotta help them out,” sophomore Molly Maurer, a setter for the team who played varsity as a freshman, said.
According to a lot of players, this was the biggest turnout in all their years at the camp.
“We had a ton of kids, and it was on us to help them with their game and hope they continue playing volleyball in the future,” Maurer said.
Campers got volleyball camp T-shirts and training with one of the premier volleyball programs in the state.
“It’s honestly really nice to be teaching this younger generation the sport that we all love to play,” junior Azlynn Tittmann said. “I went to a lot of youth camps, not Cleveland's, but a lot of small camps. They helped me a lot; they helped me get to where I am today.”
Tittmann is an outside hitter for Cleveland and was a second team All-District selection this past season.
The two-day camp offered training in passing, attacking, serving, footwork, setting and defense.
“We had our warmups, then we did our scrimmage, six-on-six, which was three in the front and three in the back. Then, we would rotate. I got a lot better at blocking,” camper Marlena Rachal said. “I learned that Cleveland is very, very big, and that volleyball is one of the biggest things here because their players are so good.”
Cleveland volleyball finished last season with an 18-9 record (6-2 in district play) and finished the season ranked fifth in New Mexico.
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One of the biggest holes to fill will come at setter; their mainstay, Marian Hatch, is now at the University of New Mexico. Hatch played varsity since she was a freshman and was a three-time first-team All-State setter for Cleveland.
However, the Cleveland volleyball team still enters the upcoming season with high expectations as they only lost four players to graduation, and a key piece returning for the Storm is senior Kelsey Heffner, who plays middle blocker.
Heffner was a first-team All-District and second-team All-State player at her position last year.
Cleveland will open their season Aug. 27 at Albuquerque High School and play their first home game Aug. 29 against Los Lunas.
