August 19, 2021 at 9:52 a.m.
Notebook: Wolter takes the reins of RHS volleyball
Notebook: Wolter takes the reins of RHS volleyball
There was a late-summer camp to help get the team ready for the first official practice off the fall, but Wolter said there was a little extra energy in the gym on Monday, knowing that the first matches of the season are only a handful of days away.
"I think there's a lot of excitement, getting back into the gym knowing the season is coming and knowing we're going to be getting into competition in almost a week now," he said. "I think they're excited and hopefully they're ready to go and start working."
A solid turnout at camp translated into solid numbers during the first day of practice, with Wolter estimating roughly 45 girls out for the sport. He said the majority of those players are underclassmen, and the trick early in the week was to figure out exactly where they fit within the overall scheme of the program.
"We have a very large underclass, sophomore and freshman level, so we're going to work hard Day 1, Day 2 to figure out where girls are best fit," he said.
There's also a bit of making up for lost time. Though the team was able to play last fall during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was an abbreviated schedule that Wolter said stunted growth and development. The varsity team played 10 matches last season, down from around 40 in a regular season. The lack of practices and matches trickled down to the subvarsity level.
"Those girls only getting seven games of experience last year and then kind of that awkward offseason where there's the question of are we going to be back? What's our schedule going to look like? Are we going to be in masks? Trying to get the COVID questions answered. They're going to have to come in and try to make up for lost time," Wolter said.
Wolter said he anticipated have the team divided into varsity, JV and JV2 squads by the end of Tuesday's practice, which gave the team the remainder of practice this week to gear up for Saturday's home scrimmage against Wausau East.
It all starts for real this coming Tuesday as the Hodags host a four-team invite at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.
"Hopefully we can get off on a good foot and kind of set the tone for the year, get a couple of victories under the belt and start building in the right direction," Wolter said.
Short offseason helps cross country
RHS cross country coach M.J. Laggis was excited about the form his team showed during the first day of practice on Monday - and the short transition between the spring and fall seasons may have something to do with it.
"Knock on wood, it's probably the best shape we've had kids come in," he said.
The altered 2020-21 sports calendar, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, meant that the majority of spring sports ended less than two month prior to the start of fall practices. Laggis said, especially with spring sports extending deeper into June, it was easier to get momentum going for the offseason program.
"I think that actually helped us, looking back at it," he said. "Kids were more active and going. We had a small group of kids that were hardcore in the weight room and we had group runs twice a week that - (due to) weather issues and so on - wasn't as good as we would have liked, but we were still getting miles in and feel that we're in an OK spot."
Numbers were mixed for the team at the start of practice. Laggis said the team currently includes 15 girls and eight boys, and that he would still love to get a few more runners out before competition begins next Thursday with a home invitational.
Much of this week is about figuring out a baseline for the athletes and getting some miles in. Day one was relatively light, with some weight room exercises following by a 5-kilometer run during a session that lasted just less than two hours. Training was scheduled to pick up during the week leading up today's annual team triathlon and cookout.
"It's nice to kind of move back and forth amongst the kids and see who has a nice, easy gait and is in good shape, and who looks like they're laboring and struggling," Laggis said. "We have both, like any team, but, by and large, I was really impressed with our kids today."
Next Thursday's home invite will mark a bit of a return to normal for the Hodags, who will be back in front of RHS for the race after holding both of its events at CAVOC last year to avoid intersection points under COVID-19 protocols.
Eleven teams are scheduled to take part in the invite - more than Rhinelander saw at any one time last season, again due to COVID-19 protocols.
"I'm for sure looking forward to it. Everything from the bus ride and how you've got to handle yourself at the meet and after the meet, it's just a sense of normality will be nice," Laggis said. "It's one of those things when that day's over and you feel, 'Oh man, we're not anywhere close.' But that's good. We want that competition. We'll figure out where we're at and that will be our takeoff spot to see what we do from there."
All RHS sports teams are now underway with practice for their upcoming seasons. The RHS boys' soccer team started practice Wednesday, two days after the earliest date allowed by the WIAA.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected]
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