New coach, new school

SPRING VALLEY — There’s a lot of new going around at Hall High School.

For starters, there’s a brand new school, though not quite open for business yet. The Lady Devils volleyball team is enjoying the new gym and have a new coach.

Bernadette (Bryant) Savitch, a 1993 Hall graduate, has taken over as acting head coach with coach Megan Uphoff on maternity leave with the birth of her son, Beau, on Monday, Aug. 17.

Savitch said the transition has gone really well.

“I was able to make a lot of the summer functions and got a good feel for what the girls can do. Coach Uphoff and I keep in touch frequently. I keep her updated on the athletes’ progress and who is making strides. This is her program and I’m just here to run things for the time being so that next year she can step back in full swing and pick up from where she left off.”

Senior captain Brooke Keegan said the new coach has fit right in.

“She’s great. She played at North Central. She knows a lot about volleyball, a lot about the game. I think we’ll do great with her. She’s great with us. We all love her.”

Keegan and fellow captain Caitlyn Jablonski are the only two seniors on the squad, and will be relied upon for their leadership, on and off the court.

“We got a lot of new ones, a lot of incoming varsity (players). We only have a couple returners. We’ll have to really step up and be leaders for them,” Keegan said. “But I think they’re adjusting really well, they’re all great. We all get along really well, really quickly and play well together.

Keegan, Savitch said, is the core of the team.

“We will be relying on Brooke this year quite a bit. We definitely expect great things from her this season as she has put a lot of time into this sport in the off season,” Savitch said.

Jablonski is transitioning from a right side hitter to outside. While this will be a huge adjustment, Savitch said, Jablonski “is working hard and, in time, I think she will adjust to that new role.”

Junior Jenna Lusietto will be playing middle again this year and is expected to be one of Hall’s better hitters and blockers this year.

Sophomore Madi Soldati slides into the libero position, stabilizing the Lady Devils’ defense this year along with junior defensive specialist Madi Quinn.

“We expect to see both of those girls skills grow as the season progresses,” Savitch said.

The Hall squad includes six juniors in all, including Shanna Piotrowski (DS), Tori Coble (RH), Abby Hoscheid (OH) and Maddie Vanko (DS). There are also three sophomores in Kaelyn Hamalle (OH/MH), Cassidy Jablonski (MH) and Soldati, and a freshman, Gertie Savitch (OH/DS).

Savitch said some of the younger girls will also be expected to fill roles at the lower levels due to low numbers.

“Those girls are doing well being bounced around for practice and have really had a good attitude pulling double duties,” Savitch said.

Savitch directed the team over the summer and said they spent a lot of time as well as the beginning of the season on defense and serve receive as both she and coach Uphoff felt that was the area the team needed the most amount of work.

“We expect the girls to work hard day in and day out. Our goal is to be the very best that we can be,” Savitch said. “We need these girls to make our practices competitive so that as a group we can grow and get better day in and day out. Our goals this year are to finish high in the conference and to win regionals.”

The season kicks off Tuesday, Aug. 25, at Seneca. The Lady Devils will make their debut in the new Red Devil Gym Thursday, Aug. 27, vs. Rockridge.

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