Gig Harbor High volleyball on hot streak in 3A SSC

The Gig Harbor volleyball team has been on an impressive run as of late, winning five straight games and moving into third place in the Class 3A South Sound Conference, behind Capital and Peninsula.

“We had some big wins these past couple weeks,” said Gig Harbor coach Melissa Klein. “The girls have really stepped up these past couple weeks.”

The team had a tough time last season, going 6-8 and failing to reach the postseason.

This year, however, things are looking very different as Gig Harbor is in prime position to make it back to the playoffs.

“We’ve had five wins in a row so far,” Klein said. “Right now, the top three spots are looking good for us. It just going to depend on how we finish out.”

The team has a tough schedule ahead, with games against Capital, Yelm, and then rival Peninsula to close out the season.

Still, that doesn’t discourage Klein who thinks they can be competitive in those games and come out on top.

“If we can win some of those games we’ll be set up,” Klein said.

The team has three seniors this year, all of who bring their own skills to the team. The three are Maddy Moore, Natalie Kauppila, and Kimmie McKenney.

“Maddy is one of our captains. She brings a lot of energy,” Klein said. “She’s an outside and right side hitter.”

Moore shares in the enthusiasm and hopes that the team can be successful this season. “I feel really good about it. I feel like the team is really coming together as I thought we were going to,” Moore said said. “I’m really proud of our team right now.” She isn’t the only bringing strengths to the team as coach Klein highlighted the strength of Kauppila in the setting position.

“Natalie is one of our setters so that’s obviously a pretty important position,” Klein said. “She does a great job, she’s really consistent with her sets.”

She also praised McKenney as a strong force in the middle position.

“Kimmie, she’s a middle and she’s one of our starting middles,” Klein said. “She plays a big blocking presence and her offense some nights has been pivotal to some of our wins.”

The team also has four captains in Moore, Chloe Yerex, Ella Heckman, and Riley Miller who have helped to lead the team in a more supportive direction.

“We still have the same four captains,” Klein said. “It’s going awesome. This year our team has been no drama. The girls all get along really well. We just play as a unit and it’s just a fun team to coach. It’s probably one of my most favorite teams just personality wise. It’s just a fun group of girls.”

This was something that was echoed by one of the four team captains Chloe who highlighted the growth that the team has undergone.

“I knew coming into the season that our team chemistry and the attitude was way better than last year,” Yerex said.

That change in attitude also has made it so that team enjoys the process that goes into the winning as well.

“Everyone has a positive attitude,” Klein said. “They’re just kind of quirky and fun to work with. Lot of inside jokes and they just work hard also. They just work really really hard.”

The Tides have already won more games this year than did in all of last year. The explanation? A chance at a fresh start for the team.

“The girls have been working hard all season and it was a brand new team to start,” Klein said. “We had seven seniors that we graduated last year so we took on quite a few juniors.”

While other teams might be concerned about losing so many seniors, the Tides were able to rebuild from the ground up and come back as a more cohesive unit.

“We needed a reset,” Klein said. “We weren’t team centered as much last year. This year the girls are playing for the team and not for an individual. It’s about having a common goal as a team and improving as we go throughout the season.”

That improvement has been exponential as the team has committed to maintaining focus, which has paid off in tough games.

“The girls have been really good at keeping their focus,” Klein said. “We’re just finding ways to win. We’ve had some really tight games and we’ve been able to just play aggressively through that.”

That never say die attitude is something that Klein wants to give to the team.

“My main lesson I want to instill is that they can beat anyone,” Klein said.

That message seems to have been received loud and clear as Maddy, a senior, expressed aspirations to finish out the season strong and go to state together as one.

“I’m really hoping to go to state this year because it is my last year and because this team is so amazing. I want to go with them,” Moore said. “I just think we need to push through for the rest of the season.”

This story was originally published October 30, 2019 at 6:00 AM.