Reflection on Last Season: Men's Volleyball

Through the turmoil of the 2021-2022 season, the men's volleyball team made significant progress despite the challenges they faced, shared Coach Melissa Barton.

Despite the program being only in its second year, the team proved competitive as they won sets against highly-ranked schools. "They showed a lot more improvement," Coach Barton said of this past season's performance.

"We took two sets away from Westcliff, and Westcliff ended up in second in the conference." She said, "We played the number one and the number four teams in the nation for NAIA and we did well against them. I think that's really promising for this year, having some bigger guys and new talent along with the returners to really make something happen."

For Barton, these highlights from the 2021-2022 season demonstrate the tremendous growth the athletes made in a two year period. They are also indicative of accomplishments in the near-future she believes the team can make, such as making it to the NAIA postseason this year.

She shared one of her favorite moments from the last season. "I definitely loved our first set that we won, which was against [the University of Saint Katherine] at their place. The basketball teams were there as well … It was fun having our crowd at an away game."

Coach Barton hopes to bring back this atmosphere in the coming season, and encourages students to attend home games and support their fellow Pioneers.