With less than a month from the end of the volleyball season, things are beginning to heat up in conference play for the WolfPack. The team is off to an 8-9 start on the season and will have its next home match on Sept. 30 against College of DuPage.
I had a chance to check in with Coach Quinn Lukens on how things have been so far this season. The questions and answers are as follows:

Q: How do you feel about your season since it has started?
A: I am happy with the momentum we are starting to gain. We have been working hard in the practice gym and the overall environment continues to build as one that is both competitive and positive. I am happy with our progression. Lots of things to improve on, as there always is, but we are moving in the right direction.

Q: Who have been your shining stars so far this year?
A: Volleyball is the ultimate team sport. It takes more than one or two players to drive team success. Everyone on our roster plays an important role in the growth of our group as a whole, and it will take everyone on the roster for us to get where we want to go.

Q: Who has improved the most?
A: I can’t point to one individual as being the “most improved” at this time. I have been happy with the improvement of our team defense over the last couple weeks.
Our block and our back row have been doing a great job extending rallies and giving us opportunities in offensive transition. If we keep doing that, we will become harder and harder to play against.

Q: Overall, what does the team need to work on the most?
A: As our defense continues to improve, our setter – hitter connection will become the next point of emphasis. As we keep the ball off the ground, we will create more opportunities offensively. Taking advantage of those opportunities and finding ways to score will be extremely important to our success.

Q: What are the greatest challenges in your schedule this season?
A: Our conference as a whole is strong this year. We won’t have any easy matches, so the greatest challenge in our schedule is the consistently high level of competition. We will have to show up ready to battle and compete every night.

Q: What are your expectations for the remainder of the season?
A: As we move forward with the season, the expectation is that we continue to look for ways to improve as players, as teammates and as people. We do that, we will find success.