By JASON KING
Leader sports writer
Changing with the times is good for anybody.
Sylvan Hills coach Harold Treadway hopes the changes he’s made within the Lady Bears volleyball program will also lead to improved success on the court.
The Lady Bears went from dominators of a weak conference to trying to keep their heads above water whenever the 5A-Southeast Conference received a facelift with the AAA realignment that preceded the 2010 season.
Private schools Little Rock Christian and Central Arkansas Christian upped the competition level with players seasoned by summers of Junior Olympic volleyball, but Treadway has countered this year with a J.O. team of his own that primarily featured underclassmen from this year’s Sylvan Hills High School team.
Four sophomore players and three more from this year’s freshman squad played for Treadway over the summer, part of a strong 23-girl roster that also features returning senior starters Mallory Rushin and Val Jarrett.
Rushin and Jarrett, both outside hitters, are joined by classmates Caitlyn Dillon and Darrin Flippo, as well as Zaneb Rehman, who played junior varsity and limited varsity last year.
The group also had access to additional court time at the high-school gymnasium over the summer.
“We did a few things a little different this year,” Treadway said.
“We left the practice gym open. We started going two nights a week in July, and went to a team camp at Greenbrier.” The Lady Bears ended up playing five junior-varsity games at the camp, lending further experience to the sophomores.
“We’ve got a real good group of sophomores,” Treadway said. “We’re further along than we ever have been, and they’re picking up on everything fast.”
The tenth-graders are so far along that Treadway said some could pop up in the starting six when the Lady Bears take to the court for the first time two weeks from now.
Setter Rachel Franco has had a strong August, along with Ashton Williams. K.K. Fulton is another sophomore on Treadway’s like list, unsurprisingly for a three-sport standout who also excels at basketball and soccer.
“She’s just really athletic,” Treadway said of Fulton. “She’s quick as lightning – just her all-around athletic ability.”
With as much young talent and proven ability Treadway has to work with, he said the group has still been susceptible to the triple-digit temperatures.
“I think the heat has had a lot to do with it,” Treadway said. “But it seems like we’ve made progress in one practice, and then we take a step back. But opening the gym quicker this summer has helped. There’s a lot of stuff they’ve picked up quicker.”
With a total of eight players who participated in one form of organized volleyball or another over the summer, Treadway has spent the early days of August blending the young potential and proven success together in one squad.
“I think the potential to be competitive is there,” Treadway said. “The sophomores went all the way to the conference finals as freshmen before they got beat, and these are kids who all play soccer, softball and basketball – real athletic kids.
“Once we start getting the chemistry together, we should be pretty good.”
The Lady Bears will hold their blue-white scrimmage next Thursday and will open the season by hosting Greenbrier the following week.
