Since August 11, the Clear Creek varsity volleyball team has been on the road to success. The team has defeated Seven Lakes, Dawson, Deer Park, Woodlands, Katy, Ridge Point, Clear Brook, Clear Falls, Brazoswood, Friendswood, Clear Springs, Dickinson Clear Springs and Clear Lake. Their current record is 37 wins and five losses. This year, the team’s goal is to make it to the state tournament. Currently, they are ranked fourth in the state. In the overall history of Creek volleyball, the team has advanced to playoffs 23 times in the last 25 years and has won nine district championships within the last 15 years. This year’s lineup consists of thirteen girls. Danielle Holmes, Erica Kropp, and Haley O’Dell are this year’s defensive specialists. Olivia Rigby and Maddie Flora are also defensive specialists as well as liberos. Kelsey Childers is a setter as well as a defensive specialist. Mariah Pardo is a right side hitter, as well as a setter. The team’s middle blockers are Alle Garland, Hannah Froeschl, and Caroline Reed. Outside hitters include Mellissa McNeil, Jenna Metzinger and Caitlyn Burroway, who is also a right side hitter. “We don’t lack in any positions on the team. We are very well-rounded,” and are always “hungry for more,” Reed said. The Creek volleyball program has an intense practice schedule with practices every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from seventh period to about 4:00 pm and every Saturday morning. Games are scheduled on Tuesdays and Fridays. After game days, the next day usually includes going over statistics and also the scouting report for the next game. An average practice consists of warm up drills and target drills that focus on a variety of skills such as serving, hitting and passing. The practice is then usually concluded with a scrimmage. Creek has played many games so far, and each one certainly requires the girls to give their all. Clear Springs has been by far one of their toughest competitors. The team has won both of the two games against Clear Springs, however both were extremely close. According to defensive specialist O’Dell, for the first game, “we were down zero to two and had the most hostile crowd we had seen that year directly behind our bench.” However, they “were able to [fight] back, not dropping a single set to win the game. We supported each other and played our hardest. It is a game I’ll never forget,” O’Dell said. Creek’s second game against Clear Springs was by far one of the most intense games of the season. Creek lost the first two games, which caused spirits to fall. The Springs crowd was “loud” and when Creek was losing the Wildcat student section was “pretty quiet”, according to libero Rigby. Springs’, “hitting and blocking was really good.” Rigby continued, “they have some of the best offense in the district. They’re pretty solid in most parts [of volleyball]”. The game was so close because Springs is “kind of like us,” Rigby said. The loss also affected the girls, however they were able to shake off their mistakes and push through the adversity that lied in front of them. There were “definitely times of frustration because were down 2-0, but I had a lot of hope. I believed that we could win because we had done it before,” said Rigby. Once the third game came, the team started to come (continued on page 9)