By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
The Southeast of Saline volleyball team has been gaining steam as the Lady Trojans head down the back stretch of their 2022 campaign, raising more than a few eyebrows around the Kansas volleyball community.
In their last six matches, SES knocked off #1 Little River (1A), #3 Beloit (3A), and #3 Ellinwood (2A) twice to advance to 9-6 on the season.
“These ranked wins have been huge for the confidence of our girls,” SES head coach Ashley Gilpin said. “I told them before we played Ellinwood ‘do this for yourselves but do this for the program as well.’ We don’t have a lot of tradition behind us and they proved to themselves that they can compete at a very high level.”
Fundamentally, the Lady Trojan's biggest improvements have come at the net, where middle blockers Macy Bunch and Christina Wingo have walled off opposing hitters; but perhaps the biggest improvement SES has seen has come in the form of a renewed confidence and electric energy.
“The way they respond to each other and the energy on the court has been so great to see,” Gilpin said. “We’ve looked like a completely different team and their all-around skill has improved as well.”
On the attack, Lexi Jacobson and Macy Bunch have led the way in kills while back row sensation Chase Gilpin has provided SES with a spark, digging everything that’s come her way thus far.
At the net, Brielle Ptacek has teed up her teammates with ruthless efficiency, approaching 400 assists heading into this week.
With a wave of recent momentum, SES has started to set its sights on bigger and better things to come, something the Lady Trojans have prepared for throughout a brutal gauntlet of a schedule.
“I think having all of these tough opponents is going to serve us well come postseason time,” Gilpin said. “Those opponents make us better and it can be a little bit scary sometimes but it’s definitely made us stronger and improved our confidence.”
While Southeast might not appear in this week's 3A rankings, the Lady Trojans are not a team many will take lightly the rest of the way.
“If we stay healthy and play up to our potential I think this team sees what we could do and they know where we could end up,” she said. “I think they can see themselves ranked in the top ten and if we can have a Saturday at substate like we’ve had at these tournaments I think they can see themselves at state.”
The Lady Trojans will be back in action at the Concordia Invitational on October first with five more competitions ahead before postseason play.
For continuing coverage of Lady Trojan volleyball stay tuned to the Salina Post.