St. Mary’s volleyball ready to make a run

Head coach Erin Menard has seen consistent improvement in her team over her first two years at St. Mary?s and hopes 10 returning players can help guide the program back to the state tournament in 2015.
Last year:The Spartans were 8-12 in 2014.
Coach:Menard is entering her third year.
Key players gone:The Spartans graduated five seniors who made major contributions, including Catholic Central League All-Stars Molly Doyle and Jess Martiniello.
Key players this year:Lynn native and outside hitter Megan Geaney returns to captain the team as a senior. Amanda Idusuyi has been a varsity contributor since her freshman year and another year of maturity will surely help the junior in the middle of the offense.
Strengths:The Spartans? returning cast includes six seniors, so experience is a positive heading into this fall. Through the preseason, Menard has been excited about the team?s ability to serve the ball consistently and has a strong group of players who can contribute in that area.
Question marks:Menard is looking to improve upon the team?s approach on defense and making cleaner passes off the opposing team?s hitters.
Opening match:The Spartans open at home against Cardinal Spellman on Sept. 10.
Big matches on the schedule:St. Mary?s has its Oct. 1 (home) and Oct. 27 (away) meetings with league rival Bishop Fenwick circled. Menard is also excited for matches against her alma mater and defending league champion Arlington Catholic, which returns a strong group of veterans.
Last league title: The Spartans last won the Catholic Central League in 2007.
Coach?s outlook:?I feel like we have a really good core group of girls that work well together, want to be a team and have that goal of going to the tournament…They committed to working out all summer and playing in summer leagues.”Joshua Kummins can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKummins.