Seniors are almost automatically seen as leaders from their underclassmen teammates, regardless if they hold captain positions. They understand the game and have experience to help. Senior Maddie Hill exemplifies this statement.

Hill came onto this team with three years experience prior to high school. She started when she was 11 years old and came onto this team as a beast; she made varsity as a freshman with the skills to offer better opportunities for the team.

Hill is a key player on the court: a middle. She may not be the main setter or libero but the middle blocks and hits hard to make it difficult for the other team. As a volleyball player one must be able to adjust fast and have quick reaction time for locating and getting the ball up and over the net, which she does phenomenally.  “My strengths as a player are being able to adjust whenever and serving,” Hill said.

Hill’s height helps her with blocking and getting up for power when serving. She continued, “We practice it a lot so I feel like I have to be good at it.” Practice may not make perfect, but it definitely makes you better with a lot of it.

This senior season has had a rough starting to it but the team has managed. Every team should be versatile, but for some teams it takes longer than others and it can be weird right off the bat.  “This season has been different. Our setter had a season ending injury but we’re all trying to adjust,” Hill said.

Setter Madison Williams (’23) has been on the sideline because of her season ending injury but still is in the game mentally. She said, “Maddie is a great and key player for our team. Her energy and excitement to play is reflected when she plays and helps encourage others to be excited. She never fails to make people laugh and have fun in practice and while playing.”

Another key thing in volleyball is to have everyone’s back and a great way to do that is to communicate on and off the court.

Williams continued, “Maddie communicate[s] a lot with her teammates on the court, being encouraging and communicating on how the connection between her and her teammates can be better. Whenever she can see a fellow teammate in their head, she tries to help them get out of it and continues to encourage them.”

Though the may not be a captain, she sure does help this team out a lot whether its on the court with serving, or just helping her teammates out. The season is still not over and Hill has a lot coming for her.