Greenbrier West head volleyball coach Cindy Nutter is entering her eighth season as the leader of the Cavaliers.
Like any coach, Nutter does so with guarded optimism because she knows nothing is a given during a grinding season.
However, after taking one look down the Greenbrier West roster, optimism can be hard to keep in check.
“When you have a 6-foot-2 middle (hitter) and a 6-foot outside (hitter), along with an incoming freshman that can absolutely hit the ball, it does look promising.” Nutter said.
Last year’s performance has added even more fuel to this season’s optimism.
Nutter entered 2020 feeling like her team was maybe a year away from another trip to the state tournament.
Instead, her team defied the odds and earned its fourth straight trip to Charleston.
“The group last year did an amazing job pulling together as a team. We only had two seniors and in the first match of the season one senior blew her knee out,” Nutter said. “Both of those seniors did a great job leading the team through crazy times. You never knew from one day to the next what you were going to deal with. I think the experience this team gathered from being in that (tournament) environment over the last three years really helped.”
Now Greenbrier West enters 2021 with loads of experience and high expectations.
“I tell them we have to take it one game at a time. Every game we have to learn something, whether it is a good game or a bad game,” Nutter said. “Our goal is to play on Saturday at the state tournament, but we have to evaluate each game and see what we need to do to get better.”
The key position for every volleyball team is the setter and the Cavaliers have two good ones according to their coach.
“I will run a 6-2 again this year with two setters, junior Desteney Walker and sophomore Riley Robertson,” Nutter said. “Last year was a learning experience for both of them. Now they are entering the season with a little more experience. Both of them are putting the ball where it needs to go to get those kills.”
If the setters can get the ball to the proper spots, the Cavaliers have plenty of finishers.
Michaela Alley was a key role player last year off the bench when the other hitters were struggling. Alley will step into the starting rotation this season as West’s right side hitter.
Alley will be joined on the outside by a couple of youngsters, including a freshman that has drawn comparisons to former West all-stater Kenley Posten.
“(Freshman) Preslee Treadway and (sophomore) Kadie O’Dell are both young and I feel the older girls will really help them progress,” Nutter said. “Both of them can really hit the ball and they read the floor really well. So far, they are doing an amazing job.”
Complimenting the power on the outside for West will be two veterans in the middle of the front row.
“My middles will be Kenzie O’Dell and Meagan Poticher. This will be Kenzie’s fourth year starting in the middle for us. We weren’t quite sure how we would use Meagan last year because she had knee surgery right before the season. She really stepped up for us last year and now she has improved by leaps and bounds. She has amazing blocking hands.”
Although hitting and blocking garner the big crowd responses, success starts in the back row. Nutter has three seniors to set the table up front.
“Natalie Agee is back for her second year as a libero. She was a defensive specialist as a sophomore. She has learned the position really well and does a great job reading the other side to know where the hitter is going to put the ball,” Nutter said. “It is very rare that she is not in the right spot. She is not afraid to let the others know if they are in the wrong spot and let them know what they need to do. She is our take charge leader.”
Brooke Nutter, the coach’s daughter, and Lauren Hanna are the team’s defensive specialists.
“Brooke reads the floor like no other kid. She plays all the way around and does everything she needs to do,” coach Nutter said. “Lauren also plays back row and does a really good job of reading the opposing hitters.”
With the three previous trips to the state tournament ending in early exits, Nutter has beefed up the schedule in hopes to improve her team’s seeding, should they make a fifth straight state tournament experience.
“I am playing a quad at Ravenswood where there are teams from every region. Hopefully we will play well and other teams will see that we should be seeded higher,” Nutter said. “The only way to get a better seed is if we play some teams farther away and get the exposure. I have a tri-match at Doddridge County that includes Clay-Battelle. We will also play (defending Class AA state champion) Shady Spring and Greenbrier East this year.”
Greenbrier West opens the volleyball season Aug. 26 at Independence.
