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(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Newcastle’s Emma Hawkins prepares to serve during the Graham summer league Monday, June 24, 2024. Newcastle is holding one final volleyball camp before the regular season Monday and Tuesday, July 28-29.
The Newcastle Ladycats volleyball program has been busy trying to keep its athletes active during the summer offseason.
The program gave its athletes one more dose of that this summer with team volleyball camp.
This is just the latest step that Newcastle took in order to make sure their girls volleyball doesn’t miss a beat come fall.
The Ladycats participated in the Graham hosted summer league that took place in June. They’ve also held private volleyball lessons for the youth of Newcastle with Mya Cabrera in July. This particular volleyball camp took place Monday and Tuesday, July 28-29.
Newcastle High School students took the earlier morning session running and the junior high students took the afternoon session immediately following.
Ladycats head coach Ashley Archer said this camp is vital as the teams turn toward regular season play for skill development and team improvement.
“It’s about building confidence, teaching teamwork and preparing athletes for the upcoming season,” Archer said. “It’s a great chance for the girls to build floor chemistry and get comfortable playing together again before the season.”
Archer said that a core piece of this camp is being able to watch the girls compete in a 6v6 setting. This allows the coaching staff to evaluate how they “communicate, move and compete in game-like situations.”
Outside of 6v6 situations, Archer said the girls will also work on individual skill based drills like serving, passing, setting, hitting and blocking.
While Archer was in attendance, she was not coaching this camp. Those duties went to coach Cody Propps of Benjamin, who Archer added had a recent state tournament appearance, so the girls at Newcastle were getting valuable experience.
“We’re very thankful that coach Propps is willing to come invest in our girls and help them get better,” she said. “It gives our athletes a convenient way to improve their skills right here in their hometown.”
After holding this training camp, it’s all eyes ahead for the Ladycats as they move into two-a-day practices starting Friday and Saturday, Aug. 1-2.
