New coach makes difference for Maiden volleyball

Before volleyball season began, new head Coach Bailey McFerren set a goal of a district championship with a run into the play offs.

  “If you match their energy they will rise with you,” McFerren said. “Girls just want to be loud and crazy, and that is what feeds our energy in games.”  

  Coming from a coaching family and having a dad as a coach, the love for sports has always been present in McFerren’s life. Growing up knowing about sports  brought her to her coaching philosophy.

  “Coach them hard, love them harder,” McFerren said. “Coaching is really a platform to be an active counselor in our athletes’ lives. Love them and care about them, and they will grind for you day in and day out.” 

McFerren hopes to make the program better.

  “My family and I moved to Seminole to create a  successful volleyball program,” McFerren said. “My fiance and I are getting married this March, and this was a great opportunity to get our family together and to begin a life in a good academic and athletic school system.” 

  As the Maidens enter the second round of district, McFerren has seen the changes.

  “We have progressed in multiple ways,” McFerren said. “We have shown we can separate and be more competitive than teams around us. We have grown in the front line as a blocking force. Our errors have cut down so much as we have really tried to be diligent in our transitions.”

  With a new coach the players have noticed a difference in their plays and the improvement that has been made in this period of time. 

  “I have noticed a huge difference in the team and in myself,” senior libero Emily Alvarez said. “I feel like we had an easy transition with the new coach, and the girls and I have been able to grow individually and as a team. We correct our mistakes and push each other when it is needed. Our team’s technique has improved, and overall I would say we are moving forward.” 

The Maidens made this evident on Oct. 9 as they finished the first round of district with a three-match sweep of No. 22-ranked Greenwood.

  Overall the Maidens and their new coach have fit in together and are growing match by match.

  “My coaching experience has been very welcomed,” McFerren said.  “I have loved this group of girls and wish I had these seniors longer than one year. My transition has been so smooth becoming a Maiden.”

The Maidens will host Pecos today to begin the second round of district play.