Wildcats capture first league win

By Megan Kelley
Staff Writer
OXFORD TWP. – Oxford High School’s varsity volleyball team has had an intense season fighting from the underdog seat in the OAA Red Division.
But on Thursday, the Wildcats felt the tide begin to change as they swept the Seaholm High School Maples to snag their first OAA Red win of the season.
The team came out of the gate hungry for a win, taking the first set 25-22. The ladies were strongest in the second set, capitalizing on several scoring opportunities to win 25-17. In the final set of the night, Seaholm held the game tight but it wasn’t enough as the Wildcats took the set 25-22.
“We put in a lot of work to get to this point so we’re really proud,” said head coach Noelle Zeeb. “I don’t think we go into any game expecting to win, but we do go in expecting to out work the other team and that is what’s most important to us.”
The win puts the Wildcats at 1-4 in the OAA Red division, but also serves as a marker for the increase in performance Zeeb and her assistant coach Trevor Marshall have been working toward.
“We’ve had a steady incline as far as getting better every week, as far as our momentum and energy. We put in so much work behind the scenes and for us, when we get into a game setting, we see every week when we come back, we’re a little bit better,” said Zeeb. “We’re definitely seeing the product of all the hard work the girls are putting in.”
Captains this year are seniors and returning players Grace Viviano, Katie Weiss and Jenna Miller.
Another player to look for on the court is freshman Brenna Mirovsky.
“The kids love her and they always have her back so it’s awesome to hear the gym just erupt when she gets into play,” Zeeb said.
As a team, the Wildcats strengths lie in effort and hard work.
“An asset that we have, that the girls put so much effort into, is just that we are committed and willing to out work whoever it is on the other side,” Zeeb said.
The Wildcats are a little more than halfway through their season and are hoping to continue the momentum.
“We want to continue to improve every week and hopefully peak at district time,” Marshall said.
As a young team and newer program, the Wildcats take on OAA Red powerhouses Clarkston and Lake Orion high schools this week and intend to give them a run for their money.
“We’re going into it thinking, ‘we’re capable, but we also don’t know what’s going to happen,’” said Zeeb. “When we hit the gym on Monday we’re going to finely tune some of our more aggressive plays. We’re really going to try to utilize our tempo, which means we’re going to be running the ball really fast. I think we’re going to try and hone in on a few plays that we know will have success. Going into it, we always go into every game trying to have the right mentality, trying to feel that team energy and try and get that momentum going, so that’s what we’re going to do.”
The Wildcats take on the Dragons at Lake Orion High School on Tuesday and host the Clarkston Wolves on Thursday.