First-year York volleyball coach optimistic

Former York Comprehensive High School volleyball standout Hannah Fairfax, who is succeeding Julie McGee as varsity head coach this season, likes what she has seen in the team.

The Lady Cougars hosted Fort Mill and York Prep Academy in game-like scrimmages last week in the YCHS main gym.

“It’s great to be exposed to the competition we’ve faced in the preseason,” said Fairfax, who was junior varsity coach last season. “Our girls proved that they can play their best against higher competition.”

Several Lady Cougar players have said Fairfax brings a lot of energy to the YCHS program. Fairfax said one of her goals is for the players to feel like they’re being supported.

“They’ve always been supported,” said Fairfax. “It’s a different show of support this season.”

Fairfax said player development is vital to the success of Lady Cougar volleyball.

“It is very important for our first-year players to mesh with experienced players returning this season,” she said. “The girls that are coming in are doing a great job of matching with our returning varsity players; that is playing a key role where we are at this stage of the preseason.”

Senior mainstay Chelsa Love, a school volleyball participant since seventh grade, said she feels the Lady Cougars are ready for a breakthrough season.

“This sport means a lot to me,” said Love. “I play club volleyball year-round.”

Love said maintaining her aggressiveness at the net is her strong suit. “I try my best to drive the ball near the net with my overhead,” she said.

Love said high school volleyball requires a lot of determination and effort from every team member. “Confidence is a key also,” she said. “If you don’t have confidence, you’ll probably never get the ball. It’s all about believing in yourself.”

Love said she has a better understanding of the game than in her middle school years.

“Our program in York has come so far since I was in the seventh grade,” she said. “Coach Fairfax is a great coach. I know this is her first year coaching varsity. She has put so much energy into what we do. When the coach brings that much energy, it impacts the entire team.”

Love said YCHS volleyball team members are like family. “We all play together,” she said.

Although Chloe Carroll is only a sophomore, she’s in her third season on the varsity team.

“We’ve worked really hard in the offseason and we’ve gotten really close,” said Carroll, a setter. “Coach Fairfax pushes us very hard at practices. There’s a lot of energy out there.”

Though she is pleased with her performance level, Carroll said there’s always work to be done. “I need to work on a couple things, including my passing,” she said. “Passing. Passing, Passing. We really have to work on that.”

Fairfax said the key to success this season is communication and confidence. “They have to believe in themselves,” she said. “And they’ve got that.”

This story was originally published August 24, 2015 at 2:49 PM with the headline "First-year York volleyball coach optimistic."