HARRIS - Bark River-Harris head coach John Jorasz feels he has a volleyball team ready to take the next step. After making strides last season in earning a berth in the district title game, the senior dominated Broncos are looking to get back to that point.
"It looks like we're going to have a good team," said Jorasz. "We have lots of returning players and lot of good talent coming up from last year's jayvee team.
"We're hoping to have a repeat season and that's not going to come without a lot of hard work, but the girls are putting in the effort and trying to get one step up."
Senior Sarah Madalinski should be an intimidating presence up the middle for the Broncos, and fellow seniors Miranda St. John and Megan Derusha will hold down the front row.
"We have a lot of offensive weapons on this team," said Jorasz, "but Sarah is one of the biggest."
The Broncos also feature seniors at setter in Kylie VanBrocklin and back row in Emily Draze.
"Kylie will be our setter but we'll also use her in the front row as well for whatever we need her for," said Jorasz.
Jorasz will also enjoy solid depth on this team of 13 kids. Varsity newcomers include juniors Cassidy Getzloff, Savanna Stenberg and Haley Clement.
"Those are a few of the strong back row players that should have a big impact," said Jorasz. "Cassidy will be more of an all-around player like most of the girls we have, but she'll also play up front as an outside hitter."
A possible wildcard is the addition of Aleesa Madalinski who will see some time at setter. "Aleesa will be a big one for us on the floor. She's (2012 graduate) Abbie Madalinski's sister and she'll be following in her footsteps as setter."
The Broncos are still searching for someone to hold down the libero position. Jorasz said that may not be determined until a few games into the season.
"We're still working on the libero position," he said. "There's a lot of girls on the team that could possibly play libero for us, but no one is set in stone. It might change from game to game."
The Broncos will find out what they're made of right away as their first game is Thursday against Skyline conference defending champion, Forest Park. Jorasz also pointed to North Dickinson as a potential contender, as they eliminated the Broncos in districts last season.
"They're all big competitors if you don't show up, but the biggest ones are Crystal Falls and North Dickinson. They always give us a run for our money," he said. You just have to show up to play and take care of business one team at a time. It's always a learning experience every game. You learn what you can do better and you can always improve."
The schedule:
Aug. 30 - Forest Park
Sept. 4 - Munising; Sept. 6 - Big Bay de Noc; Sept. 11 - Stephenson; Sept. 13 - at Rapid River; Sept. 18 - Superior Central; Sept. 20 - at Mid Peninsula; Sept. 24 - at Munising; Sept. 25 - Triangular meet with North Central at Carney-Nadeau; Sept. 27 - Rapid River
Oct. 1 - at Big Bay de Noc; Oct. 6 - at Menominee tournament; Oct. 8 - at Superior Central; Oct. 11 - North Dickinson; Oct. 15 - Mid Peninsula; Oct. 16 - Triangular meet with Carney-Nadeau; Oct. 23 - at North Dickinson; Oct. 25 - at Forest Park.