By Michael Letendre
EAST HAVEN – After the 3-0 loss by the Bristol Central volleyball to eventual state champion Joel Barlow on November 19, the program said goodbye to a talented group of senior warriors.
And after a 19-win campaign, the program’s first ever CCC South title and a boatload of postseason awards, the Rams are eager to replicate that success in 2023.
The talented grouping of Brooke Valentino, Olivia Clingan, Maddie Lodovico, De’Ana Prowell and Sam Sklenka got the program to new heights.
Now, it will be up to a core grouping of varsity athletes – with a sprinkling of underclassmen – to continue the program’s upward trend.
“I think whenever you get to this point, it’s not just [about] your varsity kids,” said Central coach Lance Pepper. “It’s your freshman kids who are practicing against your JV kids and your JV kids practicing against varsity kids.”
Three special players – setter Alex Rivera, outside hitter Grace Higgins, and middle hitter Lily Kirk – already have a firm foundation laid out for next season.
“I think the future’s bright for our kids,” said Pepper. “Returning those three pieces is huge.”
And you think about where Kirk came from, competing against a winless team (Plainville) to tackling a program that never lost in 2022 (Joel Barlow).
She’ll be returning as a sophomore with invaluable experience, unlimited athletic ability, and will be one of the leaders of the program in just her second year of scholastic play.
“She went from playing against Plainville to playing against Joel Barlow in the state finals,” said Pepper of Kirk. “She just puts so much pressure on herself.”
Higgins saved a bit of her best play for the postseason as well and as the state tournament went on, she seemingly got better.
Ditto with Rivera.
But the setter was truly more than just someone who helped get the ball to all the right players.
She hustled, displayed tremendous guile and scored a point or two along the way all the while putting the chess pieces on the court into place for the best possible position for a big swing or a loud kill.
“Alex, just the progress she’s made from where she was last year to where she is now is unreal,” said Pepper of Rivera. [Sophomore] Grace [Higgins] as a freshman, only played in the back row last year and now she’s an offense option for us too.”
And if you’re ever going to check out a game or match from the Charles C. Marsh Gymnasium on the campus of Bristol Central, you are always inundated with sports pictures, trophies and championship accomplishments.
Now, a wing must be made for the volleyball program’s first ever runner-up trophy along with several CCC South and All State award winners.
“I think it’s surreal,” said Pepper of getting Central’s first major volleyball trophy. “I told the girls, ‘when you think about Bristol Central athletics, what do you think of? You never thought about volleyball and it’s because of them that we’re here.’”
This is the first step that eventually could lead to something much bigger.
But when this special group, years down the road, come back to Central with their family to check out a volleyball game, a couple of trophies and awards will have to be checked out before strolling into the gymnasium.
“To put a trophy in our trophy case is something that I think a lot of our kids would [think] is a dream,” said Pepper. “And we have kids that have been on multiple state championship teams, and I don’t know the last time we’ve have kids who have had that opportunity.”
“It’s awesome for these kids to have this success.”
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