The Haldane girls’ volleyball team, under second-year coach Kristina Roling, is coming off a 13-2 season in which the Blue Devils fell to Croton in the regional semifinals in April during a fall season that had been delayed until spring.
The team will miss graduated All-Section selection Maria Barry but returns Meghan Tomann, Jillian Weinpahl, Megan Farrell, Kate Jordan and Mikayla Santos. Newcomers are Grace Bradley, Lola Mahoney, Maddie Knox and Scotia Hartford.
“We’re split down the middle with experience: some varsity and some junior varsity or club experience,” said Roling. “We have big goals but are focusing on working as a team and supporting the players with limited experience.”
After a season played in mostly empty gyms because of the pandemic shutdown, Roling said that “having spectators will add to the games. It’ll be nice to play in front of a cheering crowd.”
The Blue Devils open their season today (Sept. 10) hosting Westlake before visiting Briarcliff on Sept. 17.
On the college front, Olivia Monteleone, a 2020 Haldane graduate who plays for Western Connecticut State, was named Little East Conference Rookie of the Week, after tallying a team-high 16 service aces (.89 per set) and 41 digs (2.27 per set) in a 2-2 week for the squad that included wins over SUNY New Paltz and Vassar.