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Sokolova tunes up for second year with Green Wave volleyball
MALDEN, Mo. - Last fall was the first time since 2018 Malden volleyball finished with a winning season record.
The Green Wave accomplished a close 15 wins and 14 losses along with three ties to conclude the 2023 volleyball season. This was behind the leadership of first year head coach Jennifer Sokolova.
Now, as she enters her second year as head coach, Sokolova looks to take her team further this season. She said her goal will always be improvement for her players and this program.
“Attitudes have improved this year,” Sokolova said. “They want it more and so their work ethic has just gotten a little better and they’re trying a lot harder.”
According to Sokolova, due to last season’s improvement compared to the previous years, her players are more dedicated to achieving success.
For the players, Sokolova returning this year was a huge motivation to work harder.
According to senior Mikalyn Vipperman, Sokolova is the third coach Malden has hired in her four years. She said Sokolova coming back this season shows she actually cares about the team and their success.
“I think just having a coach that is here is important,” Vipperman said. “We did summer with her last year, had an entire volleyball season with her and the summer again. It’s just good to have a stable coach helping us and it makes our chemistry with each other a lot better too. Just to have a coach come back that we are all familiar with.”
Senior Rylie Brown said chemistry was major for the team’s success this season.
Brown has noticed the team grew closer over the summer and she thinks they are able to push each other to be the best versions of themselves on the court.
“As a team we have really good chemistry,” Brown said. “That’s helped a lot. We get along pretty well. We are like a big family this year. That will make or break you as a team whether you win or lose. It’s important because if you get down, good chemistry can bring you back up as a team, but if you don’t have that you are just stuck. You can have a group of talented girls, but without chemistry you can’t mix all that talent together.”
Brown and Vipperman will be two of three seniors returning this season. Along with them, Malden is adding eight freshmen to their roster this year.
Senior Mariah Loya said she is excited to add younger talent to the roster. According to her, all the girls have been working really hard in the off season and in the first weeks of practice to bring Green Wave success this Fall.
“Going into this year, we know what to expect,” Loya said. “We’re ready to work. There is a lot of talent. We want to take what we did last year and make it 10 times better.”
Last season the team made it to the second round of District before losing to Portageville in the Semi-finals.
According to Brown, this season is their revenge tour. They are looking to go further and win districts this season.
Sokolova has seen the determination her players have for the 2024 season. She said she can’t wait to show everyone who they are.
“These girls take it seriously,” Sokolova said. “They enjoy it. It’s not like, ‘I’m here just to play volleyball’. They want to win. I’m looking forward to seeing how these girls shine and show what they can do out on the court.”
The first game for Malden will be Sep. 3 at Hayti. The match will start at 6:30 p.m.
The first home game will be Sep. 9 also starting at 6:30 p.m.