Winning in three sets against Robbinsdale Cooper Oct. 27, although the team was expecting an easy win, the players started out on the wrong foot, according to assistant varsity coach Sydney Griffin.

“We were lacking a little bit of energy in the beginning, but they finally got it back; we had a full practice this morning, so that contributed to that a little bit. Everyone just did their job,” Griffin said.

According to senior Maya Betzer, the team struggled with coordination and staying hyped up for the game with the pandemic because the players weren’t able to cheer or express their emotions as much.

“It was kinda weird that the (referee) said we couldn’t clap each other’s hands or touch each other,” Betzer said. “That affected how we played because we weren’t able to get excited after the good plays; we couldn’t high-five each other.”

According to senior captain Hannah Howell, the team had to focus on playing their best regardless of what was happening on the other side of the net.

“We knew that we just had to respect whoever is on the other side and we’re ready for anything,” Howell said. “We know that we couldn’t expect typical volleyball shots to come over, so we just had to be ready for anything no matter what comes over and play to our standard rather than stick to theirs.”

Griffin said the team is striving to work hard daily in order to stay on top of their game.

“We just get better each day; that’s the goal at this point,” Griffin said. “During this time, you can’t take any day for granted, I know a few people have lost their seasons, so we just want to play our best every day.”

According to Howell, the team started with a different lineup than usual, which changed up the typical playing style.

“We ran a 6-2 today instead of a 5-1 which is what we typically run, so we had another setter and worked on a lot of connections with her, and it was good to see her on the court,” Howell said.

The next girls’ volleyball game is at 7 p.m. Oct. 29 against Chaska at Chaska High School.