For South Carolina volleyball, the stakes are at an all-time high as they enter this season with both new and experienced talent.
Junior Courtney Koehler was the only setter for the Gamecocks last season, which created opportunities for her leadership and skills to blossom. The 5-foot-11-inch Asheville native has found strength in her independence, but this season Koehler will find comfort in having someone else along her side.
“Last year I was the only setter on our team,” Koehler said. “So honestly I think having Courtney Weber here, she’s a freshman setter, we can both compete with each other, which I think is beneficial for both of us ... You mentally have to compete with yourself everyday, but also to have somebody else to compete with really helps.”
With Weber joining Koehler, South Carolina’s chemistry is on a deeper level this season. She says the team is focused and prepared to face a tough SEC schedule.
“Team chemistry has been the best that it’s ever been since I’ve been here,” Koehler said. “Last season we all had to sit down like a ‘come to Jesus’ type meeting and now we're all on the same page with each other. We all want to accomplish the same thing so I think that is a good common goal that we all have that we know that we're all working towards.”
Head coach Tom Mendoza’s goal this season is to set a high standard for his program and build a tradition or senior leadership. This is something the Gamecocks have confidence in heading into SEC play.
“I think we’ve got a lot of leaders, a lot of different personalities, different styles of leadership,” Mendoza said. “Our seniors are doing a really good job. They want to have a successful year and they want to leave on the right note and make an impact.”
South Carolina has stepped forward together with their expectations, which helped unify the team.
“I think fortunately we've had an abundance of leadership,” Mendoza said. “And I think everyone’s just learning how to kind of make it fit together and make it the most productive as possible.”
Despite the Gamecocks' awareness of looming SEC competition, they are focused on the first four weekends right now, trying to prepare for their home tournament on Aug. 24 in hopes to build a resume to make it to the NCAA tournament.
Koehler says that regardless of projections or the rankings of other teams, South Carolina will approach each game with determination.
“I feel like every game in the SEC is fair game," she said. "Anybody can win. Anybody can lose. We just have to prepare every single game like it’s Florida or Kentucky, our biggest game of the year because even if it’s a game we know we can win, we have to give our 110 percent or else we're not going to get better as a team.”