Cape volleyball back with a force
The 2024 edition of the Cape volleyball squad is back and looking to improve on its 9-7 2023 campaign when they lost to Delmarva Christian in the first round of the DIAA State Tournament.
“Last week was a strong week of tryouts for our program,” said Cape coach Tyler Coupe. “We had 48 girls show up and fight for a spot on one of our teams. This year we have a balance of mostly juniors, sophomores and freshmen, and are led with veteran leadership from Ava Calciano, Brielle Ross, Maggie Minto and Emme Smith.”
“I believe we can help carry the team to the state tournament because of our very strong start to the season,” said senior Maggie Minto. “We are working to improve on our serve receive and the diversity of our offense in practice. I believe with our senior leadership we can keep competing at a very high level.”
“We have a very hardworking team,” said captain Ava Calciano. “Our practices are competitive, and everyone gets 1% better every day. After our first play day, it’s apparent that we all work so well together, and I’m excited to be on the court with these girls and improve our record from last season. Although we have four returning seniors, we have a bunch of experienced underclassmen. Amara Fruchtman is an amazing athlete; Harper Mamele is also a great player. We also have juniors Mallory Terhune and Amalia Fruchtman that are great players and leaders.”
“Our play day at Smyrna on Saturday was a nice opportunity to put several girls at different positions,” Coupe said. “One thing that’s unique is we have several athletes who can play several different positions, and play them efficiently. So it’s trying to find the right combo that makes most sense. We did a really good job of applying consistent and steady pressure on our opponents, whether in system or out of system. Our attacking errors were really low, which was a really promising sign for our first time of live play so early in the preseason. This Saturday will be a challenge, as we’re hosting some of the top teams in the state. It should give us a better idea of what areas of our game need more focus.”
Cape’s Saturday, Aug. 24 play day includes Archmere, Caravel, Conrad, Newark Charter, Padua, Smyrna, St. George’s, Tower Hill and Ursuline.
Dan has worked for the Cape Gazette for more than 30 years as a photographer and reporter, covering high school sports and happenings around eastern Sussex County. He won a photography award from the National Newspaper Association, and numerous awards from the Maryland, Delaware, D.C. Press Association. A Delaware native, Dan graduated from Cape in 1972 and returned as a teacher and coach in the 1980s. He retired from the classroom in 2016. He was inducted into Cape High’s Legends Stadium in 2016. In his spare time, Dan enjoys spending time with his wife, two sons, grandchildren and dogs.
