Laura’s place

This year is my second year on the school volleyball team (GO COBRAS!). The team this year is mostly 8th graders, just like last year. But last year there were no 7th graders on the team and so the only veteran players are three seventh graders (including me). Today we played our fifth game, and celebrated our third win. The season was off to a rocky start: we lost the first and third games and only BARELY won the second. However, we kicked our opponent’s donkeys the fourth game and the same with the fifth.

The day before the fourth game, Ms. Butcher (the volleyball coach) put me in for a teammate in the front row. I can play both back and front row well enough but I think the front in so much more fun. During the three positions in the front, I got about eight spikes in. And so Ms. Butcher realized I’d be better off in the front row and put me in the front in the fourth game. During the entire game I got seven spikes in, about half of which the other team had trouble returning. In all modesty, I did pretty well. I was put in the front again today and got more spikes in, most of which the other team did not return. My form still needs work, though.

Our team has some signature cheers. When we score a point someone will say, “3,2,1″ and the rest of us will shout, “aaaaaahhhh BEAST!” and if the other team gets a point someone says, “1,2,3″ and the rest shout, “TEAM!” We refer to the players, if they do really good in a game, as “a beast.” It was so cool when some people on the team were like, “Laura’s a beast!” I just felt really awesome.

We have a lot of fun with each other. When waiting for the MUNI to come home the entire team stood at the bus stop shouting at cars to honk or just shouting, “HI!!” A LOT of people honked. It was sort of surprising. It was really fun, but afterwards my throat was sore.

Last year the school volleyball team SUCKED. We won two games. This year it’s pretty much the opposite. So far we’ve won three and lost two, and we have two more to go. We are tied with Aptos for 5th place in the middle school rankings. If we win the next to games, against Visitation Valley and Aptos, we make in to the playoffs in 4th place. If we beat the other team, whoever they might be, we make it to championships! We’re so close!