Injuries wreak havoc on Plum girls volleyball season

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, October 12, 2018 | 7:03 PM

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Plum girls volleyball coach Kelsey Bonk hasn’t had too many nights this season where she’s had her full complement of players available for a match.

Injuries have run rampant this season for the Mustangs, with 10 players missing at least one week of action and several lost for the season.

Add in the fact Plum was already a younger team with only four seniors, and it has made for a difficult season. The Mustangs are winless in Section 3-4A play, but most nights they’ve been able to take at least one set off their opponent.

“We have just been like dominoes going down with girls with injuries, so that’s played a big part,” Bonk said. “I don’t know if I have had the same lineup out there two games in a row. Throughout the season we’ve really struggled to keep the same girls on the court and healthy.”

Sophomore outside hitters Francesca Iervoline and Megan Bologna and sophomore libero Julia Vargo are all likely out for the season with injuries.

Despite being shorthanded most nights, Plum has taken one set or more in five section matches. They have at least one set victory against every section opponent except Connellsville.

Last week, the Mustangs were without a half dozen players, some for injury, others for personal reasons, making practices much smaller than normal. Some players have had to play both JV and varsity. It’s made it difficult to build cohesion on the floor with so many combinations having to be used for matches.

“Last week, we had like 14 or 15 girls total that could play. We kept saying it looked like a club team, because there were so few of us,” Bonk said. “It makes practices really tough, because you can’t get done what you want to get done and you have to move girls around. (Tuesday) I didn’t have my libero (Vargo) for the first time, so I ended up playing three different girls there to see what I have and what rotations looked best without her in.”

Plum did score a 3-0 nonsection win over rival Gateway. It was one of the few times all season everyone was healthy and able to play.

“That’s a game that our girls love, because they are so close with them and they play club volleyball with a lot of them,” Bonk said. “They all were very close sets, and it’s a good rivalry for the girls, kind of like Burrell was for me when I played at Valley.”

Makayla Jackson is a player Bonk said has stepped up during the absences this season. The 6-foot sophomore middle hitter is someone Bonk is looking at as major piece going forward.

“We have basically run our offense through her,” Bonk said. “After the game (on Tuesday), the Latrobe coach was raving about her and how well she’s been doing. She’s going to be a part of that young core that’s going to be leading us the next couple of years.”

The closest the Mustangs came to getting the first section win was against Penn Hills, where they fell 3-2. The Mustangs took the first set and led by four points in the decider, but saw the Indians comeback for a 15-13 win to take the match.

Being able to win sets is a positive step the Mustangs can build upon in the offseason, as well as having a lot of underclassmen see plenty of reps.

“We have one really good set, but we have trouble sustaining it,” Bonk said. “We’ve talked about how that’s a big difference from middle school, junior varsity and even club where it’s best of three. We have to put a little more consistent play to be able to pull out three wins at the varsity level.”

Plum hosts Penn Hills on Thursday to close out the season. The Mustangs would love to score a win for the team’s four seniors — Miranda Depkon, Alexa Waros, Jadyn Hill and Melissa Reynolds.

“It would be huge because it’s our senior night,” Bonk said. “It’d be great to send our seniors off with a win and show some of the progress we’ve had through the year, because I think we have had some improvement. It’s hard to tell when you’re not running the same lineup consistently.”

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer.

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