Sedona Red Rock High School head volleyball coach John Parks seeks consistency out of more than inconsistency from this fall’s team.

That was the case last season as the Scorpions lost four matches in five sets, capped by a 3-2 exit from the first round of the postseason at the hands of Florence High School.

“We have more experience now,” said Parks, the original Scorpions head volleyball coach, as he begins his 23rd season Tuesday, Aug. 30, playing against Chino Valley High School. “We have a lot of girls that played minutes last year. They’ll know what to expect. I think that’s going to pay off.”

It already did Saturday, Aug. 20, with far fewer unforced errors in the Scorpions’ annual preseason scrimmages against Northern Arizona powers Monument Valley, Snowflake and Tuba City high schools.

“Scoring points for the other team, it’s tough,” Parks said. “This year, the girls know how to make adjustments. I think we’ll be a lot better playing at those intense levels all the time.

“Right now, we’re probably a little better than we were at this point last year. A point or two. The teamwork is great; the chemistry is great.”

With eight Scorpions returning from that 13-12-1 team, half of them starters, supplemented on junior varsity by a strong freshman class, Parks has the nucleus to return the Scorpions to the prominence the 2014 state runners-up achieved.

“It takes a few weeks,” Parks said. “Sometimes, what looks good in practice doesn’t look good in games. Different intensity, people are yelling and screaming in the crowd [and] you’ve got officials out there blowing whistles.”

He also has the schedule, with 12 of his 17 non-tournament matches in Doc Adams Gym this fall.

“I’ll enjoy this more,” he said. “You’re playing schools that are similar to you in population, not five times your size. There’s lots of teams out there that could make a run.”

One of the two tournaments is the Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix at the end of next month.

“We do it every other year,” Parks said. “It’s a big, great tournament.”

His front line is experienced, if not as tall as two seasons ago, with six-footer Sophia Perry and fellow senior Shelby Brackin as returning starters as well as primary kill candidates.

“It changes from day to day,” Parks said. “Nobody’s been on the most.”

Junior Julia Koss also is a returning starter at outside hitter, where she missed much of the second half of last season due to a shoulder injury.

Koss will be pushed for time by senior Xan Hawes and junior Kira Sapach. Senior Hannah Ringel also hopes to parlay her late-season starts at setter in 2015 into a regular spot in the rotation.

Junior Liza Westervelt played libero “every second last year,” he said, and is also one of his top returning servers.

She will be supplemented along the back line this fall by junior Chenoa Crans as well as sophomore Kelsey Woellmer.

Hawes and fellow senior Madi Ninneman will battle it out along the back line for defensive specialist.

“You can play great and still lose,” Parks said. “You can play awful and still win.
“We’ve got to be consistent the whole year. No more of this up-and-down stuff.”

Westervelt’s sister, Mary, Morgan Fritz and Jacki King comprise a strong freshman class Parks believes can challenge for varsity time. King, in particular, was impressive Aug. 20 along the front line.

All three players were standouts last season as eighth-graders at Big Park Community School.

“The girls are committed, they work hard [and] they do whatever I ask them to do, which is nice,” Parks said. “You really can’t control whether you win or lose, but you can control your effort and attitude.”

For the full Sedona Red Rock High School volleyball schedule, please see the Friday, Aug. 26, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.