By Eric Gilmore
Media Manager, DigitalSports.com
Click here to view the photo gallery!**Check below the story for video highlights and player interviews from Flowers' Nadeige Chop and Wise's Christian Tompkins**UPPER MARLBORO-
C.H. Flowers seventh-year volleyball coach
Jeff Ware cautioned his team prior to the start of the season that despite stellar records in 2006 and 2007, this season would be likely be a rebuilding year. With only three seniors and a slew of underclassmen, Ware wasn't expecting much after losing five seniors who helped post a 30-5 record over the past two seasons.
But three games into a new year, six juniors, three sophomores and even a pair of freshmen are carrying the load, as the Jaguars have raced to a 3-0 start heading into a pivotal match-up with
Evan Slaughter and
Oxon Hill on Tues., Sept. 16.
Flowers went on the road and swept an improving
Henry Wise squad, 3-0, on Thurs., Sept. 11. The victory was following a five-set match with
Parkdale only two days before.
Senior outside hitter
Nadeige Chop tied a team-high with 10 digs and tallied team-high nine kills, bringing her season total to 29 through three games. Fellow outside hitter
Tamara Leslie, only a sophomore, has also stepped into the limelight. Leslie recorded a game-high 19 points -- including 15 service aces -- to complement her nine digs and five kills in the 25-12, 25-14, 25-10 victory.
"They controlled serve," Ware said. "They positioned themselves getting sets and the
attack was very consistent. I've really happy with the effort they put
forth today."
Even Chop's younger sister, freshman
Gillian Chop, is stepping into the talent pool with her breakout performance in a come-from-behind five-set match with
Parkdale on Sept. 9. Gillian Chop had a team-high 23 points -- including 16 digs -- and five kills. Down 2-1, the Jaguars rallied back in winning back-to-back games.
"I'm really glad we've gotten these three wins," Nadeige Chop said. "It was difficult at first given that our skills have gone down from last year, but we're really putting it together. We're playing the best we can. Everybody is hustling and doing everything on the court. We'll see how it goes."
Flowers has to rely on underclassmen after losing standouts
Sydney Hare (Virginia State) and 6-foot-4
Jasmine Waters (Temple) to graduation. Waters set a school record for most blocks in a season en route to the Jaguars' 16-3 season in 2007. The graduation of five seniors has left Ware with a small lineup, one
that he claims is shorter than the junior varsity team. To compensate,
Ware has accentuated digs, instead of blocks, as a form of out hustling Flowers' opponents. Through 11 games, Flowers has 251 digs to only 18 blocks.
"We are rebuilding because most of the girls here don't have the experience we've had with the past teams," Nadeige Chop said.
The same storyline plagues
Wise, now 1-2 after sandwiching a five-game victory over
Northwestern-PG in between a season-opening loss 3-1 loss to
Suitland and the Flowers defeat. Inching out the 3-2 victory over the Wildcats was a solid step for head coach
Charlene Cherry and assistant
Mike Alexander, who were hired after the previous coach resigned.
"It's really good," said recently named Puma captain
Christian Tompkins, a senior setter about the new coaching staff. "We've welcomed them both with really big open arms.
We've been wanting a good, new trained coach. Most of us are seniors so
we've been on this team for three years so we wanted to win this year,
go to championships and play the best team out there. We got
[Alexander] and we're happy."
Alexander, who has never coached volleyball, but has played extensively has sparked a new found enthusiasm in Puma program. The players, however, understand it's going to be a process before Wise can compete with the upper echelon opponents.
"This game, I think we were a little outmatched because we are so new
with the coaches and trying to learn everything," Tompkins said. "[Flowers] played really,
really well... We're going to get better. Everyday, we're going to get more and more together."
Wise travels to
Eleanor Roosevelt before heading hosting
Laurel and
Bowie. The Jaguars, meanwhile, face
Oxon Hill before traveling to
Northwestern. After that, Flowers challenges
High Point,
Roosevelt,
Suitland and
Bowie during a pivotal four-game stretch that should shake out the Class 4A South standings.
"The girls have come around and I'm really proud of the progress we've made thus far," Ware said. "We still have some things to accomplish."
Henry Wise 12 14 10
C.H. Flowers 25 25 25
E-mail:
egilmore@digitalsports.com