The Atlantic volleyball team is coming off a season that saw solid improvement and with a ton of experience returning they are hoping to make that next jump. Head Coach Michelle Blake said not only do they return a lot of talent, it’s also a pretty cohesive team.

Coach Blake said they will have some good height at the front of the net again but one area they hope to really improve is their overall defense.

The Trojans debuted at #12 in the preseason IGHSAU Class 3A rankings that were just released this week. Coach Blake said while that kind of recognition is nice it isn’t anything to get caught up in. The Trojans finished 17-20 last year and Coach Blake said they really want win the close matches this year and become a winning team.

Some of the key returning players are Abby Smith who led the team with 207 kills. Aubrey Guyer who had 134 kills an 41 blocks. Chloe Mullenix who led the team with 55 blocks. Lexi Noelck and Jada Jensen who led the way with 322 and 329 assists respectively. That’s just to name a few of the statistical leaders. Coach Blake said Guyer has been one of the strong team leaders.

The Trojans open up their season on Thursday night at home against Des Moines Roosevelt. The varsity match will start at about 7:15 p.m. They will follow that with a weekend trip to the AHSTW Tournament.