Troup Volleyball returns to the court

Published 9:15 am Wednesday, August 3, 2022

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The Troup High School volleyball returned to the court on Monday as it got ready for its first scrimmages on Thursday against Callaway and LaGrange. There are some new faces in the fold, including head coach Blair Hutch, who is going into his first season as head coach, but also some returning ones like Jodi Dowden who coached the Tigers for a number of years before retiring. Blair was the team manager a decade ago when Bowdon was the head coach and now she is his assistant as they have come full circle.

“She is a huge asset to have,” Blair said. 

Monday was the first day of official practice for the Tigers. Blair is still sifting through who will be his six starters and who will be his key contributors off the bench. It is a tough process that will not be set in stone until he gets to see them on the court in real game action. 

“I’m still working through that right now,” Blair said. “I’ll have a better understanding next week after I try out different lineups and positioning during our scrimmages.”

Right now, the girls are working to knock off the rust and get back into game shape. It is not a quick shake of the tail and the rust falls off. It is a process as many of the girls on the team have not played much volleyball since the previous season ended. Despite the long layoff for many of the girls, Blair is pleased with the team he has assembled.

“I think we have a really good team with a lot of really talented girls,” Blair said. 

It is a learning process for everybody involved as Blair gets used to being a head coach for the first time and the girls get used to a new coach. Despite it being a process, Blair has high hopes for the team this year.

“I want the team to be about solidarity,” Blair said. “I want the team to come together and have a fun time while we go as far as we can in the playoffs and progress each player’s skills along the way.”