The Appalachian State volleyball team has been a dominating force on the court since the season started a little more than two weeks ago.
App State traveled to Waco, Texas, to compete in the Baylor Tournament against Colorado in today at 10 a.m.
During the first tournament of the season, the Mountaineers swept the Appalachian Invitational 3-0, never dropping a set.
It seems that the magic has only continued from there, as the team has only lost one of their past seven matches, losing to the Wolfpack during the N.C. State Tournament.
The Mountaineers worked on developing a new offensive system during the offseason and wanted to speed their game up.
“It’s a little bit faster and requires a little bit more precision on our part,” head coach Matt Ginipro said. “A big thing that we’ve been emphasizing is ball control. We have to get the ball to Paige, and she has to make the right decisions.”
The new system appears to be in full effect, as the team swept the competition in five of their last seven games in three straight sets.
In the past two weeks, two Mountaineers have gained recognition for their success, having been named Southern Conference players of the week.
Meghan Mahoney was named Defensive Player of the Week for Sept. 2 and Emily Corrigan earned Offensive Player of the Week for Sept. 9, according to appstatesports.com.
“Offensively I think we’re doing a great job, defensively I’d like us to be a little bit stronger,” Ginipro said. “This weekend will be a pretty good test for that, we’re playing three really good teams.”
This weekend App State will have a chance to continue to show dominance as they head to Texas to compete in the Baylor Tournament.
“This weekend we know we’re going in to play some big teams that are better than us, but we want to go and just play all-out,” Emily Corrigan said. “May the best team win, but we’re going to get better as a team whether we win or lose.”
Coming out on top during this tournament will put the Mountaineers on track to have a better record than they did during the 2012-13 season, where they finished 7-23.
“We just want to have fun out there and improve from last year,” Corrigan said. “We want to make an impact and a statement that Appalachian Volleyball is here to stay and we’re a force to be reckoned with.”
Story: KAITLYN THRUSTON, Senior Sports Reporter