Whitehorse volleyball thankful to be on court

The Whitehorse High School volleyball team has opened the 2021 season with two wins and six losses through the first eight games. The wins came over Shiprock Northwest on August 31 and Pinnacle in their most recent match on September 18.

After an entire season with no team due to a COVID-19 shutdown in 2020, the Lady Raiders are thankful to be back on the court this season.

New Lady Raider head coach Joni Dickson reached out to the San Juan Record to talk about her team in 2021. Here’s what she has to say through the first few weeks of the season:

“First and foremost, I have to say that these girls are an amazing group of athletes. This is my first-year coaching varsity high school volleyball. It is also the school’s first year back in participating in high school sports since 2019.

“From the beginning of the season our team made it a point to communicate effectively and trust one another. I know that we have accomplished those goals successfully. Our girls have also rapidly matured to be varsity players.

“This is an outstanding accomplishment that they should be proud of. Out of our 12 athletes, we have only a few who had any varsity playing experience at the beginning of the season. If you watch them play now, you would not have thought they missed a year of varsity volleyball.  

“We have three seniors, Shaundiin Tenorio, McKeeda Sam, and Kailee Tohonnie, who bring a lot of positive energy to the team for their senior year of volleyball. We have four juniors, four sophomores, and one freshman. All of these ladies have great strengths that have contributed to the team’s successful growth thus far.

“We are currently 2-6 overall and 1-3 in the region. The girls are not done. Our record does not reflect a lack of athleticism or passion, it reflects the time we missed in building our experience.”

The Lady Raiders are set for a light week, with a local rivalry match against the Monticello Lady Buckaroos in Montezuma Creek Tuesday, September 28 (after our press deadline).

Coach Dickson reports that the school has limited attendance for home games this season – two guests per player and coaches.

The coaching staff is live streaming all of Whitehorse’s games for the community through the high school’s Facebook page.

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