It has been an off-season of change for the Macomb High volleyball squad.
That starts at the top. Hillary Humes steps in as the new head coach, replacing Briana Rexroat, who resigned last spring after guiding the program for the past 10 seasons.
Macomb posted a record of 247-85 in that span. The last four years, the Bombers were 124-25, winning three Class 2A Regional titles.
Macomb finished last season with a 31-5 record. The Bombers saw their season ended by Tremont 25-22, 25-23 in the Class 2A Regional final at Farmington.
Humes is not a stranger to the Macomb volleyball programs, having coached at the middle school, freshman and JV levels during the past five years.
Humes has set the tone early with practice standards including hustle, effort and communicating.
“I just like setting goals in practice,” she said. “Not just showing up and going through the gamut of drills.”
“I want us to always be mentally aware,” Humes added. “What are we striving for? What are our goals for the season? Even what are our goals for this two hour practice and what are we hoping to achieve?”
While eight seniors graduated from last year’s team, nine seniors return in an effort to make their own mark on the program.
“They’re hungry to get started and prove themselves,” said Humes. “They’re ready to make their mark this season.”
Sophie Wilson will run the offense from the setter position. Humes stated that Wilson worked with this group of hitters at the JV level.
“They’ve got great chemistry working together,” said Humes. “She’s a great leader on the court. She pushes them and she works hard. She takes feedback well.”
Jordan Hines (51 kills) is a left-handed right side hitter that looks to be a “big offensive threat who is very competitive and wants to win,” said Humes. “She has great ball control in the back row, and can add back row offense that’s going to help us offensively.”
The returning player with the most varsity experience is middle hitter Cadence Hotz (61 kills, team-leading 52 total blocks).
Leftside Ella Hare, who broke her leg as a sophomore, worked her way back as a junior and is poised for a big senior season.
“She has stepped up in a big way,” said Humes. “She’s a great ball control player.”
Dakota Thorman will join Hotz in the middle.
“She’s a go-getter and wants to do a great job,” said Humes.
In the back row, Emily Westerhold (30 service aces) and Jordyn Shoopman are among the leaders.
“Either one can really be a libero,” said Humes. “They both work so hard. They both have great ball control and they both lead in different ways. And they are hungry to dig.”
Another versatile player for the Bombers is Addy Fox, who can play left or right and according to Humes is “a solid utility player and a great server.”
Entering the mix is freshman Jersee Mills who Humes stated has a lot of raw potential. A middle hitter in junior high, Humes is moving Mills to the outside.
“It’s probably a lot on her shoulders to step in, but this summer she worked really well with the varsity,” said Humes of Mills.
Humes is always on the lookout for six rotation players. A core group that’s out there for their ball control and their hustle.
As part of Humes’s message to the team to “embrace change,” part of that includes the effort to become more diverse and more versatile as a player.
“The more versatile you are, the more chances you have to help the team and find that success,” said Humes.
Her aunt, long-time coach Teri Paul, will join Humes on the bench this season. And just like Paul, Humes is not afraid to experiment with different lineups.
“I like playing in chaos and having all kinds of change, because (the players) have to adjust,” said Humes. “A team that can adapt through chaos and change can find success.”
She noted that good goals for the team to have are 20 wins and a good postseason run.
Another goal for the team is to at least place in all tournaments.
“That is not a bad season,” said Humes.
She is also not focusing so much on last year and the team’s 21-0 start to the season.
“It’s a fantastic goal to have,” said Humes. “But you learn from your losses too. If we have some losses this season, whether it’s early or mid-season, we’ll learn from them and be better for it.”
“I’d rather hit our peak later in the season than right at the start,” said Humes. “That’s our goal really.”
Humes stated that she looks for the team’s confidence to grow on the court as the season progresses and it gains much-needed experience.
“Without a lot of varsity experience, they lack that confidence,” she said. “They have the skills. They have the trust in each other. It’s just building that confidence on the court.”
“Staying confident throughout the season and trusting their skills that they’ve built (will be key),” added Humes. “They’re there. They just have to trust that they’ve done the work and that they’ll see the results.”
