By Victoria Mejicanos, August 29, 2023
The Cal Poly Pomona volleyball team will take the court Thursday, Aug. 31 for its first pre-season game against American International College as part of the Hawai‘i Pacific University’s Hawai‘i Challenge invitational, where the Broncos hope to start one of their strongest seasons yet.
After winning the CCAA Tournament last season, the Broncos are eager to advance even further and have the confidence to do so.
According to head coach Traci Dahl, the team is full of ambitious and experienced players.
“We’ve got a lot of lofty goals this season,” Dahl said. “We’re a pretty veteran team with some very talented freshmen on the team this year which is exciting.”
Dahl made it clear her goal as head coach is to take the team as far as possible.
“The goal for this team is obviously to win a championship,” she said.
Fifth-year athlete Caitie Mueller echoed the sentiment.
“We’re not going to settle for just for winning the tournament,” Mueller said. “We want to win the regular season, and we want to be first. And we want to go to NCAA and go further in regionals and go to the nationals.”
What makes the Broncos ready for a championship win, Mueller said, is their teamwork.
“We all have that same goal and that same drive, and it really unites us,” she said.
Muller added that the team’s bond allows them to encourage each other to accomplish their shared goals.
Mueller shared that a major part of the reason why she chose to play for CPP was not just because she viewed it as a winning program, but because of the ambition and shared drive of her teammates.
“They always find ways to be together and around each other, and I think that’s what really helps our team culture, is their willingness to be with each other all the time,” said Dahl.
Mueller and Dahl said that their first scrimmage helped them see where the team is at as a unit.
“I feel really good,” Mueller said. “A lot of the things that we have just practiced this week are coming together. And obviously, there are still a lot of things for us to work on and get together, but overall, we’re a really solid team right now. We have a lot of things in our arsenal.”
Dahl shared that although it can be difficult to build team chemistry on the court within a week, the scrimmage helped boost her hope for the upcoming season. She stated that the team is already playing at a high level and shows much promise.
She also expressed how the newer team members contributed to her excitement for this season.
“We’ve got three extremely talented freshmen on the team, and they’re already starting to make their marks just within a week, which is amazing,” said Dahl, referring to the three new athletes on the team: Landen Allison-Bullock, Sarah Ybarra and Alexia Athans
Besides the team dynamics, Dahl stated that she is also excited to see how the team handles a challenging schedule and how they fare against other teams.
Following the Hawai‘i Challenge, the Broncos will host their Fall Classic Sept. 7 – 9 before kicking off the regular season with an away game against Cal State Monterey Bay Friday, Sept. 15.
Feature image courtesy of CPP Athletics
