Volleyball season is just around the corner at Centralia College, and on Friday, the Trailblazers hosted a super scrimmage with four other teams to help prepare for their opener next Friday.
Chemeketa, South Puget Sound, Shoreline, and Wenatchee Valley all came to Michael Smith Gymnasium to take part in the scrimmages, and the Trailblazers split into two teams.
“It’s just a good opportunity to get some play in before the season starts,” Centralia coach Ceanna Larson said. “It’s always fun to have that first game where we’re not scrimmaging ourselves.”
Each squad, including both of CC’s teams, got to play five 20-minute exhibitions, and Larson said it was a great way to gauge which formations and lineups worked best in a low-pressure environment.
“There were standout moments on both teams,” Larson said. “I think they did a great job today. We’ve got a lot of talent this year, so it’s really exciting to see when we’ll come together with our lineups and start pushing forward.”
Six players from last year’s group are back in the mix, including Centralia graduates Evie Rooklidge and Peyton Smith, Tenino graduate Seaonna Morgann, and W.F. West graduate Morgan Rogerson.
Joining them are 11 new freshmen, including former Centralia standout Lauren Wasson and Toledo’s Lyndzie Filla, both of which earned all-league honors in their respective leagues their senior season last fall.
Larson, who didn’t become the coach of the program until deep in the summer last year, is excited to continue to build up the program with her recruits, saying that the team is making sure to stamp their footing in Centralia and beyond.
“I knew coming to CC that that was a place I could build a really successful program,” Larson said. “I was really excited to take over, help rebuild, and make volleyball something to be excited about in Lewis County … For all of our freshmen to be here and be in season mode, it’s gonna be really exciting.”
The Trailblazers will have an intrasquad scrimmage on Tuesday before hosting the Blazer Classic to open the regular season next weekend.
They’ll take on Big Bend on Friday at 3 p.m. before facing Blue Mountain on Saturday morning and South Puget Sound Saturday Night.
