A year older, Eagles look for better results

A young team takes its early-year struggles and uses them as lessons going forward.

That’s what Oak Mountain’s volleyball program is hoping for, after a letdown in the Class 7A, Area 5 Tournament last fall.

“Although we had beaten Thompson three times already going into the area match, they beat us that one time, eliminated us and ended our season that way,” said Tien Le, the Eagles’ head coach.

The Eagles rose to as high as No. 4 in 7A in the Alabama Sports Writers Association rankings in 2015, but “mentally” struggled in the postseason.

Le said he is excited about the class of girls who will be juniors this fall, and hopes another year under their belt will prove beneficial in making a deep playoff run in 2016.

“We’re hoping, and we’re really thinking that, now that they’re juniors with three years behind them, we can do a lot better,” Le said. “The outlook for this year’s team is very, very high.”

Unfortunately for the Eagles, Cameron Rueschenberg, who would “probably be the leader on the court,” suffered a knee injury that required surgery in April, Le said. There is an outside chance she could return to practice at some point in August, but the exact timeline of her recovery has yet to be determined.

Mollie Grace Wade is a soft-spoken leader for Oak Mountain, and is a setter as well as a hitter. Jacoby Sims and Kenzie Warren make up the rest of the senior class along with Wade.

“We’re going to rely on Jacoby to carry a lot more of our offense (until Rueschenberg is back),” Le said.

Torie Denkers and Kaitlyn Lund are two others who will bolster the Eagles attack, along with a handful of others who will contribute greatly, according to Le.

Oak Mountain opens its season Aug. 25 at Bayside Academy in Daphne.