With just a few weeks separating them from the start of the season, the Goshen Eagles are busy at work preparing for what they hope will be a successful volleyball season.

The Eagles lost five players to graduation in 2016. Although they are in rebuilding mode, head coach Amy Warrick sees a lot of fight in her players.

“We are putting it together,” Warrick said. “I am not saying we are going to be as dominant as we were last year, but this team has a lot of heart and they are very scrappy. This team does not give up. They fight hard. They just don’t kill the ball as hard as they need to.”

Warrick has seen improvements in the passing game as well as blocking and serving. But what has impressed Warrick the most has been how hard her players work day in and day out.

“They are working hard,” Warrick said. “This is probably one of the hardest working teams that we have had. They stay after school and lift weights everyday. They go to the weight room and jump rope and blocks. When they come to practice they have already lifted weights.

“They are putting in the work. We just have so much to get done. We have our rotations down. We now just have to get the little things down and try to get everybody to play a little better.”

The Eagles open the season on Aug. 25 against Straughn. The Eagles will play a schedule that is nearly identical to the one they played last year.

“We open up with Straughn,” Warrick said. “They are tough. They didn’t lose as many players as we did, so they are going to be hitting hard. It is going to be a great test right out of the box for us.”

Even though they are in rebuilding mode the Eagles believe they still have a chance to make noise within their area this season.

“We are going to have to get better at blocking and reading the ball,” Warrick said. “Our passing was awful at the beginning of the year, but it has gotten better. They are getting it done … I am hopeful I have seen improvement, and they have grown up. I am not going to tell you we are not going to be there, we are going to try. We are working.”