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The Charles Henderson Lady Trojans are hungry for a return to the playoffs as volleyball season fast approaches.

Head coach Sonny Kirkpatrick is excited about a productive summer for his volleyball squad.

“It went pretty well,” he said of the summer. “It’s a growing process, a time for the athletes to kind of figure out what we’re asking them to do and to see that it works. We had a really good camp that we went to and I thought we got better, which is the overall goal for the summer.”

Charles Henderson returns almost the entirety of its team from 2023. That includes All-Messenger athletes Jordan Owens (3.4 kills, 4.6 digs and 1.3 aces per set) and Sinai Sanchez (7.8 assists, 2.1 digs and one ace per set).

“We return everyone except two of our players from last year,” Kirkpatrick said. “Anyone has the opportunity to step up and make plays for the team and lead. If you make plays, you become a leader. You can’t become a leader if you’re not out there making plays and being vocal.”

Charles Henderson’s 2024 roster includes Olivia Bivin, Bennett Holmes, Abby Key, Addison Key, Kayla Loflin, Brooklyn Moran, Jordan Owens, Sinai Sanchez, Katie Sparrow, Isabella Turner, Savannah Turner, Ansley Watkins and Mackenzie White.

“We had a lot of players that were able to gain experience last year and when you return almost everyone you have a ton of experience on your team,” Kirkpatrick said. “I’ve been pleased with the overall growth with the team in general this offseason. The way we schedule our practices – and work our practices – gives everyone the chance to step up into a role if needed. They’ve all worked extremely hard.”

Kirkpatrick said that defense and ball control is what his team is focusing on heading into the season.

“Those are the keys for us,” he said. “If you can do those things then you have the opportunity for that to translate into offense. We aren’t a very physical team – height wise – so we have to have good defense and translate that into opportunities on the offensive end.”

Charles Henderson tips off the season on Aug. 24 at the Purple Cat Tournament in Ariton before hosting the first home match of the season against Luverne on Aug. 27.

“The goal is to compete every time we’re on the floor,” Kirkpatrick emphasized. “We did not do that last year. We panicked at points and I think the experience we gained last year – and through the summer – should help us overcome those shortcomings we had last year.”