Kennedy Volleyball Season

 

                Kennedy volleyball has been a big competitor for the past 6 years. Coach Michelle Goodall has been coaching varsity volleyball for 15 years at Kennedy. She played college ball and volleyball has been a part of her life since she was little. Her day job is with the national volleyball association and oversees the beach volleyball and boys leagues on the west coast and in the Midwest. When it comes to volleyball she knows her stuff. Goodall is assisted by Tim Johnson and together they have been very successful. They bounce off each other nicely and really become our mother and father from August to October.  We are with them more than we are with our own families. They have taken this program and made it one that is known.

                This season the girls volleyball team was ranked number 2 going into the season and had some tough losses at the beginning to the number 1 ranked team, Iowa City High, and a huge competitor Dubuque Hempstead.   Getting those loses knocked us out of the rankings right away, making it a battle to climb back to the top.  The coaches let us know that they were very disappointed in us and showed us their weakness. To be honest it probably was because this group of girls has never played with each other and they have been blessed with tremendous talent that took over in the past and that spark wasn’t there this year. D1 talent had graduated and we were left with D2 D3 material to work with and the coaches weren’t used to having to actually having to work with the players to improve them. Another obstacle that was put upon us was that there were 7 freshmen on the team.

                With all the obstacles given to the coaches we didn’t make it to the state tournament this year, making it the first year in 5 years that Kennedy didn’t qualify. It was sad to be over, but better luck next year.  (333)