The result: A 19-3 record, which includes a 13-0 mark in the Ohio Heritage Conference and a South Division championship. This after putting together a 20-4 campaign in 2015 that put an end to a couple of lean years.
“I would like to think things are a lot different from when Kathy was here,” said Katie Pollock, the Trojans’ second-year coach who has returned them to prominence. “But the girls still have that sense of how things go. We still do a lot of the same things like camp in summer and two-a-days.”
The Trojans are anchored by seven seniors: Jessica Erwin, Saylor Evans, Connor Greene, Molly Hammond, Maddy McKee, Leah Ruby and Maddie Skillings. All but Erwin and Hammond have been teammates for a long time.
“They started out in the seventh grade together and have been together ever since,” said Pollock. “They are the heart and soul of the volleyball program.
“They get people excited about the program,” she continued. “They help run my practices. They hold everyone accountable for what they have to do, on and off the court. We are really going to miss them next year.”
Pollock is actually a product of the enemy, so to speak. She graduated from rival Northeastern. But she has thrived thanks to continued support from Mercer, mentor Gaye Carafa (Graham’s longtime head coach) and the community.
“Coming in, I let them know I am here for the girls and for the program,” said Pollock. “The community backing me up was a big thing. They were working with me, not against me.”
That community support permeates the school.
“Our school is very close, and that can be a bad thing. But here with everyone being so close, everyone is rooting for you and encouraging you,” said co-captain Ruby. “You know that the whole school is behind us.”
That creates a closeness on the court.
“It’s all a team effort, when it boils down to it,” said Pollock. “Connor, Leah and Maddy McKee, they know how to put on a show. They really make our offense run.”
Greene and sophomore Leslie Flores lead the Trojans in kills, with 274 and 281, respectively. McKee leads the team with a school-record 447 digs, while Ruby leads the Trojans and the OHC with 714 assists. Ruby needs 23 more to break her own school record.
Co-captain McKee said there’s more to it than just skill.
“We have such a strong bond.” she said. “A lot of us are really good friends off the court, too. Definitely if we were not good friends off the court, we wouldn’t be as good as a team.”
McKee says that is due to Pollock’s leadership.
“I think that with Coach Katie, when we make an error, she calls it a positive error,” she said. “She has a more positive attitude with us and respects us. And she takes our input on things.”
Now that the regular season is over, the Trojans have set their sights higher.
“I certainly think that we can go further than last year,” said Pollock. “We are definitely looking at a sectional if not a district title, because that’s the level my team is playing at.”
It won’t be easy. The Trojans are seeded third, behind Fort Loramie and defending state champion Jackson Center. They began tourney play Saturday against Fairlawn, which eliminated them last postseason in the sectional finals.
But they have that Trojan confidence back.
“Their freshman and sophomore years were pretty bad years for them as far as volleyball was concerned,” Pollock said, “so they are pretty proud of what they‘ve been able to accomplish.”
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