On Tuesday, Sept. 29, juniors Riley Liskowacki and Maci Little achieved career goals during youth night. Liskowacki hit 300 digs, and Little reached 200 kills.
Liskowacki has been playing volleyball for five years and plays as a libero or defensive specialist for the Terriers. During Tuesday’s match, she achieved 300 digs. A dig is when a player prevents an offensive attack made by the opponent from hitting the floor. This milestone is the result of Liskowacki’s continuous effort.
“[I] work hard every day in practice,” Liskowacki said. “Show up even if I don’t want to. There’s a reason I am here, and I deserve to be here.”
Alongside Liskowacki’s accomplishment, Little achieved 200 kills, which is an offensive attack that results in a point scored. She has been playing volleyball for five years and doesn’t believe that the accomplishments are just hers.
“Being a great teammate is what really matters to me,” Little said. “The achievements don’t mean anything to me personally. It’s more just me helping out my teammates and helping us win.”
These accomplishments were made during Del Val’s volleyball youth night where the middle school teams come to watch what they can be part of in the future. Coach Amy Simpson loves the idea of youth night and believes that it positively impacts the Del Val program.
“We are always excited to have them come and be a part [of the team] and it’s nice for them to cross over,” Simpson said. “Meet the coaches, meet the girls, and know that other girls came from exactly where they came from.”
The team celebrated the night by putting different colors of ribbon in the young athletes’ hair to represent their sending district. Before the game began, the youth players served a ball to the other side of the court where the Del Val players were waiting. The middle school athletes enjoyed watching the game and cheering on the team from the sidelines with the Del Val JV team.
“[The purpose of youth night is] to show the younger girls what high school volleyball is like and make them excited to come play for the high school team because it’s a lot of fun,” Liskowacki said.
