Neill Kirkpatrick
Special to the HSSR
Bamberg – Since head coach Deanna Merchant took the reins of the Bamberg-Ehrhardt volleyball program she, her coaching staff and her girls have quietly built the Lady Red Raider program into one of the top-Class A programs in the state where playoffs are expected.
Despite losing several key players from last season’s team, which made it into the third round, expectations are the same for 2023.
“This is a rebuilding year for us, so I'm fully anticipated getting off to a slow and getting better with every match and competition.” said coach Merchant. “We fell short against our rivals Branchville, but then we split matches with the 1st place team in our region, Bridges Prep.”
Coach Merchant continued, “We will be making it to playoffs but will be going a different route than we have previously as we are 3rd place in region. I anticipate a strong post-season where we will face one of the two region opponents again.”
The Lady Red Raiders return three starters of which two were All Region selections in 2022 in senior outside hitters Amelia Stembridge and Paige Beard. They are the captains of the team, and the two players coach Merchant looks to for leadership on the team.
Beard is perhaps the Lady Red Raiders top all-around player as is tough at the net but will also go down to the floor to make plays and is one of the top servers on the team while Stembridge is strong at the net and leads the team in kills.
Cailyn Youmans, a junior, has been strong at the net. She is also one of the better servers on the team. She also plays on the BE girls basketball team.
Several newcomers to the varsity team have made an impact and grown with each match. Setters Kathleen Evans and Neveaha Ricks have done a good job running the team. Evans is also a top server and a solid defensive player.
Other solid defenders are libero Addi Jameson, and defensive specialist Raelynn Jarrett. Jarrett is just a freshman.
Middle Hitter Briaunjenai McMillan has been another Lady Red Raider that has played well at the net.
“I am proud of how much this team has improved throughout the year and they are playing their best volleyball as we get ready for the playoffs,” Merchant said.
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