Gateway girls volleyball leans on large senior class under 1st-year coach

By: Michael Love
Sunday, September 15, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Erica Bosh was hired as Gateway’s girls volleyball head coach in August, right before preseason practices started.

She said the initial meeting with the team was positive, and it set the tone for what everyone wanted to accomplish.

“We have eight seniors, so we have a lot of good leadership and a lot of returning starters who have been through a lot,” Bosh said.

“They welcomed me with open arms with what I and my assistant were bringing to the table. They were excited for the new experience and for being able to try new things. The girls knew what they wanted as far as goals and expectations, and they lined up with what I wanted for them. We talked a lot and planned a lot with how we were going to get there. The girls have come in every practice wanting to work to meet those goals.”

Five seniors — setter Jolina Estremera, middle/opposite hitter Anastaja Lowrey, middle hitter Ashlee Young, middle hitter Auroya Brown and setter Joanna Miller — returned with starting experience from last year.

Estremera, Miller and fellow senior Payje Robinson, a defensive specialist/libero, were voted team captains.

Bosh said the process started with a clean slate as far as opportunities to get into the rotation.

“We talked a lot about if you want to play, you have to earn your spot, and we worked with them about where we thought they would fit in,” Bosh said.

“We have so many talented girls which is a blessing and a curse in a way because we want to get them all out there. They help make each other better with how competitive they are. We’ve seen girls step up and make cases for being on the court in matches. We’ve seen that for our right-side position where we’ve had girls step up and where we’ve been switching that up. Even defensively, girls have stepped up and have worked hard to earn some playing time.”

Bosh said a togetherness and an on-court knowledge of each other’s strengths was what stood out the most to her as she got started with the team in practices.

“I could see a lot of strong team camaraderie where they supported each other and really worked to communicate,” Bosh said.

“I am always throwing different drills at them and they say, ‘We’ve never heard of this drill before, but we like it.’ They are always positive because they know what they are going to get out of it.”

Bosh said she saw those positives in the season-opening match with Plum despite the 3-0 loss to the Mustangs and also in a pair of tough 3-2 setbacks to Indiana and Greensburg Salem to begin Section 5-3A play.

“That first set against Plum, there were a lot of nerves,” Bosh said.

“But they fought really hard, and it was competitive. We could see some of the things we still needed to work on and were able to lay down that foundation for where we could go from there.”

Gateway was able to rally back from a 2-0 deficit to Indiana and force a deciding fifth game in the section opener Sept. 3.

The Gators also rallied from down 2-1 against Greensburg Salem two days later.

“We played really well in both matches and fought hard with so much heart, but they just didn’t work out in our favor,” Bosh said.

“We stressed to the girls that while it wasn’t the start to the section we had hoped for, things are far from over. The girls took that to heart and were pretty positive coming out of those matches. We’ll see both of those teams again. We feel they are probably two of the tougher teams in the section, so we’re excited for what’s to come. We will be able to focus in on how we can better prepare for the next time we play them.”

Gateway was to take on Franklin Regional last Thursday and Derry on Tuesday in section play before continuing in the section at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at home with West Mifflin.

Bosh said she is ready to see positive things from her team Saturday at the annual Plum Tournament at Plum High School.

A dozen teams will meet for pool play starting at 8 a.m. which will lead to the bracket playoffs in the afternoon.

The Gators will begin with games against Franklin Regional, Leechburg and Valley.

“We’re really excited to play a lot of volleyball over the course of the day and maybe also see Plum again,” Bosh said.

“The girls want to get as many touches as they can. Repetition is what helps us get better. Also seeing some of the teams we don’t normally see in section with those different styles of play will help us get better for the rest of our section games.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

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