The 2024 Scotland High School varsity volleyball team.
Andrew Smolar | The Laurinburg Exchange
The Scotland Fighting Scots volleyball program has had a recent string of multiple successful years in a row. They have had five consecutive winning seasons and are coming off a 2023 campaign where they finished third in the Sandhills Athletic Conference while going 15-9 overall and 9-5 against conference opponents. Head Coach Adam Romaine firmly believes his team has what it takes to take that next step and get to the top.
“The goal is definitely a conference championship,” Romaine said. “We’ve always been two or three for the past three or four years I’ve been here so to get over that hump with the girls we got here I feel like we’ll be able to compete better with Pinecrest and Union Pines this year as long as we stay healthy.”
The Scots will be losing just two seniors from last year’s team: Lindsay Locklear and Nateya Scott. That being said, they were both instrumental to the team with both being top three on the team in multiple statistics. Romaine admitted that replacing them will be difficult not just because of the production on the court but because of their leadership.
“Those are two big shoes to fill for sure,” Romaine said. “They brought a lot of experience on the court and were terrific leaders.”
Romaine pointed out senior and captain Addison Johnson as one player he is expecting big things out of this year from both a production and vocal perspective. He also called Scott last year’s “mama bear” while saying he is leaning toward relying on senior Teryn Stanton to help lead by example this upcoming season.
Johnson was last year’s team leader in multiple statistics including digs (142), kills (306) and blocks (57). Romaine thinks she could be in for an even bigger season with some of the new outside hitters brought in to help take some pressure off of her. Johnson understands the responsibilities expected out of her but is keeping the goals for herself and the team simple: keep a positive mindset and embrace the new pieces the team has.
“My biggest internal expectation is just to keep the team together and keep myself composed with a positive attitude so it reflects well on the team,” Johnson said. “I think for the team our goal is to just have fun. With all of the new girls coming in I’m expecting a good season because we’re all getting along and communicating really well.”
One of those new pieces is freshman Nora Teasley, the only one on the varsity team. Romaine believes she is someone who can help fill the void left by Locklear’s graduation as a true middle hitter, which they did not have last year when Locklear was out with an injury. While those are unquestionably big shoes to fill for anyone, Teasley feels relaxed due to the support of her teammates and feels ready to do whatever is asked of her.
“I don’t have any added pressure because I know I have a lot of helpful girls behind my back,” Teasley said. “My internal expectations are to compose a good attitude and do my job not only for me but for the team.”
Outside of those changes, the Scots have a lot of continuity. This is a big plus to Romaine because of the built in chemistry and depth they have.
“The biggest thing is chemistry,” Romaine said. “We have a lot of pieces that are going to be fighting for time on the court but it’s so evenly matched that I’m not going to be losing too much if I put one in over the other.”
One notable change Romaine has decided to implement to start the season will be starting the season in a 5-1 rotation as opposed to a traditional 4-2 or 6-2. Romaine said that decision came down to the personnel they have, specifically the hitters.
“We’re deciding to do that because of the hitters and new girls in the program that have stepped up,” Romaine said. “We also have a lot of good defensive specialists and they’ve all been playing together for the last two or three years.”
Romaine pointed out senior Reagan Malpass as someone who has improved a lot as a setter, leaving him comfortable running the 5-1 rotation with just one setter. Malpass was the team leader in serving aces (47) and assists (259) last year.
The team’s full season schedule can be found on MaxPreps: Schedule – Scotland Fighting Scots (Laurinburg, NC) Varsity Volleyball 24-25 (maxpreps.com). Their first matchup with a conference opponent will be on Tuesday, Aug. 27 at home against Hoke County.