By Jeremy McDonald
Jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
SALEM, Ore.– It wasn’t too long ago that Sprague’s Khloe Livingston and Eliza Lohrman both were a part of the Sprague Volleyball Camps as campers.
And now, a week before they prepare for another season officially, they’re back at those same camps. But now as the teacher instead of the pupil.
“I really enjoy it and sharing how we teach volleyball with our program, it’s something that I enjoy and I really find happiness within coaching younger people because I used to go to these camps as well. It’s fun to be older and teaching them now,” said Lohrman.
For Livingston, she remembers those older kids and admits how cool it is to be one of those older kids now and ties in that community connection whenever she sees them after the camp is over and during the season.
“I remember when I was here and all the seniors who helped me and going, ‘oh my gosh, they’re so old.’ and now I’m the older person,” adds Livingston. “But there’s a lot of girls we know because they’ve been going to this camp for a long time and we’ve seen them around club or something. It just builds our community and these girls will come watch us, they get to wear their Sprague T-Shirts that they got and it’s so cool seeing them.
“I know that they go to the camp especially because I noticed a lot of them, or they wear the Sprague shirt, then I get to say hi and talk to them for a little bit after the game.”
It’s a nice little break from the grind that is the Volleyball season. And being a part of a traditional powerhouse program like Sprague has built over the years under Anne Olson.
The squad finished 6A State Runner-Up last year, falling to Jesuit in five sets in the State Championship Game. The two squads will meet again on September 3 at Sprague High School in a big preseason game in Salem.
And though Sprague graduated some firepower, they do return some firepower that was there in-house helping the future Sprague Volleyball players with Brooke Freisen (First Team All-State Hitter), Lohrman (Second Team DS/Libero) and Livingston (Third Team All-State Hitter).
For Lohrman, as a sophomore last year, the experience helped her enter this season now as an upperclassman in the program.
“I was a little nervous at the beginning of the season, but I feel like our team chemistry was so good that I kind of got into a role and I felt comfortable after a while and I really enjoyed the position I was playing with the team,” said Lohrman of last year. “It was a really big accomplishment for me (getting Second Team All-State), I was really proud and building on that, it’s a good platform to build off from for the next two years.”
Entering her senior year, as currently one of three seniors entering try-outs next week, Livingston is taking those experiences into this Fall and hopefully carry the torch as those seniors before her did entering this final year in an Olys uniform.
“Our team had really good hitters. It was really exciting to be able to play with everyone. This year I feel like we’re going to have a lot of fun. The whole point is to win as well, but you can’t win if you’re not having fun. There’s a lot of traditions that we have going and we’re going to keep it going. Us three, we’re going to try to get all the underclassmen involved and just trying to build a community for our program,” starts Livingston. “It’s crazy, we’re now the older one’s in the gym. The last couple of years, it’s been a welcoming experience and all the upperclassmen I’ve gotten close with, my goals is to be like them and bring everyone in and have a good season.”
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
