SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
INMAN, Kan. — The Inman High School volleyball team is off to a 23-1 start on the season and ranked No. 1 in the Kansas Volleyball Association (KVA) rankings.
The Teutons, which have placed fourth place the past two seasons at the state tournament, are ready to take that next step under head coach Kathy Russell, who accepted the job last February. Russell is well-known in the area, having coached at Buhler and Haven, as well as several years as a club coach.
"It's like a dream for a coach to walk into something like that," Russell said. "When I walked in they had all the talent, but they had no guidance, and they can't do it alone. We're working together and bond together, so they are just thriving at what I'm selling. It's not about you, it's about your team and what you can do for your team. They are all diving in and just doing great things."
The players are poised to accomplish their goal of claiming the state title next month.
"That's their goal, that's what they want, and they have all the talent," Russell said. "It takes discipline, teamwork, them working together to help each other be the best that we can be, and I think we have all of those things. The girls are playing with confidence and walking into the gym, the girls are on fire, they just want to be the best that they can be. They're like little sponges."
The Teutons' lone loss this season came on Sept. 14 to Cheney in three sets, 20-25, 28-26, 20-25.
"Cheney is well-coached and are a very scrappy team," Russell said. "They're not very big, but we kept swinging at them, we weren't patient enough and kind of played soft. We were just a little off that day. Cheney played well and they deserved to win, but I'd love to meet up with them again. I think it was good for the girls to get a loss, because they don't like that taste in their mouth, so it was kind of a blessing in disguise."
The Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) has implemented a new postseason format for classes 3-1A for the 2024 season. The teams will be placed into four groupings for regional play, with each group having two quads. The format is more similar to how the larger classifications have done it in the years past in volleyball and basketball.
"We have so many teams in 2A, so it's going to be different," Russell said. "We pulled some really tough teams in there, so we're going to have to beat them all anyway to get where we want to get, so it doesn't matter where we meet them."
Russell is hopeful the tough competition the Teutons have played in the regular season will pay off come postseason.
"I love the competition, like I said earlier, that's the only way we're going to get better," Russell said. "We want to play tough teams, so we look forward to it. That's something we're training for and preparing the girls for."
The Teutons are led by two-time all-state selection, and Utah commit, Suttyn Harris. The 5-foot-11 junior outside hitter is off to another strong year.
"Suttyn is an amazing young lady," Russell said. "She's just really committed to her team, she's an excellent teammate, she knows the game, she's been playing it for awhile. I coached her back when I think she was in sixth grade, I taught some lessons to her, so she's come a long way since then. She's a gamer, she just wants to win and wants her teammates to do well, so we're thrilled that she's on our team. She's just an all-around kid, not only on the court, but off the court as well. She works hard to be the best she can be."
Russell knew she had talent when she took the job at Inman, but that's not the only thing that has caught her eye since the first day of practice.
"I knew that we had a lot of talent on the team, but not only that, we have an amazing work ethic," Russell said. "During the offseason, they were just working so hard in the weight room and so determined. I've got a full team of those girls, and it's kind of like a dream team as a coach to walk in and have girls so dedicated and want to be the best that they can be."
"I have eight strong core girls that I can play in any position I needed to," Russell said. "I also have a bench that's really strong. My middles, Morgan Froese and Brooke Aden, they're both really strong in the middle. I also have Kenna Woods who plays defense in club ball, but here she plays outside and she can just rip the ball, too. My setters are Taylor Froese, a sophomore, and Maddi Parsons, a freshman, I could move them wherever I want. I can switch between a 5-1 or a 6-2, whatever we need to do."
Russell has been around the game of volleyball for a number of years, but she says this team is special.
"I have been in it a long time and have seen some really good players, but this group is just something special," Russell said. "They are just amazing young ladies and I am just thrilled to be apart of this."
One thing that Russell said made taking the job even better was the fact she gets to coach alongside her daughter, Emme, who played at HutchCC and then at Arkansas State.
"She's been a head coach and is also a big part of this program," Russell said. "Between Emily and our other assistant, Nicole McClellan, we have all the pieces of the puzzle put together and we're just improving every time we step on the floor."
The Teutons will host class 1A-Division I No.1-ranked Little River tonight for a best-of-5 match against the Redskins.