CPHS Volleyball Season Preview: Sandites to host Bixby Tuesday

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Head Coach Derek Jackson speaks to Jacelyn Smith during the 2019 season.

The fall sports season officially starts Tuesday for the Charles Page High School volleyball team, who will host Bixby at 6:30 p.m. in the Frontier Valley Conference league opener. The match will be held at the Ed Dubie Field House, and fans will be required to wear masks.

Head Coach Derek Jackson is entering his second year leading the Sandites, and hopes to build on the previous season’s success. Prior to his arrival the team hadn’t posted a winning record since 2016, and hadn’t won a tournament in even longer.

The 2019 Sandites accomplished both of those goals, posting an 18-14 overall record, a 5-4 conference record, and won their inaugural home tournament. They also sent two players to the next level, with Raylynn Mong signing to play at Ottawa University, and Devree Youngblood signing with Oklahoma Baptist University.

“Last year I think gave us a level of hope that they hadn’t had in a while,” says Jackson. “We took a great step in the right direction bumping our wins from 6 to 18 but we want to continue that trend.” Goals for this year include improving defensively, improving on serving, and on service reception. They also aim to be in the gold bracket at all three of their tournaments this season, to win their home tournament again, and to earn another winning record.

Youth will be the biggest obstacle for the team to overcome. In addition to Mong and Youngblood, they also have to replace Madison Burris, Cloe Campfield, Vanessa Wyrick, McKenzie Harris, and Gillian Wicker, who were all significant contributors to the team.

“21 of our 31 high school players will be sophomores or freshmen this year. We will be very young but we have some quickly rising talent and some solid mature players to guide them. Olivia Dewitt, Payton Robbins, and Layla Lenex will all see quality minutes as sophomores, while Evyn Morrow and Averi Tippit have shown a lot of progress as freshmen.”

“Madison Blaylock, Kasidy Holland, and Charley Fahland will be our captains this year. They are our tone setters and energy enforcers. They all possess great leadership skills that we will need this year. I think Payton Robbins and Sophie Singleton have the chance to really help us on Offense and Defense.”

Blaylock is the top returning contributor this year, having played almost every set as a junior. She was one of the top defensive players with over 320 digs, and had more than 40 aces. She will continue to start as libero. Jacelyn Smith is the other returning starter, with lots of experience and talent at middle blocker. Lenex, Robbins, Fahland, Dewitt, and Tehya Johnson will round out the starting unit.

Despite their youth, the team has its strengths. “We have really gelled as a team early in the season,” says Jackson. “Our back row will be even stronger than last year despite earning almost 1500 digs last year. We will look to up our SR rating as well.”

“We are going for a slower, smarter and a more balanced offense compared to last year,” says Jackson. “We may not be as flashy and run a lot of combinations but we will look to have far less errors this year.”

“We are wanting to start strong. Our first two week will make up nearly half of our games on the year. If we can start off well then we think that will put us in a good position physically and mentally for the rest of the year. Then, the following Tuesday, we will look to keep the Highway 97 Rivalry Trophy in Sand Springs again this year.”

The season will see some changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Masks will be mandatory for fans. Even coaches, players, and officials will have to wear them when they’re not on the court. Fans are encouraged to purchase All-Sport season passes to reduce contact with box office workers. Currently, occupancy has not been cut, but if statewide cases continue to rise, or a localized outbreak occurs, the district could enforce additional restrictions.

“We have done really well about taking our precautions and being smart with what we do outside of the gym,” says Jackson. We have hosted five scrimmages, so far all teams/fans/coaches have said they have not had one person sick due to them, which has brightened up some outlook on the season and the chance we have on having a full season.”

2020 CPHS Varsity Volleyball Schedule
8.11 CPHS vs. Bixby (H) - 6:30 p.m.
8.14 - 8.15 Sandite Invitational
8.14 CPHS vs. Tecumseh (H) - 9:00 a.m.
8.14 CPHS vs. Lawton (H) - 11:00 a.m.
8.14 CPHS vs. Sapulpa (H) - 2:00 p.m.
8.14 CPHS vs. Booker T. Washington (H) - 5:00 p.m.
8.15 CPHS vs. Edison Prep (H) - 9:00 a.m.
8.15 CPHS vs. Bishop Kelley Red (H) - 11:00 a.m.
8.15 CPHS vs. NOAH (H) - 2:00 p.m.
8.21 - 8.22 Holland Hall Tournament
8.25 CPHS vs. Sapulpa (A) - 6:30 p.m.
8.27 CPHS vs. Owasso (A) - 6:30 p.m.
8.29 CPHS vs. McAlester (H) - 12:00 p.m.
8.29 CPHS vs. Santa Fe South (H) - 3:00 p.m.
9.1 CPHS vs. Bartlesville (H) - 6:30 p.m.
9.3 CPHS vs. Enid (H) - 6:00 p.m.
9.10 CPHS vs. Berryhill (H) - 6:00 p.m.
9.15 CPHS vs. Muskogee (A) - 6:30 p.m.
9.18 - 9.19 Glenpool Tournament
9.22 CPHS vs. Jenks (H) - 6:30 p.m.
9.29 CPHS vs. Booker T. Washington (A) - 6:30 p.m.
10.1 CPHS vs. Claremore (A) - 6:00 p.m.
10.6 CPHS vs. Union (H) - 6:30 p.m.
10.8 CPHS vs. Collinsville (H) - 6:30 p.m.