Building Blocks: Wilson Sees Winning Mentality Starting to Catch On

SECOND-YEAR HEAD COACH JENNIFER WILSON IS CHANGING THE MENTALITY OF KLEIN FOREST VOLLEYBALL, AND IT STARTS IN THE LOCKER ROOM.

“I was brought in to change the culture here,” Wilson said. “It takes a lot of hard work, but the girls have bought in since day one. Last year, we were really working on overcoming the past. We had to change our mindset and start to believe that we are good enough to win. Moving forward, we expect more wins.

While the Golden Eagles were 2-27 and 0-12 in district play, there was a silver lining. “Opposing coaches told us all year long that you would never know what the score was – that we fought the whole match,” Wilson said. “We are building off of that.

“It’s the little victories. We won our first match for the first time in a few years. The girls haven’t seen success like that in a long time. For them, winning sets along the way proves that we can win. It’s a mentality. It’s building and that should move us to another level this year.”

Alejah Phillips will run the offense at setter while twin sister Aleyla Phillips will provide offense from the outside and serve as a defensive specialist. In the middle will be Nadazia Simien, who can control a match. Outsides Aniah Jones, London Sam, Aaliyah Gonzales and Kiearra Haynes will also put down points for the Eagles. Betzaida Garcia will dig volleyballs from her defensive position.

“We have eight returners back who were key players for us last season,” she said. “People have been sleeping on Klein Forest for a while. We are really athletic and talented, and we are going to surprise people this year. But it’s going to take 110-percent effort all the time and for us to realize we are good enough to win.”