DALEVILLE, Pa. — The North Pocono girl's volleyball team returns all but one player from last year. It may be one less veteran on the court, but there is something to represent that loss: an addition to the program's banner hanging in the gym. The Lady Trojans defeated Berwick last year to win the District 2 AAA championship. Their first district title since 1982.
"We had a really, really great year last year and everybody ended with such positive attitudes. It's just really exciting to come back and try and do it again. I think we can win the league in the district this year," said Soyer Delucy.
The Lady Trojans return with five seniors, including Soyer Delucy and Mia Summa. The all-star duo leads the charge as captains this year.
"They lead in different ways. They balance each other out and I've seen great things come from them that have really trickled down through the program all the way to the freshman class," said head coach Alexandra Zero.
The North Poconos girls volleyball program has depth as more girls are taking an interest in the sport. But there are other programs that are growing too and that means more competition when you're defending a district title.
"It's really exciting and to see a lot of the new teams coming in like Lakeland and Mid Valley. So we're very excited to see our local schools get programs. We're always ready for our competition," Zero said.
"Trying to make sure that we stay unpredictable. I think some teams definitely know what we run, know what they see, know what's coming. But if we kind of keep them on their toes, I think that's what's going to make it important for us to kind of stay stealthy. And that way they don't know what's coming," said Mariah Wolff.
The Lady Trojans begin their journey to defend their district title on the road against Montrose.