The gymnasium echoes with the roar of the crowd. The player grips the ball, preparing to begin the set that will determine who goes home victorious and who leaves with a loss. The referee blows the whistle, the ball is tossed into the air, and the set begins — it’s the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference (EPC) championship game, and the Emmaus High School girls volleyball team is ready to walk out with their first finals win in school history.

On Oct. 16, EHS girls volleyball competed in the EPC tournament at Liberty High School. After an intense match with a score difference of only three points, the EHS team ultimately emerged victorious, clutching the school’s first ever girls volleyball EPC championship trophy. However, this season didn’t come without its challenges, as two starters for the team are out due to injury.

“This whole season really has been fighting through a lot of adversity,” EHS girls volleyball coach Jessi Olang said.

According to Olang, a large part of their practice leading up to the EPC match was building a sense of community within the team. Volleyball is a sport built on communication and collaboration, and the EHS team is no exception. The team emphasized unity this year, even opening their very first practice with trust falls to build companionship within the team.

“That really has been the biggest obstacle we had overcome from last year to this year… Not becoming individuals on the court and everybody trying to get it done themselves, but just trusting their teammates,” Olang said.

Adjusting to new positions and building team bonds were both major difficulties the team faced this season. However, player Amanda Rivera believes that the challenges they overcame both on and off the court ultimately made them better players.

“We’ve definitely had our ups and downs… every game was a learning experience. Every practice was another chance to get better,” Rivera said.

Despite the challenges of the early season, the group made their way to the EPC finals, a massive milestone for the team. However, the fight wasn’t over once they made it to the game. They faced the undefeated Bethlehem Catholic team, which Olang considered a formidable opponent.

“We played them [Bethlehem Catholic] early in the season and lost,” Olang said. “We knew coming into the [EPC championship] that it was going to be a battle… we actually went down the first two sets.”

The situation was looking dire, and the team had worries about getting “swept,” or losing the game without winning a set. Despite this, the team came together and secured the crucial victory. They won three sets in a row, going to the limit of five sets and making a significant comeback. According to senior Alyssa Heffner, setter and a captain of the girls volleyball team, the energy change after the first two sets was significant.

“We realized we fought too hard to be here and just get swept,” Heffner said. “And then in the third set, we kind of woke up, got more energy, and won that set and realized ‘it’s not over.’ So we basically just fought ‘til the end and every point mattered.”

Olang believes the team’s bonds were evident in the way they played in the match. As opposed to last year, she now considers the teamwork of the players one of their greatest strengths, and stresses how important it is that they stay consistent.

“Nobody’s going to go out there and get it done on their own; it’s not possible,” Olang said. “You have to be able to lift each other up.”

With this in mind, the EHS girls volleyball team has moved on to compete in the district tournament against Liberty High School on Oct. 23, where they were seeded first for the tournament due to their EPC victory. As of the writing of this article, the outcome has not been decided. However, Olang is excited for the match, emphasizing the power of the players’ bonds on the team.

“We started the season with a saying,” Olang said. “‘If we are for each other, who could be against us?’”