Last year’s seniors made up most of the previous varsity team, bringing unmatchable spirit and energy, middle blocker Jack Rohloff said. But after they left, it became up to the current varsity team to fill their shoes, Rohloff, a junior, said.

Current upperclassmen have found themselves trying to fill the gap both on the court and in leadership, opposite Shahar Dagan said.

“This year we have a lot of new guys, so we’re working on finding ways to get everybody to go in the same direction,” libero Leon Meng said.

Seniors’ attitudes often would reflect in the younger players, and now the pressure is on the new upperclassmen to set a good example, Rohloff said.

“I’ve tried to always be positive because a lot of people can be quiet,” Rohloff said. “Even if I’m not feeling great, I have to project that I’m confident and project that I’m feeling good because it’s my job to do that.”

The energy of the seniors is a large factor in the success the team has seen in the last few years, Dagan, a senior, said. When the seniors have a good attitude, it is clear that the entire time does better.

“It’s like keeping up the legacy of [last year’s seniors],” Dagan said. “They did such a good job last year, so it’s almost like out of respect to try to repeat that same success that we had.” 

While the seniors play a huge role, ultimately it is up to the entire team to decide the results that year, Rohloff said.

“We have a really, really, really good position for the postseason for this team,” Rohloff said. “Compared to last year, we didn’t really get faced with any challenges.”