What to watch: Mars girls volleyball knows what it takes to raise a WPIAL trophy
Mars faces a familiar road, but it starts with a foreign foe.
Longtime coach Tami Caraway’s No. 3 Planets open the WPIAL Class 3A girls volleyball postseason at home Tuesday against No. 14 Belle Vernon.
“A new team we haven’t seen before,” Caraway said. “I don’t know that we’ve ever played Belle Vernon. ... We’re looking forward to playing somebody new. I think last year we played Hampton three times, we played Beaver — if you include the (MAC) Tournament — four times and I think we played Freeport three times.”
The Leopards (14-4) finished second in Section 3-3A, and Caraway has to prepare her team for the matchup only by watching their film.
The Planets (14-4) won Section 2-3A for the second year in a row. They raised the WPIAL Class 3A trophy a season ago, then made it to the PIAA final.
“Every practice, the kids were excited to be there, they were there on time,” Caraway said. “They loved the work of what it took to go through it, and I think that the focus and the eagerness to play again were what we took away from last year. And so as we head into (the playoffs) this year, we’re trying to have the same mentality.”
That blueprint also includes a steady attitude and identity.
“It’s the mentality of not getting too high, not getting too low and anxious about what we’re doing,” Caraway said.
Experience, she added, will be a big factor for Mars as it tries to defend its district crown. The Planets will have to understand how matches will flow and, more importantly, what to expect when they walk into a gym.
Opponents will bring their best against the defending district champions. Caraway hopes to see balanced production with serving, defending and attacking.
“It’s maintaining balance regardless of who (ends up with) the most kills or the most aces or the most digs,” Caraway said. “That’s what we’re looking for.”
One of the Planets’ sectional foes, Freeport, is seeded 10th and will face No. 7 Chartiers Valley at Oakland Catholic on Tuesday.
Seneca Valley (No. 4) and North Catholic (No. 6) both begin their Class 4A playoff journeys Wednesday against No. 13 Armstrong and No. 11 Kiski Area, respectively.
Dating back to 2015, a Butler County team has won a WPIAL girls volleyball championship every season but 2023. Before Mars won the title last year, North Catholic (2022), Freeport (2021) and Knoch (2017-19) earned the crown in 3A.
Tom Phillips’ Yellowjackets earned the 2A title in 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2022, while the Trojanettes did the same in 2018, 2020 and 2021. Seneca Valley was tops in 4A in 2016.
