ROXANA - Volleyball has always had a special place in Roxana Seventh-Grade Volleyball Coach Andrea Keller’s heart and Saturday when she steps on to the Maroa-Forsythe High School floor, it will be her biggest accomplishment yet.
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Roxana’s Seventh Grade girls’ volleyball team enters the 10 a.m. Saturday Class 3A matchup against 17-5 Pana with a 19-1 mark. Roxana defeated Auburn Junior High 25-18, 25-14 in Divernon on Monday night to advance to state.
Keller said the seventh-grade volleyball team has caught Roxana by storm and is getting great fan support.
Members of the squad are: Jacey Trask, Marcie Lucas, Reagan Stahlhut, Bailey Isom, Britney Sweetin, Summer Floyd, Halle Davis, Janelynn Wirth, Olivia Mouser, Mackenzie Keller, Darcey McGuire, Maddie Magruder, and manager Jennifer Whetzel.
The third-place and state championship matchups are slated for 5:30 and 6:45 p.m. on March 15 at Maroa-Forsythe. Semifinals games will also be played Saturday.
This is the first time for Roxana’s volleyball girls to make a state appearance.
“It is very exciting,” Keller said. “The girls have worked very hard and deserved this. It is amazing. The key for this year is their determination and passion for it. They work hard and work well together.”
Keller didn’t single out a player as a standout, but said she feels all her girls contribute equally to the volleyball team’s success.
Keller played volleyball at Staunton High School. She played club volleyball at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and said she has always loved the sport.
“I have been coaching since I graduated from college and couldn’t imagine not coaching,” she said. “Roxana has absolutely supported us. We took fan buses to the regional championship match and brought two fan buses last night. The fans have been so pumped up and helped the girls tremendously.”
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