The volleyball team will play their first district game this Saturday, Sept. 22 at 1 p.m. in Lubbock against Lubbock Estacado.

With Canyon’s drop to district 3-4A, the team will play new opponents this season. Madison Jones is one of two seniors on the varsity team.

“We are looking forward to the start of district,” Jones said. “All of these pre-district games have been to prepare us for district, so we are excited for that to start.”

While the pre-district games may prepare them physically, senior Hallie Lackey said she prepares mentally as well.

“I preach to myself to have positive self talk,” Lackey said. “When you are talking down on yourself, one mistake will turn into a serious one, and it will drag others down.”

Lackey said she tries to keep her mind focused in challenging situations.

“I tell myself to let go of it and do better the next ball,” Lackey said. “You have about five to 10 seconds until the next ball is in play.”

Sophomore Carlee Henderson said the players are excited for district to start, but they will have tough competition with Levelland Saturday, Sept. 29.

“We’ve been preparing the team to execute the ball better,” Henderson said. “We’ve been working on getting the ball back over and putting away games.”

Continuing her second year as an outside hitter, junior Emma Crenshaw said the team works well together.

“My teammates help build my confidence by believing in me,” Crenshaw said. “I love being able to connect on a personal level on and off the court. We are all very competitive, so playing together is a lot of fun.”

Jones said she has to rely on herself as well as her team in difficult situations.

“Volleyball is such a team sport that we all have to problem solve together, so we have to work together,” Jones said. “We have to do our very best to fix whatever is going wrong.”

Jones said putting in the work is an important factor both on and off the court when it comes to improving.

“Working hard all the time is an important part of getting better,” Jones said. “The best players and teams don’t choose when they want to work hard. It is about putting in the work all the time, not just when things are easy or when you feel like it. “