Unbreakable bond

The same word adorns the back of the jersey for every member of the Vestavia Hills High School volleyball team.

“Rebels,” written in cursive, each letter connected to the next the same way a line of kids playing Red Rover holds hands.

Take one entry away from that six-letter word, and it makes no sense. The bond between the letters is broken and it no longer flows like an artist’s decorative calligraphy.

Just like you are unable to add or take away any letters from the word “Rebels,” the 11-girl group that comprises Vestavia’s varsity volleyball team is a unit that has been built from the ground up using the strengths and characteristics of each athlete to form the backbone of a team that has quickly become a top 10 program in Class 7A.

The construction of the current product on the court has been one in the making since the day Mandy Burgess returned as the Vestavia Hills volleyball coach after stepping away from the role for three years.

Burgess inherited a roster that is heavy on assumed leadership, with eight seniors that set out to lead the way in the spring and summer.

“In the offseason, all eight seniors were working just as hard, if not harder, than during any season before,” said Avery Kampwerth, one of those eight.

That work was not in order to win in spite of having a junior and two sophomores (Anna Langley, Hannah Vines and Mary Quinn Carter, respectively), but to have them able to play at a high level as well.

“With underclassmen coming in, it’s important to give them that confidence. It makes them feel like they’re just as important and just as old as the seniors,” Kampwerth said.

They are.

“I feel like we all contribute so much and have the same amount of talent,” said senior Manon Burris.

Emma Grace Harris sees that chemistry developing as the offseason has bled into the early portions of the season, and the home stretch of the season in the near future.

“I think we’ve connected better as we’ve played and we’ve gotten used to each other,” the senior said.

Harris also emphasized the example that the seniors set for everyone else, including the current junior varsity team, a large portion of which will be forced into action next fall with so much of the varsity team set to depart after the current campaign.

“We try to be the best example that we can be, because they’re watching us to see what we’re going to do, because that’s them next year,” she said.

Burgess has pushed her current group and demands the best from each player daily.

“It’s so much fun, but she pushes us so hard,” Burris said. “It’s what we need."

“If we’re not disciplined, we’re not where we are today without her.”

Harris added, “We use her structure and build off of it.”

Two things Burgess is emphasizing during the season are consistency and unforced errors. Look no further than the Rebels’ first Area 5 match this season against Thompson on Sept. 15, for a contest that featured both ends of the team’s progress in those two arenas.

Vestavia won the match in four sets, dropping just the second set. By set, the Rebels were solid, disappointing, resilient and dominant on the evening.

“Our unforced errors killed us in the second set,” Harris said. “That was on us.”

As for the other three sets, Burris said, “If we can be consistent and connect more, we would be able to do so much more, and so much greater things, and finish games earlier and quicker.”

No member of the current squad has advanced to the state tournament, and Harris, Kampwerth, Burris, Katie Larson, Mejra Shea Merritt, Sophie Losole, Jenna Hogan and Caroline Dutton have realized how much work it requires to get there. They say they are willing to do what it takes.

“The last two years, we’ve realized that state just takes so much preparation,” Kampwerth said.

Harris said, “We’ve never been to state and we really want to experience that.”

Kampwerth cannot strike fear into an opponent with her ability to put the ball down without a perfect set from Larson, who would be unable to do that without a controlled dig from Harris.

The possibilities are endless when dissecting that example. None of those three players are on the court at all times, and none are a sole driving force to the team’s success.

“Volleyball’s a team sport,” said Burris, who will give one of her patented fist pumps when that scenario works to perfection. “It’s not like a single person does the whole thing. Even if there’s one obviously better person, it doesn’t mean they’re going to win all the games and go to her every time. It has to be a whole team.”

The Rebels hope that the team’s success gives Burris reason to pump her fist deep into October.