Setting the Reds up for success
The Denis Morris Reds don’t make a move without Melanie Altamirano.
The 16-year-old, Grade 11 setter is at her best directing traffic for the Reds, who are off to a perfect start in Niagara Catholic Athletic Association senior girls volleyball play.
The Reds improved to 4-0 in league play with a 25-19, 25-17, 25-17 sweep over the Saint Michael Mustangs Thursday at Denis Morris.
“She’s a key player on our team because the setter is the one who controls the play on the court,” DM coach Alexa Didemus said. “She’s very good at getting to the ball, even if the ball is not being passed to her like it should be.”
Altamirano, who has played at the rep level for six years with the Niagara Fury, enjoys her role.
“It keeps me grounded a bit more,” he said. “If I remind the other players to what happens, that reminds me as well.”
Altamirano admits it’s not always easy being in the eye of the storm.
“To be a good setter, it’s kind of like a transition between how much you have to fix a pass before you transition it into a hit,” she said. “To me, that’s really important to get a hittable ball so that you can get it moving forward.
“There’s days when it’s hard. It depends on what team we’re playing and how consistent we are but I don’t mind it or running around.”
Altamirano stands only 5-foot-2 — certainly not an ideal height for a senior player — but more than makes up for it with her smarts and hustle.
“It’s been harder for me playing club ball because some clubs look for size and it’s easier to do that,” she said. “There have been a couple of times where I have been pushed down, obviously.
“I really love volleyball and that really kept me going.”
Altamirano came into the season figuring the Reds would be a solid team.
“We played with the same team in Grade 9 and 10 and it was a similar outcome most of the time,” she said. “I knew it was going to get harder but I don’t think (our success) is that much of a surprise to me.”
Didemus agreed.
“The junior team last year was strong so we expected to be competitive. The girls really enjoy spending time with each other and building those relationships has really strengthened the team.”
Altamirano said the Reds have found the right balance between development and having a good time.
“We have fun a lot of the time — sometimes a little too much — but it all comes out in how we respect each other,” she said.
The Reds, who recently captured a tournament at St. Francis, aren’t looking too far down the road to a berth at the Southern Ontario Secondary School Association (SOSSA) playdowns, despite their strong start.
“I think we don’t want to jinx it yet,” said Didemus, who is assisted by Brie Crnkovic. “We’re not talking about it (SOSSA) because we’re not sure how it’s going to go. Our girls are extremely competitive and we hope to get there.”
Other members of the Reds are: Bleona Demiri, Lexxus Bell, Brenna Timmins, Anna Emond, Maisyn Kwinicki, Brittany Ritchie, Olivia Tanham, Michelle Caro, McKaya Marrs and Samantha Horvath.
The Mustangs dropped to 2-3 in league action.
“At the end of the day, we had more unforced errors,” Mustangs coach Justin Kenney said. “We had a lot of good rallies but we ended up with the unforced error.
“They have some more polished players but my girls are scrappy.”
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