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John Fleming is beginning his 16th year as head coach of the Winchester High girls volleyball team. Last year, Fleming guided his team to a 20-3 overall record, before dropping a Division 1 Elite 8 matchup to Needham.
The team was the 13th seed in the final power rankings, and went on to beat Andover and Attleboro by identical 3-1 scores to begin the state tournament, only to fall to the Rockets, the fifth seed, by the exact same score.
Fleming will carry 14 players on the varsity this fall, with their understudies learning their craft on the JV and freshman levels.
Of the 14 varsity players, a total of 10 are back from last year, and some of them were starters.
“There are always things to work on, and that will continue throughout the season,” said Fleming. “Serving and receiving is an area that we will focus on this season, and our blocking is another area that we want to continue to get better at, as well.”
Seniors Johanna Melhorn (middle hitter) and Julia Campo (defensive specialist), and junior Hazel Lovins (outside hitter) are this year’s captains.
The Red & Black warmed up for the season with a quad scrimmage at Lincoln-Sudbury against Medfield, Wachusett and of course the host Warriors on Aug. 22.
“It was great to mix the lineup up, and get our first look playing against other teams,” said Fleming.
The Winchester girls followed up that scrimmage with another one against Bedford, N.H. on Aug. 26.
“They are the best high school program in the Granite State,” said Fleming. “I believe they have won four straight state titles and over 100 consecutive matches. We tried to play it as close to a real scrimmage as possible, and ended up winning the first three sets, before dropping the last one.”
The team then returned to New Hampshire for a jamboree at Salem High School with 19 other schools throughout New Hampshire and Massachusetts on Aug. 30, and Fleming’s crew ended up winning the whole thing.
“We dug ourselves a few big holes, but found a way to fight back each time, which is a great thing to see so early in the year,” said the veteran Winchester coach.
But in the end, everything depends on how they do against the Middlesex League, and Fleming knows that taking on their rivals will be the biggest tests of the year before the postseason.
“I think the Middlesex League will once again be very challenging,” he said. “Melrose is always tough; Reading has a few really talented young players, who are going to have great seasons; while Woburn graduated a big group, but I think they will be very good once again this year, despite those losses.”
Any winning head coach needs a strong staff of assistants to maintain success. Jackie Oliver is back as Fleming’s longtime varsity assistant and JV coach, and Liz Ehl and Tia Fiorentino, two of the program’s former players, are his freshman coaches.
The Red & Black successfully opened up the regular season at home on Sept. 3 with a 3-0 shutout win over Wilmington. They will then be at Arlington on Friday, Sept. 5, to take on the Spy Ponders at 5:30 p.m., and will remain on the road next week to face hosts Stoneham (Sept. 9, 5:30 p.m.) and Woburn (Sept. 11, 5:30 p.m.).
