Determination. Block. Effort. Hit. Teamwork. Assist. Pride. Spike. Rangers. Win.
After the Ranger volleyball team game against the Southeastern Oklahoma State University Savage
Storm on Sept. 29, they earned their seventh win in a row. The Rangers won 3-0.
One player that helped Rangers achieve this win was Jennifer Eubanks, a sophomore. Eubanks recorded 16.5 points. She had a
hitting percentage of .682 for the match, which now stands as the highest hitting percentage ever posted by a Ranger in a single match.
“I was really proud to be able to break the record at NWOSU,” Eubanks said. “I love this school. So having my name put down and remembered is really exciting. I’m going to try and beat that record again
this year.”
That isn’t the only record Eubanks is trying to beat this year. She said she also hopes to help her team beat the
season record to get at the top of the conference.
“We want to show everyone the progress we’ve gone through,” she said. “With a rough season last year, we are ready to show people that we can actually play. We have the heart for it. We want to win.” Last year the volleyball team took many losses, but this year has won the majority of their games.
“Coach’s game plan is very different than others,” Eubanks said. “Most coaches don’t utilize the middle as much as the outside, but coach does. The main hitting areas are middle and outside, so I feel like that is the big difference.”
Utilizing all areas of the court involves a lot of teamwork, and that is something the volleyball team
displays on and off the court.
“Teamwork means everyone playing in full effort and full force,” she said. “A big thing we focus on is that every point counts. During practice we work hard, and off the court we like to hang out and really
be a family.”
Eubanks is really proud of the Rangers, and she wants to keep improving on herself to help the Rangers achieve more wins. “I’m a strong hitter,” she said, “but I really want to get better at blocking. I want to be an all around good player.”
To become an all around good player, Eubanks has had to do a lot of work on herself to be able to be a middle hitter as well as an outside hitter.
“Before college I was too skinny to be a middle hitter,” she said. “I was pushed around everywhere, so it was
really my main focus to show myself in college that I could be able to play middle. This was a mental thing, but strength-wise I also got stronger and bigger over the summer.”
Her main focus is to be a dependable, stable hitter for her team. Going forward she said she plans to keep getting stronger and better, and hopes is results in more wins. “We are going to fight hard [in our next game],” Eubanks said, “and show the rest of the conference what we can do. We obviously want to win. These would be really big games going against Arkansas teams. It will be a tough match but we want to win, play as a whole and play the best to our abilities.”
Eubanks determination and teamwork with the rest of the Ranger volleyball team will hopefully show results on Saturday against Arkansas-Monticello in the Percefull Fieldhouse.
“Being a Ranger is about working hard, showing school spirit, wanting the school to keep progressing,” Eubanks said. “[The school] has come so far all already. The sports have too, and people should fear the Northwestern Rangers.”