“POULSBO – The coach isn’t ready to name a destination so early, but the athletes of the North Kitsap High School 2000 volleyball team know exactly where they want to go. After a finish last year that left them at third in the league, they want to finish closer to the top this year. We were so close, said Ashley Zygar said. Zygar is a senior. We were right there. I don’t know what happened. Maybe we didn’t want it enough. Coach Jeff Campbell, helping his team work out following a practice, thought it was too early to set specific goals. Right now, he said, he has a more unusual problem: too much talent. There’s a good mix of ability here, he said. It’s going to be tough to find starters this year because they’re all so level. But being level doesn’t mean being complacent, Campbell added. We were pretty good last year, he said. Every single year we’ve improved, and this year I expect we’ll improve even more. Fueling that improvement will be some of the team’s seniors. Some of the ones Campbell named include Zygar (She ‘s an all-around strong player … she understands the game so well), Alice Wood (She always tries hard at everything … everything’s one hundred percent), and first-year varsity member Amanda Allen. The team also has several talented sophomores, Campbell added. Zygar has the same expectations of her teammates. We just play really well together. I don’t know what it is, she said. And Zygar has been working on her game to make sure she plays well, running and playing in summer leagues. Unsure that she’ll play in college, Zygar believes this may be her last year of playing volleyball in school. Her career began in junior high. I really wanted to play a sport in junior high. I was going to try out (for volleyball) with some friends and they wussed out on me, she said. But I just got really into it. Zygar said her favorite part of the game is the passing. It was hard, but passing just felt like it was more natural, she said. That’s where my love from volleyball came from. So Zygar played both for the Cavaliers of Kingston Junior High and on club teams. I was a timid player, and I got into club and got more aggressive, she said. Now Zygar has a specific goal in mind. I want to make it to districts, that’d be awesome, she said. Her teammates can help her get there, she said. I think we’re going to do really well. We all work hard. We all want to win, she said. Another member of the team is Amber Markwick. Markwick, a junior, is equally passionate about the game. I love the competition, she said. Volleyball is a mental sport. It’s all pretty much a head game. Markwick said, You have to watch the hitter to know where to be. You have to know where the rest of your team is. Markwick is also looking forward to this year. I think we have an awesome team. We’re well-rounded; everyone can play other positions. Markwick enjoyed last year, saying, I think we had a great season, and I think we can pull it together this year. We have so much more physical ability. Among those who will help this year, Markwick said, is sophomore Sheena Brundage, who will probably play middle hitter. She’ll be easy to spot, Markwick said. She’ll be the person hitting the ball straight down at everyone, Markwick said of Brundage, who stands 5’10. “