{"id":11902,"date":"2025-10-01T08:58:48","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T12:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=11902"},"modified":"2025-10-01T11:14:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T15:14:16","slug":"georgia-southern-volleyball-set-to-attack-upcoming-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2025\/10\/01\/georgia-southern-volleyball-set-to-attack-upcoming-season\/","title":{"rendered":"GEORGIA SOUTHERN VOLLEYBALL SET TO ATTACK UPCOMING SEASON"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Georgia
Georgia Southern outside hitter Reagan Barth (25) during the 2024 Georgia Southern Volleyball Blue-White Scrimmage at Hanner Fieldhouse on August 17, 2024 in Statesboro, Georgia. (Photograph by AJ Henderson \/ Georgia Southern Athletics)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Georgia Southern University Head Volleyball Coach Chad Willis felt something special was brewing months before the 2024 Eagles volleyball season had even started. His intuition was correct; the group went on to win every one of their regular season home matches and finished the season with a 22-7 record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe had quite a bit of returners in the gym for the off-season,\u201d he said. \u201cI can remember all the way back to that January and having that first team meeting of 2024, and that group really setting the tone in the locker room saying, \u2018We feel like we’re going to be one of the top Sun Belt volleyball programs.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That mindset carried into the fall where Georgia Southern established itself as a force, particularly at home. The atmosphere was nothing short of electric and games averaged record-high attendance at Hanner Fieldhouse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maggie Sale, a redshirt sophomore on the team, said the excitement of Hanner started in the tunnel before the players took the court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe had these silly little traditions and superstitions that we did every single game,\u201d she recalled. \u201cWe would be in the hallway of Hanner screaming our chants before we walked out there. We have these conversations of, \u2018Hanner is our house; no one’s going to come in here and take it from us.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sale doesn\u2019t consider herself a superstitious person, but you don\u2019t mess with a winning formula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the secret sauce that kept the Eagles volleyball undefeated at home involved much more than just pregame chants.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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While Georgia Southern had a strong roster and an intimidating home court advantage, Willis attributes their rise to the program\u2019s core values and a strong culture built on communication and connectedness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe really pride ourselves on our culture,\u201d he said. \u201cPart of character is if you are disciplined. Are you doing the things that you need to do every single day to put yourself in a situation to own moments? Are we connected in terms of treating each other the right way?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That philosophy has become the backbone of the program, ensuring that success is not fleeting, but sustainable. With six seniors graduating, the Eagles are already looking ahead, focusing on leadership and maturity to continue their ascent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite their impressive run, Georgia Southern fell just short of their ultimate goal \u2014 a Sun Belt title. The team has embraced a new motto heading into 2025: \u201cunfinished business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were dominant in September, but championship teams play their best ball in November and December,\u201d Willis emphasized. \u201cWe learned last season that you can start strong, but it\u2019s how you finish that matters. This year, we\u2019re making it a priority to be a December- playing volleyball team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of that momentum will come from the returning players who will be asked to lead the Eagles onto the court next season. Sale said the team has an incredible bond built on trust and unity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery single girl that was on the court and every girl that was on the bench could go home and sit down to eat dinner together,\u201d she said. \u201cThose are girls that I could spend endless amounts of time<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\"Georgia
Georgia Southern team during the NCAA women\u2019s volleyball game between Georgia Southern and Charleston Southern at Hanner Fieldhouse on September 13, 2024 in Statesboro, Georgia. (Photograph by AJ Henderson \/ Georgia Southern Athletics)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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with. That’s super important because we have those relationships on the court and relationships off the court, and we can dictate the difference between what needs to be talked about off the court and what needs to stay on the court.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Willis gives credit to his team for the program\u2019s success, his players are quick to serve it back to his side of the net.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to his players, Willis\u2019 dedication to fostering relationships and treating them as more than just athletes makes him stand out. To them, he isn\u2019t just a coach; he\u2019s a mentor, a leader and someone who genuinely cares about their growth as individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of that culture that has brought continued success to the team is what he preaches on and off the court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe holds us to a standard, but he also doesn’t leave us alone meeting that standard,\u201d Sale said. \u201cI think that’s a huge part of why our culture is good: we have a head coach who pushes all of us to be better all the time, and he will never leave you behind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spring practices are already underway, and preparation for the 2025 campaign begins with continuing the momentum of last season. While last season did not garner a trophy for the case, optimism could not be higher in the locker room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe’re right where we need to be,\u201d Willis said. \u201cThis is probably the best we’ve been in a long time \u2014 certainly in the six years I\u2019ve been here. But where we need to make significant strides is to continue to develop leaders, put our standards in place and make sure that we’re not just meeting those, but we’re exceeding those.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With an enthusiastic fan base, a culture built on trust and accountability and a roster that\u2019s only getting stronger, Georgia Southern volleyball isn\u2019t just knocking on the championship door \u2014 it\u2019s ready to break through in the years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe’re going to come back and we’re going to do some really, really good things,\u201d Sale said. \u201cWe’re locked in and we’re ready.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014Jacob Notermann<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\"Georgia
Georgia Southern head coach Chad Willis during the NCAA women\u2019s volleyball game between Georgia Southern and North Carolina A&T at Hanner Fieldhouse on September 12, 2024 in Statesboro, Georgia. (Photograph by AJ Henderson \/ Georgia Southern Athletics)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Georgia Southern University Head Volleyball Coach Chad Willis felt something special was brewing months before the 2024 Eagles volleyball season had even started. His intuition was correct; the group went on to win every one of their regular season home matches and finished the season with a 22-7 record. \u201cWe had quite a bit of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":898,"featured_media":11899,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[89],"class_list":["post-11902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-athletics","tag-summer-2025"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/898"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11902\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}