Braden River girls volleyball has to pick up the pieces

The restart button is never easy to push. It appears once a season has ended, and at one point or another during the offseason, must be pushed.

Regardless of which players return, or who stays on the coaching staff, no team is the same from season to season. Each team gets its own fresh start.

Matthew McElhiney has hit ‘restart’ plenty in the past — now entering his 16th year as the Braden River High girls volleyball coach. Doing so after last fall, though, was particularly hard.

In 2025, the Pirates reached the FHSAA Class 5A-Region 3 final and finished 19-11, assembling the deepest tournament run in program history. They also won the 5A-12 district championship.

Tremendous success was followed by tremendous loss.

Chloe Pogoda graduated after tallying 304 kills and setting the program’s single-season record. So did Mia McGuire, whose 1,418 career assists represent an all-time program record.

Last season’s blocks leader Molly Horalek and digs leader Rilyn Stiegler have also departed for college. Ashlyn Henry, who finished first in receptions and second in aces/digs, is gone, too.

“They played the biggest part in how far we went,” said senior setter Ella Rodgers. “They’re seriously missed every single day… it’s bittersweet.”

Photo by Jack Nelson

Pushing the restart button ahead of this upcoming season meant leaving all of those seniors behind. But it had to be done.

McElhiney is the longest-tenured coach at Braden River. He’s the longest-tenured girls volleyball coach in Sarasota and Manatee counties. Building a winning team with so much lost production will be a challenge — even for him

But he doesn’t see it that way. With the Pirates’ first week of practice in the books, he believes the season ahead holds more positives than negatives.

“I don’t see it being a situation where we’re just trying to survive,” McElhiney said. “They’re going to be very competitive. They’re going to be another solid team to beat this year.”

As successful as last year’s team was, it didn’t raise the expectation for teams to come. The expectation, McElhiney said, has been the same since 2019.

The ability of this season’s squad to eventually meet that standard starts with how the players spent their respective offseasons. Most of them didn’t just step away from the court and leave the sport behind after last October.

Several of them dove into club volleyball or played for Braden River beach volleyball from February through April — or did both.

“Most of our teammates play club together, so it’s always good to just grow as a team in that kind of environment," Rodgers said. “Then we go into (the) high school season already knowing each other and being familiar.”

Photo by Jack Nelson

The Pirates have seven returners from last year’s 15-person roster. This year’s team is unusually balanced by class with five seniors, three juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen.

Only three or four players, McElhiney said, have gotten court time over the past few years. He plans to rely on them as the leaders of an otherwise inexperienced group.

Positional versatility is something several of his players do share.

“From a potential standpoint and a flexibility standpoint — having players who can play multiple positions — once we get into the season and they start growing, they have a lot of potential,” McElhiney said.

Sophomore outside/middle hitter Molly Lynch brings some much-needed continuity to the table. She burst onto the scene as a freshman, contributing more than any other underclassman.

Lynch played in 96 sets — more than three seniors. Also as a newcomer, she recorded a team-high 48 aces, third-most 187 kills, third-most 259 digs and fourth-most 200 receptions.

McElhiney spoke highly of her ability to stay strong mentally and shoulder heavy responsibility in the front row. He anticipates Braden River will lean on her, at times.

“Second year on varsity is stressful,” Lynch said. “But I do think we have a really good group of girls.”

Photo by Jack Nelson

Rising senior setter/opposite Olivia Alsum, sophomore middle blocker Claire Barrett and senior middle blocker Jeaniya Edwards are all on McElhiney’s list of impact players for the season ahead. He sees each of them as key pieces of the puzzle.

That list also includes Rodgers, who will take on a larger role after playing in 30 sets as a junior en route to a fifth-most 51 receptions and eighth-most 43 digs.

“When she’s not on the court, you see a difference,” McElhiney said. “Her passing, her serving and her ability to make good help sets really just brings a calmness to our team and a consistency that we’re going to need.”

Braden River’s season begins with a visit to Sarasota High at 7 p.m. Aug. 18. Naturally, the team hopes to eventually meet the program expectation which its predecessor met.

Doing so will be a serious challenge.

Much has been lost from 2025 — perhaps, too much.