In year two under Coach Teresa Hodges, the Nansemond River High School boys’ volleyball team its expecting a competitive season.

With fall sports gearing up and teams getting games under their belt before school starts, the Warriors are one of those teams excited about returning back to the court. The Warriors had a decent season last year, but they are looking to take things to the next level now that there is more chemistry and continuity among the team.

“I feel really good about the team this year,” Hodges said. “We have 14 boys on the team, and we have a ranging variety of strong athletes on the team, and we are excited about the season.”

Of the 14 players on the team, the Warriors return eight players from last year’s team. Hodges believes that will be an advantage for the team.

“We feel like this year we are going to be a very competitive team,” Hodges said. “Our goals and expectations for ourselves are pretty high, so we just want to work hard and see where that takes us. We want to compete with those teams at the top of the district.”

Returning for the Warriors will be Benji Wiechert, Will Aydelotte, Brent William and Jacob Prosper. They all had strong seasons last year, and they are expected to be solid contributors for the team this season as well.

Nansemond River starts district play against rival King’s Fork High School at 7 p.m. Thursday at King’s Fork. They’ll have next week off as school starts back and will get back into games Sept. 10 when they take on Oscar Smith High School.

“These first few games we want to start off the season showing some consistency and putting pure effort out on the floor,” Hodges said. “We want to be out there supporting each other and working hard. We just want to get off to a fast start on the season.”