Salina South senior Sydney Anderes records 1,000 career digs in volleyball

Kendrick Calfee, Salina Journal
·3 min read
Sydney Anderes celebrates a point against Abilene at the Southeast of Saline invitational Sept. 10.
Sydney Anderes celebrates a point against Abilene at the Southeast of Saline invitational Sept. 10.

Salina South senior libero Sydney Anderes just reached a milestone in her high school volleyball career.

The two-time all county team member recorded her 1,000th career dig Saturday against Beloit at the Southeast of Saline Invitational in Gypsum.

Anderes has been an integral part of the Cougar's lineup since her sophomore year, recording more than 300 digs that season and earning an honorable mention All-Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League Division I pick for two consecutive years.

The 1,000 dig mark is an accomplishment Anderes attributes to focusing on year-to-year improvement.

"My freshman year when I first started playing, it wasn't like a goal that I had, but as I continued to play and continue to just better myself, it became a goal," Anderes said. "It's a really good feeling. To be able to do it with my team means a lot. I couldn't have been able to do it without them and my coaches from the past three years as well."

A team leader

Salina South Head Volleyball coach Micala Anderson said the team has focused on expanding overall volleyball knowledge and improving communication this season. Anderes, she said, is a monumental leader on this front for the Cougars.

"We've been focusing on (communication) every single day and she has a lot of volleyball knowledge," Anderson said. "She's a really good leader because she genuinely does communicate well. It's hard to communicate constantly, it's a hard thing to do, but for volleyball that's how you work at getting better."

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Last season, the Salina Journal named Anderes the libero pick to the 2021 All-Saline County volleyball team. On the 2021-22 season, she impressed with 415 digs, 28 service aces and a 98% in serve receive.

Sydney Anderes lunges toward the ball against Abilene Sept. 10.
Sydney Anderes lunges toward the ball against Abilene Sept. 10.

"She just reads super well as libero — reading what's happening on the other side as well," Anderson said.

Heading into Saturday's matchups, Anderes had 103 receptions, 101 digs and 8 aces on the season. Before Saturday, she needed just 9 digs to reach 1,000.

As one of the Cougar's team-elected captains, Anderes said she remains locked-in on growth and doing what it takes to win this season.

"This season, we're just hoping to play really well as a team together and have a winning season," Anderes said. "We have started off a little rough but I think we can do really well if we just keep working together as a team.

Salina South High School senior Sydney Anderes (center) sits with other seniors at Practice Sept. 8.
Salina South High School senior Sydney Anderes (center) sits with other seniors at Practice Sept. 8.

The Cougars, 2-7 prior to Saturday's matchups, will continue their season in a triangular Sept. 13 at Derby High School in Derby, where they will face multiple schools.

"We just have to play hard," Anderes said. "We know what we have to do — we just have to communicate well on the floor, stay positive, and that will really help us."

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Kendrick Calfee has been a reporter at the Salina Journal since 2022. He can be reached at kcalfee@gannett.com or on twitter @calfee_kc.

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Salina South senior Sydney Anderes reaches 1,000 career dig mark