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By TYLER RALEY | Special to the Reporter

NORTH SHELBY – Following a hard-fought 33-18 season that ended in heartbreak in the super regionals, the Briarwood Christian Lions search for that same success with a young team in 2024.

The previous two seasons have both ended in the super regional round with veteran squads, and last year’s postseason run matched the theme of last year’s campaign, which was battling until the end. The Lions fell in four sets to the Northridge Jaguars but gave them a challenge after being down two sets early.

With a new coach at the helm in former Hoover coach Chris Camper, there is more optimism for what lies ahead in the program’s future, especially with the youthful talent that Briarwood possesses.

“This is my first year at Briarwood so we are installing the whole system and changing the way things are done,” Camper said. “On top of just generally being excited to play volleyball for this fall, we’re also excited about building a program and starting everything new.”

Due to an unbalanced proportion of players from each grade level, the Lions only carry one senior on their team: setter Mia Wilson, who will be one of the team captains that leads the squad on the court this season.

Outside of her, while Camper has a strong junior class, he is optimistic about his two young outside hitters in sophomore Julie Roberts and freshman Leighton Hendley.

With some time to work with in order to develop these players, Camper believes that this year’s team can help continue the program’s road to dominance.

“We’ve got one senior, but we’re going to bring everybody back,” Camper said. “So we’ve got two years in 5A with a very young group. We’re really excited about not just this season, but the next two seasons.”

One thing Camper enjoys about his squad is the determination that the players have to achieve excellence, and in the move to Class 5A this year, that is something Briarwood will have to have in order to be successful.

In Area 8, the Lions will see Central High School of Clay County and Sylacauga, along with county foe Shelby County. While Sylacauga did make the state tournament in 2023, Camper thinks his team can face the challenges that come with moving into a new region.

“One of the things that took about five minutes to figure out is how great these kids are. These are phenomenal young women,” Camper said. “When you have a group of kids like that that the parents have done an amazing job with, you want to do your part. They have everything you need to be successful.”

As all of the new aspects of the 2024 season continue to enter the picture, the possibility of the unknown looms larger and larger for this team and what this year will hold.

For Camper, making this team fierce on a consistent basis is the key to Briarwood having success under his leadership.

“I think the most important thing for Briarwood is that we have to compete for every single point like it’s our last, and that’s not something that they’re used to doing,” Camper said. “The thing that I’ve got to get these girls to do more than anything else is to believe in themselves because they’re a really really talented group, and if they believe in themselves we’re going to have a really good shot to do some special things this year.”

Camper has set a plan for the Lions to play quickly and aggressively, hoping to give his girls confidence early in the game and keep opponents on their toes.

As the season goes on, Briarwood will find out how well it handles the pace. If it can execute and take advantage of mistakes from the opposition, it will have a chance to make some noise throughout the year.