By CONOR NICHOLL

cnicholl@dailynews.net

The Hays High School volleyball team started its season with smiles, unique celebrations, constant communication, plenty of confidence and strong team chemistry. The players yielded a positive vibe absent in past years.

The improvements produced a 3-0 record at the Hays High Quadrangular Tuesday at the HHS gym, the best start since 2005 for the Indians.

"We are all having fun," senior setter Kelsey Hedlund said.

Everything was the opposite from 2007 under then first-year head coach Gary Anderson. The difficulties yielded a 5-27 season, one of the worst records in program history.

"I think there was just so much pressure last year that we just couldn't play to our potential," junior outside hitter Ashli Dryden said.

In three hours Tuesday, the Indians nearly matched their win total from last fall. HHS beat all three teams: La Crosse (25-8, 25-17), Larned (25-10, 25-17) and Otis-Bison (25-11, 25-12), all schools smaller than Class 5A HHS.

It marked the first time Hays High didn't allow any opponent to reach 20 points in the season opener since rally scoring was instituted in 2002.

"We all talk on the court and there is no drama whatsoever," senior libero Emily Younger said. "Everyone gets along."

Last year's freshman coach, new head coach Bob Schmitz stresses the positive.

"All about encouraging them," Schmitz said. "Not letting them get down, I am all about the teamwork, all about the communication."

The wins, marked by constant smiles and inspired play, was a turnaround from the last few seasons of HHS volleyball. Schmitz is the fourth head coach in four seasons.

In the past two falls, Hays High has gone 8-24 and 5-27. That included a 3-3 mark at the opening quad versus the same teams the Indians played Tuesday.

"The past few years have just been a big blur," Dryden said.

Several players said Anderson, an import from Missouri, disconnected with the girls and didn't focus on fundamentals like Schmitz has. It affected every aspect of the game, including serve-receive.

"Last year, serve-receive scared us to death," Hedlund said. "We were terrible at serve-receive."

Players said there was little team chemistry, no cheering between points and internal problems.

"Everybody was so nervous," Dryden, Hays' only 2007 first team Western Athletic Conference player, said.

Anderson resigned after one season and Schmitz volunteered to take over the program. He changed the environment, including bringing a positive attitude and "a lot of confidence" -- something missing last fall. There have been no team issues. Anderson's strong personality is replaced by the relaxed Schmitz.

"I have been pushing the girls not to let anything like (2007) happen," Schmitz said. "Once we get on the court, regardless of what happens outside the court, we are going to stay positive with each other."

Schmitz's mantra is "don't say sorry about a mistake, just use it as another chance to get better." The players have fed off the changes, even during school hours.

"Now we have positive input," senior Emily Younger, a two-year starter, said. "Like if we mess up, we know that it is going to be OK, because we can get it again. Last year, we didn't have that. Nobody is nervous any more and like even in the hallways, like high five (when we see coach). We even have team unity even in the hallways and that helps a lot."

Schmitz has even used the Olympics to help. Early on, he told the players communication was an expectation. A few days before the opener, the team had a bad practice.

"There was no intensity, no vocalism at all," Schmitz said. "Everyone was kind of looking down in the dumps."

Schmitz asked if any player had seen the Olympics. All raised their hand. He noted that the volleyball teams never got angry at each other, were always communicating, always positive.

"Did you notice how the team always got together, whether it was a good play or a bad play?," Schmitz told the squad. "After a bad play, yelling in someone else's ear, do you think they were yelling at that person or do you think they were encouraging that person?"

The HHS players also re-instituted a series of elaborate post-point celebrations.

"It has been pushed onto us that we need to cheer more," Younger said.

"It keeps everybody's head up and nobody gets down," Dryden added.

The celebrations had started in the eighth grade but didn't occur last season. Now, HHS does various foot-stomping, hand-slapping, teammate-knocking maneuvers after every point.

"We learned the ace cheer in the locker room before the first game," Younger said with a smile.

The changes helped Hays High roll. Helped by a significantly better serve-receive, the Indians had at least one run where they won eight of nine points in every set, including a 12-1 run versus La Crosse in Game 1 and an 11-0 burst in Game 1 against Otis-Bison.

Overall, the high-leaping Dryden had a team-leading 20 kills, including seven against La Crosse and Larned.

"Her hang time is like five seconds," Hedlund said.

Senior outside hitter Raena Sander tallied 12 kills en route to the first wins of a new, more positive, era.

"We all just get along really well," Hedlund said.