The 2023 Silver Hawks were a special unit. Led by nine seniors, the group amassed a 33-4 record en route to its first Class A title. But not even a new trophy is enough for Southwest to feel respected.

Today, the Silver Hawks feel overlooked and doubted, so last year’s semantic of “prove them wrong” lives on.

“Last year, we had a target on our back,” Silver Hawks coach Jessica Kirkendall said. “And things haven’t changed. We are still embracing that underdog mentality.”

On Tuesday night, Southwest demonstrated just that. Hosting No. 4 Grand Island, the No. 7 Silver Hawks emerged victorious, sweeping the Islanders 25-20, 25-12, 25-17.

“We came into this week knowing that Grand Island is a ranked team, but we also took a hard look at ourselves and identified what we needed to do better,” Kirkendall said.

Following a tough three-set loss to Omaha Westside last Thursday, Kirkendall said her team has been practicing harder than ever.

“After that loss, we took a step back and really focused on our side of the net,” she said. “We had only one solo block all match, so we returned to practice with a focus on blocking and emphasizing that aspect of the game.”

The results impressed Kirkendall, as top Nebraska volleyball prospect and UNLV commit Tia Traudt was limited to seven kills. The Southwest front row also registered nine blocks on the night.

“We knew she was the key to their team,” Kirkendall said. “We emphasized blocking, and tonight we saw a lot of block touches, which really frustrated them. With our aggressive blocking and serving, our attack was effective.”

As the Silver Hawks improved to 4-1 on the season, the fresh-faced unit continues to develop.

“This group was our JV team last year, so they all saw what winning volleyball looks like,” Kirkendall said. “They may look undersized, but they can jump really high. They might be inexperienced, but they know the Southwest standard and are fully embracing the underdog mentality.”

Olivia Kremer, one of two players from last year’s state tournament team on the roster, embraces the underdog feeling and sees how the entire team is rallying around this mindset.

“Everyone is out to beat us because they know we lost a lot of key players,” Kremer said. “But when everyone comes in here expecting to win, and we surprise them, it’s fun.”

“We are the returning state champs, but that team is gone. Now it’s time to focus on us,” Kirkendall concluded.