By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer
The Rivera Lady Raiders have been plagued with multiple injuries this season. Losing key contributors has forced senior Daniela Carrion into a familiar role as a utility player.
Her coach, Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra, has been impressed with her unselfish attitude, keeping the team’s best interests at the front of her mind.
“She wanted to work hard to see if she could get the libero spot this year,” Avelar-Guerra said. “But she was willing to give that up to help the team.”
Carrion has been on the varsity roster since her sophomore year. She began last season as an all-around player, but the team needed help in the back row and she was moved into the libero position.
She took a liking to playing as a defensive specialist. That’s where she started her senior season, until some inopportune injuries forced her to change back to an all-purpose player.
In practice, she slides from station to station, working with the setters, diggers and hitters to keep all parts of her game well rounded.
“She’s been tremendous (moving around because of injuries),” Avelar-Guerra said. “She can play front row, she’s an awesome libero, she’s one of our top hitters, she can set, she can do anything. She’s a really great all-around volleyball player.”
Avelar-Guerra knows the talent and value Carrion provides can’t be overstated. But aside from being a tremendously skilled player, she hasn’t let the intangibles go unnoticed.
“She’s also a good leader and a hard worker,” she said. “She gets along with everybody, and she’s very patient.”
This has been an uncharacteristically down year for Rivera volleyball. A team that typically poses a threat in the postseason has seen its 2014 record reflect a wounded group. A team that would otherwise be led by a number of upperclassmen is instead inexperienced.
“We have a few people on the court who are first-time varsity players, so we have to work twice as hard to get to that standard that we’re used to,” Carrion said. “The volleyball program carries a tradition of success. This year it’s a little bit more difficult.”
Making the playoffs remains the goal, though, and since teams have only just recently started playing district games, there’s plenty of time for Rivera to make a statement.
“I’m looking forward to what’s to come, because I know we have a team that has the potential to make the playoffs,” she said. “I’m excited because it’s my senior year and I want to make the most of it.”
Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.