It wasn’t a customary season for the North Carolina A&T volleyball team in 2007. A program that averaged 17 wins over 15 seasons prior to the 2007 campaign, managed just eight wins last season.

Absent from the team was the big hitter the Aggies normally bring into each season. A year ago, the Aggies leader in kills averaged 2.98 per game. It marked the first time in 13 seasons the Aggies leader in kills failed to average more than 3.0 kills per game. Also gone from the Aggies repertoire was the big serve. The Aggies are accustomed to averaging approximately 225 service aces per season. In 2007, they had just 190.

But the season was not a total loss for then first-year head coach Lyndsay Schmiedel. While the Aggies didn’t reach their normal benchmarks, the 26-year-old Michigan native learned some valuable lessons from her first season. They’re lessons she plans to use to rebuild the Aggies volleyball program back to more of its familiar surroundings – winning – and perhaps even further – championships.

“Team chemistry plays a key role in the success of a team,’’ said Schmiedel. “I didn’t realize how much, but we are definitely going to strive to build that this season. We are going to involve the ladies in a lot more team building exercises.”

Those activities should help the Aggies off the court but what about on the court? Another lesson Schmiedel learned in her first year as a head coach is the importance of competition in practice. Last season the Aggies lacked the depth to make players really concerned about losing their starting position.

“Our overall desire to win wasn’t there at times,’’ Schmiedel said about the 2007 Aggies. “In the spring we worked on our competitiveness. We are going to work on our competitiveness. We will be so competitive in practice; the ladies will have no choice but to let that transfer into our matches. If they come in thinking they will start because they have been here a few years, they will be mistaken. This year the players will have to fight for positions in practice.”

The Aggies certainly have their incumbents. On the outside, junior Janae Mitchell enters her third season as an Aggie. Mitchell has played in a reserve role over the first two years of her career. But Schmiedel hopes playing behind Arlene Mitchell as a freshman and Krystal Cooper as a sophomore – the Aggies last two kills leaders – will help Mitchell step into a more prominent role this season.

Redshirt sophomore Tiffany Mellette is the quasi incumbent on the outside. Mellette earned significant playing time as a freshman and sophomore. She played in 97 games, averaged 0.87 kills and had 300 total attacks. The Sanford, N.C., native sat out last season to concentrate on her academics. Even though she has missed a season, Schmiedel believes the potential she showed as a freshman will magnify itself in 2008.

“They can both be valuable hitters for us,’’ said Schmiedel about Mellette and Mitchell. “But I really want them to become better servers. We really need them to be strong in that area. They made a lot of mistakes in the spring, but they were the kind of mistakes you want to happen in the spring because they can learn and will be better players in the fall from having learned from those mistakes.”

Mellette and Mitchell will have to fend off two transfers for playing time on the outside. Greensboro College transfer Bridget McCaskill, whose sister Danielle plays tennis for the Aggies, will push for one of those outside hitter positions along with Pfeiffer University transfer Sheena Mashore. Schmiedel likes that she has four viable candidates for the outside hitter positions and that all four players have college volleyball experience.

The same can be said the for the Aggies libero position. Junior Stacey Malone was a first-year starter in that position a year ago and became very effective there. She had more digs than any other player in the MEAC (513) and she ranked third in the conference in digs per game (4.42). Malone's speed and quickness are an asset for her, but her competitors have other attributes to their game. Sophomore Amber Inman will also compete for the defensive spot. Inman is a good passer and has great ball control on her digs.

“The one that doesn’t get the libero position will be in line for the defensive specialist position,’’ said Schmiedel. “That will be a great battle between two good players for two positions.”

Middle and right side seem to have established starters. Seniors Avignon Williams and Aundia Gray are the Aggies top returning offensive players. Williams is expected to be a four-year starter at middle hitter, and was an all-conference performer last season after finishing second in the MEAC in blocks. Williams also led the team in hitting percentage (.214). Gray will likely be a three-year starter this season. She is the Aggies top kills per game returner as she averaged a career-high 2.78 kills per game. She led the team in points per game at 3.20 per game last season.

“We’re definitely looking to them to be our senior leaders,’’ said Schmiedel. “They are very good players, our team will look to them for leadership and they need to supply it.”

They too will have competition for playing time. Sophomore LaShawn White has been marred by injuries during her career. She has been around the program for three seasons and understands the system. Freshman Breanne Dotstry will also compete for playing time at the position.

Even with competition, the setter position was unsettled for the Aggies up until Jordan Gray arrived in August. Gray will have the giant task of replacing all-time assists leader Brenden Chatman. In case of injury, freshman Jazmine Russell can also play the position along with Jacksonville, N.C., native Kaneisha Winfield. The good news for Schmiedel is that she was a setter for Akron University during her college career, so she is confident she can groom Gray and whoever else plays the position.

Schmiedel should also not have any problem grooming hitters this season considering she has one the best hitters in school history helping her this season. All-time kills leader and four-time all-conference performer Arlene Mitchell is the Aggies new assistant coach.

“Arlene loves to teach and she loves to push people to compete, so I’m sure she will add an extra fire to our team this year,’’ said Schmiedel.

“We have a lot of ladies on this team. “I think that will develop some inner-team competition. I’m hoping our experienced players set the pace because we have so many new players and transfers. If they instill in them Aggie Pride, we’ll play much better this season.”