ECHO – With just one senior on the roster, the Echo Cougars begin the volleyball season with a young team, but the Cougars are ready to face the challenges of competing in a very tough Big Sky conference.

The Cougars, 11-12 (3-5 in the Big Sky), finished in the middle of the pack last season and lost three key players, but head coach Jan Zita believes her team has the chemistry to be successful.

“We’re young, but anyone in this league can win on any given night,” Zita said.

The Cougars will rely heavily on three returning starters, juniors Felicia Mendoza, JoDee Williams and Jessica Zita, to lead the Cougars on the court. The other Cougars bound to see playing time are juniors Courtney Jordan, Ashley McFarlane and Jessica Primmer.

Echo will also see action out of sophomores Brianna Longhorn and Jessica Barrera.

Echo will utilize seven freshmen, Mazie Madison, Rebecca Ferge, Rebecca Reese, Heather Thomas, Ali McQuain, Meghan Goerdel and Decimia Town, because they bring some needed height to the team.

“Some of these girls will be seeing some varsity court time and will develop into quality assets for us,” coach Zita said.

Stacey Garcia, Echo’s only senior, returns for her final season and coach Zita hopes she’ll help lead the team this year.

“Stacey has come in this year with a great attitude and a strong desire to play. We lost some great leadership last year and we need all the girls to really step up.”

The Cougars will host Huntington at 5 p.m. Friday. Echo will then play in the Echo Invitational comprised of Helix, Powder Valley, Stanfield JV, Hermiston JV and Umatilla JV at 9 a.m. Saturday.

Coach Zita noted that her team must be strong in all aspects of the game to win with the new scoring system. The scoring system changed from the sideout system to the rally scoring system in order to keep the action constant throughout the match. Games will be played to 25 points (30-point cap), and the fifth and deciding game should be played to 15 points, with a win by two points. Each team must win three out of five games in order to win the match as opposed to last year when teams had to win two out of three.

“Every mistake you make will cost you a point, so the girls need to be focused,” coach Zita said.

“Things are going to be pretty interesting with the changes, but I’m ready to get the girls on the court.”

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Sports reporter Joe McHaney can be reached at 1-800-522-0255 (ext. 1-236) or by e-mail at jmchaney@eastoregonian.com.