By Kory CarpenterRecord Sports EditorWhen she wasn’t busy commuting from Collinsville, Ill., to Warrenton over the summer or getting acclimated to life in a new city, Kristen McDowell was thinking volleyball.The former club volleyball coach interviewed for a teaching opening at Warrenton High School over the summer and when she heard the varsity volleyball position was open as well, she was intrigued.“I had coached high school-aged girls before, but this is a lot different because it’s attached to teaching,” the first-year varsity head coach said Monday. “There’s just a lot more to it than coaching a club team.”The Warriors (14-11-4) jumped out to a 4-0 start before an injury plague hit the team.Senior middle blocker Nicole Hardt injured her elbow early in the season and missed two weeks.She missed 10 more days later in the season with back problems, and was joined on the sideline by senior outside hitter Morgan Boesel, who hurt her ankle in the Sept. 19 tournament at Seckman.“We had a lot of people step up when we had injuries,” McDowell said. “I never really had the consistent lineup I had imagined in the beginning of the year, but a lot of girls stepped up and played positions they had never really played before.”Warrenton dropped to 9-10-2 overall after a loss to Orchard Farm Oct. 3, but reinforcements helped McDowell’s team finish the season on a positive note.The Warriors finished the regular season 13-10-4 before losing to St. Dominic in the district semifinals.“Kayla Nelson and Ashtyn Dixon really impressed me.” McDowell said of the pair of sophomores who had never played varsity volleyball. “Kayla ended up being one of our go-to hitters by the end of the year. She started running plays she had never done before because she has never played club volleyball. I’m really excited about her in the next two years because she improved tenfold in the three weeks I had her and Ashtyn.”Nelson finished with 64 kills and Dixon collected 38 digs.Ellie Stapleton led the team with 43 blocks, Allison May had a team-high 28 aces and the Warriors relied on a balanced offensive and defensive attack throughout the season.Five seniors — Stapleton, Boesel, Hardt, Anna Sutherland and Chyanne Schwerdt — will graduate from this year’s team, but five players — Dixon, Nelson, May, Sabrina McRoberts and Alex Buechner — ­ are expected to return for a head coach who will be happy to have a year of experience as well.And with a full offseason to prepare for 2016, McDowell intends to teach more skills over the summer.“There are a lot of things I wish I would have done differently, but that’s part of growing as a coach,” she said. “I don’t think it was a bad season.”

Warrenton's Ashtyn Dixon goes up for a play at the net during a game this season.  Derrick Forsythe photo.