Athletes of the Week: Margaret Kraus & Charlotte Polk

Seniors Charlotte Polk and Margaret Kraus, co-captains of the girls’ volleyball team, want to focus on a cohesive leadership this season; their drive to succeed goes beyond the scoreboard. “Together, we want to win, but beyond that, we want to create an environment where everyone is competitive but also supportive of each other,” Kraus and Polk said. “We want to build on what past captains have made the team into.”

Kraus looks to be a supportive captain for her teammates. “I want to be a positive influence on everyone on the team and pick people up when they need it,” she said. “In tough situations, I want to be able to re-center and re-focus the team because I think that’s what captains are there for.” Polk, admiring past captains of the team, hopes to channel their same strategies and energy. “I want to emulate all of what I thought the best qualities of past captains were,” Polk said. She named last season’s captains, Kat Dumoulin ‘17 and Rachel Luo ‘17, as sources of inspiration.

Polk especially admired Dumoulin’s positive spirit and energetic attitude. “Kat was really fired up,” she said. “[She] was a good lesson on how to be intense without being harsh.” Polk found Luo to be a calmer presence, but equally influential. “Rachel Luo ‘17 was quieter on the court, but led by example and always worked really hard,” Polk explained. “She was like our team mom, which I definitely seek to emulate.” Two seasons ago, team captain Brooke Detwiler ‘15 provided another inspirational figure for Polk. “Brooke was really good at teaching without being condescending,” Polk said. “She was really good but didn’t make anyone feel less than.”

When asked to reflect on lessons learned from the past season, both Polk and Kraus emphasized the need to strive for excellence from the first game forward. “Last season we had some rough games, and it took us a while to get our fire back as a team, but once we did we did pretty well,” Kraus said. Polk echoed Kraus’ statement, adding that during this season, the captains would like to be successful from day one. “We want to come out of the gate strong this year, and I think we learned from last season that we’re best when we’re relaxed, scrappy and fired up,” Polk said.

As for focus points during preseason, Kraus and Polk hope to “keep it simple” and prepare for the upcoming, challenging games. “We’re looking to stay in it for the long haul mentally and stay scrappy the whole season,” Kraus and Polk said.

Kraus named the everyday practices and rematches with old rivals as what she is most excited for during the season. “We’re also looking forward to watching everyone grow,” Polk added.

Upper Lizzy MacBride commended Polk and Kraus for their leadership. “They bring so much energy to the team. I find myself smiling on and off the court all the time with them,” she said. “They hype me up even after I mess up and it helps me get back on my feet for the next play.” Describing both captains as “optimistic,” MacBride detailed their ability to look on the bright side of things and put a positive spin on any outcome. “It makes it easy for me to feel confident in my abilities as a volleyball player when I am with them,” she said. “They correct you, hype you up and are also both shoulders to cry on. I feel very comfortable with any situation and their help.”

At prep camp, MacBride felt “eager” to get back into the season due to Kraus and Polk’s encouragement. “With their positive attitudes, they helped me become more confident while playing, because I don’t play year round, so having gone 9 months without playing volleyball, I was kind of intimidated, but they made me feel at home on the court,” she explained. “It was nice because coming into the preseason we already had past team time together, making it easier to jump into the season.”

Upper Sophie Faliero echoed these compliments. “My captains are utterly selfless, incredibly kind and extremely positive,” she said. She named Kraus as a hardworking team-player who is consistently looking to improve “while constantly cheering the rest of the team on to do the same.” Faliero described Charlotte as both a great volleyball player and an influential role-model. Her experience at prep camp was similar to MacBride’s. “Margaret and Charlotte really brought this new group of girls together to be the best we can be together,” Faliero said.