The Cheyenne Wells Lady Tigers volleyball program will have a considerably different look when it takes the floor for the 2026 season.
Head coach Seyjah Hill enters her second season leading the Tigers after finishing 10-12 overall a year ago and competing in the High Plains League.
While last year’s squad featured plenty of veteran experience, this year’s edition will be much younger. Cheyenne Wells graduated six seniors from the 2025 team — Aubry Caroll, an outside hitter; Even Scheimer and Serenity Worley, both middle hitters; setter Aliyah Muth; defensive specialist Lilly Gilmore; and right-side hitter Athena Ball.
Five starters were among those lost to graduation, leaving Hill and the Tigers with only two returning starters or key players as they begin rebuilding the lineup.
Those two returners — junior Bailey Scheler and sophomore Brinley Hyle — will be important pieces for Cheyenne Wells this fall.
Scheler returns in the middle hitter position, while Hyle will handle setting duties for the Tigers. Despite their youth, Hill expects both to take on leadership roles for a team that will need its experienced players to help bring a number of newcomers along.
Hill described Scheler and Hyle as “hardworking and determined to lead by example.”
That leadership will be particularly important because the remainder of the Tiger lineup will be made up of players stepping into larger or new varsity roles. Hill listed Bristol Fulton, Brooklyn Gerstner, Izzy Aragon, Tegan Wood, Roary Unruh, Braylee Graay and Chesnee Halde among the other players in the program this season.
With so many new faces replacing a large senior class, there will undoubtedly be a learning curve. But Hill believes one characteristic already showing up in her team could help the Tigers overcome some of that inexperience — they like to compete.
Hill identified the Tigers’ competitive mindset as one of their biggest strengths.
“They enjoy competing and don’t give up when momentum shifts,” Hill said.
That ability to battle through momentum swings can be particularly important in volleyball, where a match can change quickly. For a young team, learning not to allow one bad rotation or a short run by an opponent to turn into an entire set will be an important part of the Tigers’ development.
Hill already knows where some of that growth needs to take place.
“Closing sets, staying composed and executing when the score is close,” she said of the areas Cheyenne Wells needs to improve.
That could become one of the defining challenges for the Tigers during the early portion of the season. Scheler and Hyle have been through varsity competition, but several of their teammates will now be asked to perform in situations where every point becomes important.
The Tigers will also have to navigate what Hill expects to be a competitive league schedule.
Rather than single out one or two programs as clear favorites, Hill believes there are several teams capable of having successful seasons.
“There are several strong contenders this season,” Hill said. “I think there are a number of teams that have the talent, experience, and depth to make a deep run.”
But Hill doesn’t want her young Tigers spending too much time worrying about what everyone else has.
“We are really focused on controlling what we can control, continuing to improve, and being ready for whoever we face,” she said.
For Cheyenne Wells, that approach makes sense.
With five starters gone and only two key returners, the Tigers who take the floor at the beginning of the season may look considerably different from the team Hill hopes to have by the time postseason volleyball arrives.
The development of Scheler in the middle and Hyle at setter will be critical, but so will the progress made by Fulton, Gerstner, Aragon, Wood, Unruh, Graay and Halde as they settle into their roles.
For Hill, the goal isn’t necessarily to have everything figured out immediately. It is to keep moving forward.
“Our outlook is very positive,” Hill said. “We are focused on getting better every day, building strong team chemistry, and staying consistent.”
That may be particularly important for a team going through such a significant transition. With a young roster, chemistry and confidence can develop alongside varsity experience, and each match should provide another opportunity for the Tigers to find out a little more about themselves.
“We are taking it one match at a time and trusting the work we put in,” Hill said.
Cheyenne Wells may enter 2026 without the veteran-heavy lineup it had a year ago, but Hill likes the competitive nature she sees from this group.
Now the challenge is turning that competitiveness into consistency — learning how to finish close sets, execute under pressure and continue improving as the season progresses.
If the young Tigers can do that, Cheyenne Wells could become a much tougher volleyball team as the season wears on.
Cheyenne Wells traveled to Flagler for their season opener on Friday and came away with a 3-0 loss in set scores of 23-25, 16-25, and 16-25. No stats were available at press time.
