Adam Peters ’19 began playing Volleyball on Andover’s JV team as a Junior.
Dubbed “Birdman” by his fellow teammates because of his ability to jump to the ball, Adam Peters ’19 is an integral part of the team both on and off the court, according to Co-Captain Clayson Briggs ‘19.
“Off the court, he is a big member of the team. He involves himself in every team activity, whether it’s cutting fruit at team dinners [or anything else],” said Briggs.
Peters’ dedication and development has earned him The Phillipian’s title of Athlete of the Week.
When did you start playing Volleyball?
I started on JV my Junior year. I played a little bit of beach [volleyball] before that, but this is my first time actually playing on the team.
What position do you play?
Recently I’ve been playing the outside hitter, and that position is dedicated to getting low floats or high balls that you then hit. The outside hitter is mostly dedicated to placement of the balls rather than sheer utter power.
How do you train for volleyball or get ready for a game?
There’s…a mental piece, so before the game it’s just being calm because volleyball is really a mental game; if you miss a serve, it’s the other team’s point. There’s this whole mental aspect of just getting the serve in and then hitting the ball over.
Do you have any specific Volleyball role models?
Captain Richard Zhong ’17. I really admired that Richard had a really powerful hit. It was like a cannon. I really admired how he could put so much power on it from anywhere on the field.
Peter Munn ’18 was kind of the complete opposite; he didn’t have as much power, but he could jump incredibly high, he had a 40 inch vertical which is crazy, and he just had great placement of the ball. Wherever he wanted to go on the court, left to the mid corner, he put it like there just like that.
What are your favorite team traditions?
Team dinners, which we have every Friday at the coach’s house– those are really fun. We usually have pasta and we watch “Family Feud” on the TV, and we even started watching curling. It’s just a lot of fun meeting with the team, watching something goofy, and having a good time with it.
What is your biggest support system during games?
I would say that Coach Alex Svec is my biggest support system. He’s the head coach right now, and whenever you make a misplay or do something well, he’ll be there to tell you what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong. He’ll give you words of wisdom, and he just always says the right thing. For example, whenever you make a misplay, he’ll say “keep your head up,” which just really helps and is something you really need to hear sometimes.
Also the other coach, Clyfe Beckwith [and I]— we have a really nice relationship. Joking around with each other…that just really helps the team atmosphere.
What’s your favorite thing about Volleyball?
There’s nothing quite like getting a perfect set from the setter…Co-Captain Neil Simpson ’19, who is our [setter], sets really wonderful balls. Just going off and jumping and hitting them, in a specific location—or just hitting it as hard as you can—seeing it hit the ground, and maybe even hit the ceiling…there’s so much fun in that.
Also, one of my favorite things about this sport is the the team spirit we have. I used this word before, but we have so much camaraderie between all of us. We all just have such a good time. We’re a young team, but all of us have gotten really close.
