The scrimmage started again. This time, Asiyah stopped herself from wiggling and dancing. Focus! she told herself.

  A few minutes later, Jessica was serving. She whacked the ball, but it hit the net. The ball bounced off, hit Shivani’s shoulder, and landed right in Coach Elise’s arms.

  All the girls laughed—except Asiyah. Suddenly things weren’t so funny anymore.

  Chapter Six

  Tough Decisions

  Right after practice, Asiyah rushed over to Rad. He was waiting by the doors. She was glad Lucy was getting a ride home with her parents. Asiyah didn’t feel like talking anymore.

  “How was practice?” Rad asked as they headed out. “Did it go well?”

  “No, not really,” Asiyah mumbled. “I overheard Lucy and some of the girls. They were saying my head wasn’t in the game. It really hurt my feelings.”

  “I’m sorry, sis. That’s tough,” Rad replied. Then he paused. “But you know . . . you have been complaining about practices lately. And you’re usually more about having fun than staying super focused.”

  Asiyah frowned. “I’ve just been trying to have some fun playing volleyball with my friends! And trying to make sure everyone else has fun too!” she exclaimed. “What’s wrong with that?”

  “Nothing,” Rad said. “But maybe your teammates were already having fun by playing hard. Maybe being silly was sidetracking everyone else.”

  “I guess. Although now I’m not sure I’m even good enough to play on the team,” Asiyah said. “Today, Lucy blocked me about seven times.”

  “Well, you need to decide if you want to put in the effort to get better,” Rad replied. “If you don’t, then maybe the travel team isn’t right for you. And that’s OK. You could always join the rec team again.”

  Asiyah looked down at the sidewalk. “Maybe I’m not cut out for the Panthers.” She sniffed. “And it doesn’t seem like the girls on the team have my back.”

  “Why don’t you give it one more week?” Rad suggested. “Focus. Try your hardest. Then decide if it’s for you.”

  “One more week,” Asiyah said slowly. “I guess I could do that. I could push myself to be super focused and see if I like it.”

  At least then, she thought, Lucy and the girls won’t say that I didn’t give one hundred percent.

  Chapter Seven

  Going All Out

  During the next week, Asiyah dedicated herself to each practice. She arrived early, warmed up before anyone else got there, and was ready to do any drill.

  The work was tough, but Asiyah was committed to giving it her best shot.

  By Thursday, Asiyah already noticed she was getting better at hitting the ball right in the center. It made her spikes more powerful. During one long drill, Asiyah was able to smack the ball hard onto the court.

  Asiyah smiled. Some drills are still a little boring, but I get why we have to do them, she thought. Practice really does make perfect!

  When the girls scrimmaged, Asiyah paid close attention to what everyone was doing. She was able to figure out where she should be standing when the ball was set. She was ready to help her teammates.

  “Take a break, girls!” Coach Elise called.

  As Asiyah walked off the court, the coach caught up with her. “Asiyah, you made some great hits earlier,” she said. “Nice job coming straight at the ball.”

  “Thanks, Coach,” Asiyah said. “I was watching how Lucy positioned herself when she had a couple kills the other day. It really helped. That and all the drills.”

  “Great! Keep it up,” Coach Elise said.

  Asiyah smiled. It felt good that the coach noticed she was improving.

  Lucy and a few other girls walked over. “I heard my name!” she said.

  “Oh, I was just telling Coach you’re good at positioning yourself,” Asiyah said. “Phew! I need some water.” She panted like she was in a desert.

  Even though Asiyah was taking practices seriously, she still wanted to be herself. That meant being a little silly sometimes.

  Lucy followed Asiyah over to the water fountain. “Hey, do you want to come to my house after practice?” she asked. “I just watched the funniest video of a dog skateboarding. You have to see it!”

  Asiyah looked at the floor. “Thanks, but I have a bunch of homework.”

  Lucy didn’t say anything. She looked a little hurt.

  “Plus, I have to practice for my next piano lesson,” Asiyah added. She shrugged. “So much to do!”

  “Oh . . . OK,” Lucy said. “I guess I’ll show you some other time.” She gave Asiyah another extra-long look before walking away.

  Asiyah sighed. She really did have homework and piano. But the truth was, she was still kind of upset with Lucy.

  Besides, what would I even say to her? Asiyah thought. I’ll just stay out of Lucy’s way. At least for now.

  Chapter Eight

  Making Up

  The next day was the Panthers’ last practice before their first game. Asiyah had her best practice yet. She was making digs, blocking balls, and spiking well.

  During a break, Asiyah walked over to the net. She wanted to spend extra time on a side blocking drill they had just learned.

  She took a step to the side, turned, and jumped. I’m so close to getting this right, Asiyah thought. I’ll do it a few more times to make sure I’m ready for tomorrow’s match.

  When she felt good, she went to grab her water bottle. Lucy, Shivani, and Jessica were sitting on the bleachers.

  “Hey, we just saw you doing extra work,” Lucy said. “Nice job out there!”

  “Yeah, you really got the hang of that side block,” Shivani added.

  “Thanks!” Asiyah said. She walked back toward the court. Lucy followed behind.

  “Asiyah, hold up a second,” Lucy said.

  Uh-oh. Has Lucy noticed that I’ve been avoiding her? Asiyah wondered. Then she said, “What’s up?”

  “You’ve been so quiet around me lately,” Lucy said. “Is everything OK?”

  Asiyah shrugged. “Everything’s fine. I’ve just been focusing on volleyball.”

  “That’s totally paid off,” Lucy said. “But . . . is something else going on? It almost feels like you’re mad at me.”

  I can’t keep avoiding this, Asiyah thought. I miss my friend. I have to talk to her sometime.

  “Well,” Asiyah started. “Last week, I heard you, Shivani, and Jessica saying that I needed to get more serious about the team. It kind of hurt my feelings.”

  Lucy looked at her shoes. “Oh! I’m so sorry. It’s just that the other girls and I had been working so hard, and it seemed like you were goofing off. I got upset.”

  “I was only trying to make sure everyone had fun,” Asiyah said. “I really do care about the team.”

  “I know you do. Can you forgive me?” Lucy asked.

  Asiyah was quiet, but then she nodded. “You’re my best friend, no matter what. Plus, I get now that it’s not fun when everyone is trying to focus and one person isn’t. So I’ve been giving practices my best effort.”

  “It shows!” Lucy said. “You’ve already improved so much.”

  Asiyah smiled. “You know, at first I wasn’t sure if the travel team was right for me. But I actually like pushing myself to get better. And I definitely don’t want to let the team down.”

  Lucy hugged Asiyah. “You won’t,” she replied. “I can’t wait to play our first game with you by my side.”

  “Me too,” Asiyah said. She held out her hand for a high-five, and Lucy slapped it. “We’ll be unstoppable travel-team buddies!”

  Chapter Nine

  First Game!

  The next day, before their first home game against the Salisbury Fishercats, the Panthers went into the exercise room. They stretched quietly. Some girls were whispering about how tough the Fishercats were.

  Asiyah looked around. Everyone seems so tense, she thought. Is now the right time for fun?

  She made her decision. Asiyah ran back to the lockers and grabbed her phone. She burst into the exercise room and blasted the song she and Lucy had danced to earlier.

  “Come on, everyone! Let’s get pumped before the game!” Asiyah shouted.

  For a second, the team stared at her. Asiyah gulped. But then the girls got up and started dancing.

  “Panthers! Panthers!” the team chanted.

  “This is the perfect way to get us going!” Lucy exclaimed.

  Asiyah grinned. It was a good time to loosen up after all! she thought.

  Soon Coach Elise walked in. She laughed when she saw her team dancing. “OK, girls! Five more minutes of fun. Then warm-ups.”

  After the song was finished, Asiyah went to put her phone away. Lucy followed her.

  “All right,” Asiyah said as she shut her locker. “Now it’s time to get serious.”

  Lucy laughed. “Let’s do this!”

  The girls bumped fists and then ran onto the court.

  * * *

  The Fishercats team jogged out on the other side of the gym. Asiyah watched them as she ran through warm-ups.

  Just looking at the Fishercats makes me nervous. They’re tall! she thought. And it’ll be up to Lucy and me to block them. I hope I’m ready.

  Just then, Asiyah saw her mom, dad, and Rad walk in. They smiled and waved. Rad gave a thumbs-up. Asiyah did two thumbs-up back. She felt calmer already.

  Soon the ref blew her whistle. Warm-ups were over. The girls got set up on the court. Lucy and Asiyah took their spots next to each other in the front row.

  The Fishercats had the opening serve. Their player fired it over the net.

  Shivani dropped to her knees and bumped it, but the ball didn’t go very high. Asiyah wasn’t expecting such a low pass. She got it before it hit the ground, but her shot didn’t make it over the net.

  Shake it off, Asiyah thought. Keep focused.

  The Fishercats quickly scored three more points. But the Panthers broke the streak when Jessica whacked a ball right into the Fishercats’ court. It was the Panthers’ serve.

  Jessica’s serve sailed low over the net. The Fishercats setter set the ball up high. The tall redhead in front sent it flying back.

  Rachel got her fist on it before it touched the ground. Then Jessica pushed the ball into the air.

  Asiyah was ready. She took two steps, jumped up, and killed it!

  Point to the Panthers! The girls ran together for high-fives.

  “Nice moves, Asiyah!” Rachel said.

  “That was your first kill of the season. That’s so awesome!” Lucy said.

  Asiyah felt really proud. Now we just have to keep it going, she thought.

  The Panthers fired off more points. At 6–5, the Panthers lost the serve. The score began to seesaw back and forth.

  Soon the score was 24–22. The Fishercats needed one more point to win the first set.

  The Fishercats sent the ball over. Lucy immediately smashed it back. But a Fishercat in the back passed it to the setter.

  Asiyah watched the setter. She seemed to be sending the ball to the redheaded girl. Asiyah and Lucy moved to block her.

  But at the last second, another girl crossed over for the attack. Lucy and Asiyah weren’t in the right position. The ball hit the ground.

  The Fishercats had grabbed the first game, 25–22. But the match was the best of three games, so the Panthers could still win.

  The Panthers walked off the court and huddled around Coach Elise. “Girls, you’re playing really well,” she said. “You talked to each other. You made good plays. Now go out there, and win this second set!”

  “Let’s do the Panthers cheer!” Asiyah shouted. “One, two, three . . .”

  “Go, Panthers!” the girls yelled together. Then they ran back onto the court.

  At the beginning of the second game, the Panthers showed off their power. They won the first eight points.

  The Fishercats weren’t about to give up. They brought the score back to 4–8. But after two quick kills by Lucy, the Panthers lengthened their lead.

  From then on, the Panthers cruised. They won the second game by ten points.

  “This is it. Whoever wins this next set, wins the game,” Asiyah said to Lucy.

  “We’ll block whatever comes our way!” Lucy said as they switched sides of the court.

  The girls fist bumped and got into their positions.

  I’ve been practicing so hard, Asiyah thought. I know I’m ready for anything in the third set.

  Chapter Ten

  The Final Set

  Both teams looked determined as the Fishercats got ready to serve. The final set was only up to fifteen points. It was important to score early.

  The Fishercats grabbed the first point. But their server hit the next ball into the net. The Panthers got a point—and the serve.

  Caroline tossed the ball into the air. She hit the serve so fast that the other team couldn’t get under it. Ace!

  After that, both teams battled hard. The score went back and forth. Before long, the score was tied, 13–13. It was the Fishercats’ serve.

  As the Panthers got ready, Asiyah noticed her teammates looked tense.

  She clapped her hands, “Let’s go, Panthers!” she shouted. “We can do this! Let’s have some fun!”

  The girls on the court smiled and nodded.

  “Yeah, let’s take it!” Lucy yelled.

  The Fishercats’ server smacked the ball.

  “Mine!” Rachel yelled as she dove for it.

  She dug the ball out and bumped it high. Shivani set it up. Lucy jumped and acted like she was going to hit it.

  But at the last moment, Asiyah stepped over and hit the ball head on. It slammed down onto the Fishercats’ side.

  The Panthers scored! They led 14–13. They needed one more point to win the match.

  Asiyah took a deep breath. You’re ready for this, she told herself.

  Jessica served the ball. The Fishercats’ captain passed to the setter. She took a step over and prepared to send it to one of the hitters.

  She’s setting the ball for the redhead. I’m sure of it, Asiyah thought. She’s going to come in and hit it to the side.

  Asiyah set herself up for a side block. Step, turn, and block, she repeated in her head. She had worked so hard on this. She knew she’d be able to pull it off.

  Asiyah was right. The redhead started to move, and Asiyah was ready. She jumped up to block the ball at the exact moment the Fishercat came down with it.

  Asiyah smashed the ball back over the net. The Fishercats scrambled to get it, but the ball dropped to the floor.

  It was game over, and the Panthers had won!

  The girls ran together in the middle of the court. They cheered and jumped up and down.

  Lucy hugged Asiyah. “Amazing job!” she shouted.

  “You did great too, Luce!” Asiyah replied. “Wow, that was such an exciting game. You were right. It is fun playing tougher teams.”

  “You were definitely ready for the competition. The whole team was!” Lucy said. She grinned. “I’m happy you stuck with the Panthers.”

  Asiyah smiled back. “And I’m happy we’re in this together.”

  Then Asiyah made two thumbs-up. Lucy laughed, and they both did the silly thumbs-up dance, glad that they were teammates.

  Author Bio

  Wendy L. Brandes writes books for children, including Capstone’s Summer Camp series. Wendy played volleyball in middle school and during her freshman year of high school. She loved to serve. But her favorite part of volleyball was sliding on the floor (in kneepads) to dig out a tough shot!

  Illustrator Bio

  Katie Wood fell in love with drawing when she was very small. Since graduating from Loughborough University School of Art and Design in 2004, she has been living her dream working as a freelance illustrator. From her studio in Leicester, England, she creates bright and lively illustrations for books and magazines all over the world.

  Glossary

  competitive (kuhm-PEH-tuh-tiv)—

  wanting to win or be the best at something

  court (KORT)—

  the playing area in volleyball

  dedicate (DED-uh-keyt)—

  to give something (such as your time and full attention) to a special cause or goal

  drill (DRIL)—

  a repetitive exercise that helps you learn a specific skill

  hijab (hi-JAHB)—

  a covering for the head worn by Muslim women

  improve (im-PROOV)—

  to become better

  Muslim (MUHZ-luhm)—

  someone who follows the religion of Islam

  scrimmage (SKRIM-ij)—

  a practice game, often played between two groups from the same team

  squad (SKWAHD)—

  a sports team

  Discussion Questions

  How would you describe Asiyah’s personality? Use examples from the story to support your answer.

  In your own words, summarize why Lucy and the other girls were feeling frustrated with Asiyah. How else could Lucy have dealt with her feelings toward Asiyah’s work? Discuss some other options.

  Asiyah thinks about quitting the team, but Rad convinces her to give it another week. Talk about a time you almost gave up on something, but didn’t. How did it feel?

  Writing Prompts

  Write a list of Asiyah’s “Tips for Success.” Think about what she learned that could apply to any challenge, not just sports.

  A travel team requires more commitment than a rec team, but it offers a chance to play tougher games and improve. Which team would you want to be on? Write two paragraphs arguing for your choice.

  Asiyah and Lucy have a strong friendship. They were able to work through their problems. Write about your best friend. How are you two alike? How are you different?

  Volleyball Terms

 

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