The Biddeford High volleyball program has been on the rise over the past few seasons and the excitement surrounding the Tigers increased when former coach Ruth Shaw decided to get back on the court.
Shaw, who founded the program in 1999, returned to the sidelines after a three-year absence — and now she’s looking to lead the Tigers to the state championship for the first time since 2010.
“Three years ago I left due to health reasons. Everything is good … I’m actually feeling really, really good,” said Shaw.
Shaw was welcomed with open arms by the current Tigers.
“I was so excited to hear she was coming back to coaching. I had a cousin (Jocelyn Moody) who played for her and she loved her — and I’ve loved her so far,” said senior Brooke Reissfelder.

There is a different attitude and energy in the Biddeford program with Shaw at the helm, according to senior Olivia Whittaker.
“With coach Shaw coming in there’s so much positive energy. She just wants everything for us. She’s there for us all the time. She’s invested in our team … just having her around is really motivational,” Whittaker said.
“She knows what she’s talking about. She knows how to pump us up, how to make us better players,” added senior Grace Boisvert.
The Tigers saw how much Shaw cares after a recent loss to defending Class B state champion Cape Elizabeth.
“Even though it was a tough loss (vs. Cape Elizabeth), the way she handles it and the way that she speaks with us, it’s so heartfelt, it’s so deep, it’s so emotional — you just want it so much more,” said Whittaker.
“We were in the circle and she started crying because she cares so much,” added senior Gracie Martin.
The Tigers are off to an impressive 5-1 start with their only loss coming to the Capers. Biddeford bounced back from last Wednesday’s loss with a pair of 3-1 wins over Windham and Thornton Academy.
“(The Cape game) was a big lesson for us. It’s definitely helped us open our eyes to where we need improvement and what needs to be done,” said Whittaker.
Shaw isn’t surprised to see her team off to a strong start, but she also feels this squad has the ability to play at a higher level if they just start believing in themselves.
“I knew this group was kind of special. I also knew that they are a little timid. They have a lot of talent and they just don’t believe it,” said Shaw. “I guess my job this year is to get them to believe that they can really play this game and play it well.”
The Biddeford coach wants her team to learn how to deal with adversity.
“Even with a point loss or game loss they have to come back and dig deeper and believe they can come through,” said Shaw.
Shaw will use the loss to Cape as a learning and motivational tool.
“I’m going to use this game, in particular the fact that when we lost a few points in a row I saw their faces go down and I want that to change,” Shaw said. “I want them to go back one point at a time. Play that one point at a time, enjoy it and have fun and don’t worry about the win or loss.”
The Tigers will lean on seniors Lexi Matteau, Martin, Sydney Gagne, Whittaker, Reissfelder, Boisvert and Chantel Perreault as they look to make a deep playoff run.
“They are all strong leaders so it’s nice. They all watch out for each other and they are all pushing together,” said Shaw, who also pointed to sophomores Rachel Brask and Renee Dutremble as players who can contribute as the year rolls along.
“A lot of us have played together for four years now and we’ve worked with some of the underclassmen so I think we’re pretty close,” said Reissfelder.
The Tigers struggled in their loss to Cape, which won 3-0 at Biddeford, but all that lopsided defeat did was add fuel to the fire for this squad.
“The goal going forward is to go into playoffs at our prime. Going in where we are peaking and we are the best that we can be and I think the (loss to Cape) is going to help us get to that point,” said Whittaker.
Martin echoed that sentiment.
“We all want it — we all want it bad,” said Martin on the Tigers’ ultimate goal of winning a championship. “It’s just how we’re going to get there. That’s our next challenge. We all want it, it’s just focusing in practice and doing our thing.”
— Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at pmcdonald@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.