Forgive Lauren Gay if she gets distracted during her day job.
Gay works 30 hours a week as a floor supervisor and assistant manager at Tommy Hilfiger in Tysons Corner. She gets college credit toward her fashion merchandising and design major at Marymount. Being responsible for her tuition, she also needs the money to pay bills. But she also happens to be a leading hitter for the Saints volleyball team.
Just like Gay’s constant juggling of her packed daily schedule — which includes work, class and volleyball — the Saints (14-4, 4-0 Capital Athletic Conference), after getting off to a flying start, were nearly undone by setting too many objectives for the season.
“We know we have a good team, and you get really excited when you see all the potential on the team,” said Gay, who transferred last season from Division II Northwood in Michigan. “When it comes to setting goals, sometimes you can set so many goals so high that the simple ones — I think we had too many goals at first.”
With six returning seniors, including Gay, the Saints are aiming for more than a CAC title. They want to finish strong in tournaments and go undefeated at home.
Marymount was on its way with a 6-0 record — its best start since 1994. Then the Saints finished third in two tournaments, including their own invitational. They had a rash of injuries, family emergencies — Gay missed some matches after her grandmother passed away — and despite an undefeated conference record, the outlook didn’t so bright.
There was only one solution for 14-year coach Beth Ann Wilson.
“We just tore down all of our season goal sheets, and we were like, ‘You know what, we have one goal, win the conference,’” said Wilson. “Nothing else matters. It doesn’t matter how we do in tournaments. It doesn’t matter how we’re seeded. It doesn’t matter how many wins and losses we have. All that matters is that we win the conference this year.”
“It’s better now to have just a couple goals and focus on those and really put everything into them,” said Gay. “Once you reach them — and even if you don’t reach them — you’re giving 110 percent, you feel so much better.”
The Saints have been buoyed by steady play of senior libero Julia Ralston (Annandale/Paul VI), senior setter Bea Livioco (Montgomery Village/Gaithersburg) and senior outside hitter Gala Garcia. Ralston recently was named most valuable player of the Johns Hopkins Tournament, an unusual honor for a libero.
The biggest obstacle remaining is Gallaudet, which bested Marymount twice last season, including in the CAC championship.
A regular-season victory over the Bison on Oct. 29 would go a long way toward setting the tone for the fast-approaching postseason.
“We have the ability to set the pace for a game if we want to. That’s the one thing with Gallaudet that we’re going to have to do,” said Gay. “We’re going to have to set the pace, we’re going to have to set the terms, and we’re going to have to keep it for the whole match.”
