AOTW: Oxford’s Bandel hopes to help Wildcats go out with a bang
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FOR MORE GIRLS VOLLEYBALL COVERAGE: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Volleyball&x=0&y=9
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
OXFORD — It is amazing what less than four years of time can do to a student-athlete. Although there has been some bumps in the road, it’s done nothing but positive things in the end for Darien Bandel.
Bandel has blossomed from a ninth grader with plenty of raw, athletic talent to a hard-hitting force on the playing surface. She has become not only one of Oakland County’s top outside hitters, but one of the tops in the state as well as a senior.
HIGH RISER: Oxford senior Darien Bandel hopes to lead the Wildcats to some upsets and a deep tournament run this season. File Photo | Kirk Bearse
Headed for Division I Oakland University on a volleyball scholarship next school year, Bandel wants to go out with a bang. Her school, Oxford, begins postseason play at Clarkston Monday night against Rochester, as part of a six-school, Class A district.
“We have the talent to do it this season,” said Bandel, whose team is trying to win its first district in eight years. “We haven’t won one since I’ve been here. It’s a tough district, but if we play our best than anything is possible.”
Oxford (30-14-5) joins state-ranked teams Clarkston and Lake Orion along with Rochester, Rochester Adams and Rochester Stoney Creek — all teams with winning records — in one of the state’s deepest districts.
Oxford won its own Oxford Invitational crown Saturday to end the regular season, and awaits Rochester in Monday’s pre-district.
Bandel is a rare breed in today’s arena, playing varsity volleyball, basketball and soccer. She was All-OAA and All-Region in volleyball as a junior as well as All-OAA and All-District in soccer as a goaltender last school year. The 5-foot-11 Bandel is also a backup forward in basketball but is more recognized for her volleyball and soccer skills throughout her stay at Oxford.
She also plays club volleyball for Legacy and club soccer for Alliance all while carrying a fine 3.7 grade-point-average.
“She’s come a long ways,” said Oxford coach Kristi McDevitt. “I knew she had a talent as a freshman. We didn’t hesitate to bring her up (to varsity). But she’s become much more of a team player the past couple of years.
More often than not, Bandel is amongst her team leaders in kills, attacking percentage and a host of other categories. She ranks in the top 10 in multiple single-match, season and career school records at Oxford.
A likely All-OAA, All-Region and All-State player this season with some of the area’s best offensive numbers and multiple all-tournament awards, Bandel will trade it on for one, long tournament ride in a Wildcats uniform.
Even though Oxford is a slight underdog, anything is possible in the state tournament.
“I’m would love to make All-State this season. That was one of my goals. But I would rather for us to go a long ways in the (state tournament) this year,” said Bandel. “We have a great group of seniors on that team that would nothing more than to win a district. This is our last chance. We know there are some really good teams in our district, but we’ve played a lot of very good teams this season and we’ve been very competitive. All it takes is a couple of big wins and we can win the district. We can do this.”
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FOR MORE GIRLS VOLLEYBALL COVERAGE: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Volleyball&x=0&y=9
Have photos or video of this event that you wish to share? E-mail pertinent information to www.northoaklandsports.com Senior Editor Dan Stickradt at dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com or e-mail results@northoaklandsports.com.
Category: BWW Athlete of the Week, Featured Articles, High School, High School (M-Z), Most Recently Updated Stories, Oxford, Prep Wraps, Sport, Top Stories, Uncategorized, Volleyball
