Photograph: Members of the Westminster christian Academy Volleyball team include (l-r) Aaliyah Arvie, Carlie Horton, Caroline Lalonde and Ada Horton. (Photograph by Bobby Ardoin.)
BOBBY ARDOIN
Editor/Consulting Writer
Incrementally only one step remains for the Westminster Christian Academy volleyball team as a different set of goals await the Crusaders who begin a fourth season under head coach Keith Leon.
“Expectations are high for us this season,” says Leon whose Westminster teams are 69-33 overall since he assumed control of the school volleyball program.
Last year the Crusaders reached the Division V semifinals after reaching the quarterfinals and regional rounds the previous two years.
Before the arrival of Leon, the Crusaders had not been involved in the state postseason for eight years.
Now Leon says it’s obvious what his team is anticipating to accomplish this year.
“We have five seniors who have been with us since I became head coach and have been with the team since they were freshmen. We didn’t really lose anyone from last year. After getting to where we were the last three years, it’s a matter of where do we go from here,” Leon said.
The seniors who are part of the Crusaders’ program this year are Carlie Horton, Caroline Lalonde, Aaliyah Arvie, Ada Horton and Abigail Cunningham.
Those four-year contributors in addition to the rest of the Crusaders have indicated they aren’t leaning on past accomplishments, said Leon.
“We worked out all summer, starting at 6 a.m. three days a week. We did a lot of weights and beach work type of running,” Leon said.
The beach workouts Leon explained weren’t exactly vacation-style workouts.
“We had the players running in the sand, just like they would have if they were on the beach. The workouts were designed to build up their stamina and get their legs in shape,” Leon said.
This year’s regular season schedule contains some of the traditional state volleyball contenders. Leon said the scheduling was created by design.
“We have Teurlings Catholic, Notre Dame, Catholic New Iberia, Episcopal of Acadiana, Highland Baptist, everyone that you would expect to see when you go to the state tournament,” Leon added.
Outside hitter Carlie Horton said the Crusaders encountered a definite learning curve when Leon first arrived.
“I guess you could say things were rough for us. We really didn’t have the knowledge of the game that we needed to have. Now it’s different because we are expected to know what to do,” she said.
Lalonde, the team’s libero, added what she and her WCA teammates have learned are the simple fundamentals that help win games.
“Now we have the skills we need. It’s a matter of using those skills during the games,” said Lalonde.
Last season Lalonde recorded 58 service aces prior to the state playoffs, while Abigail Cunningham provided a team-leading 63.
Cunningham, also an outside hitter, had 410 kills, while Carlie Horton had 268.
