HLB volleyball keeps winning

Things are going so well for the H.L. Bourgeois volleyball team right now that even veteran coach Peter Verret is having a hard time finding a weak spot on the team.

From the strong play up front at the net to their passing and receiving game and their defense, everything seems to be clicking for the Lady Braves, who sat atop District 5-1 play with seven victories in as many matches to open the season.

The Lady Braves began the year 15-5 overall and are coming off a week in which they swept Destrehan in three games last Thursday, 25-14, 25-21 and 25-18.

H.L. Bourgeois was ranked sixth in recent LHSAA Division I power rankings, and according to Verret, everyone on the team has contributed in some capacity this season.

This season, the Lady Braves feature junior Rebekah Porche at setter and senior Ciara Williams at outside hitter and middle blocker. Defensively, senior Brenna Copes has stood out at libero.

Other standouts include seniors Kiara Freeman, Christen Broggi, sophomore Madison Percle, and juniors Tayler Busselle and Jerin Babineaux.

“You have the highlights of our big hitters who can all kill the ball. You have a setter that is tremendous in getting the ball where it needs to be. Our defense is probably one of the toughest in the state, and we serve bullets,” Verret said. “When there are years that you have those situations, you can say that (everyone has contributed). This bunch, we’re well-rounded all the way around.”

So much so that some H.L. Bourgeois players are already thinking in terms of state playoffs, and even championships.

That’s no real surprise. At H.L. Bourgeois, annual trips to Kenner’s Pontchartrain Center for the State Volleyball Tournament aren’t the exception; they’re the expectation.

“We’re doing pretty good and I think we’re going to make it pretty far,” said Williams, who leads the team in kills this season, including 18 in the Lady Braves’ victory over Destrehan. “We talk more, we’re (more of) a team. We eat together, we stay together, and we’re pretty much a family. That’s very important because if you don’t have that connection, it’s going to be all about ‘me’ and ‘I.’”

Freeman, one of four seniors on this year’s squad, said the team has come together this season and that the camaraderie has paid big dividends.

“What paid off was hard practice, positive attitudes, coming together as a unit and then just playing our hearts out because we want to win state,” Freeman said.

Part of what has helped H.L. Bourgeois come together is the adversity the team went through early on in the season.

In the team’s first week of practice in advance of its first jamboree tournament, the Lady Braves temporarily lost their outside hitter to an ankle injury. In another scrimmage, the Lady Braves’ setter went down with a concussion.

As the Lady Braves have begun to get healthy again, Verret says the glue in the mortar is beginning to come together.

“We’re about 90 percent toward being healthy,” he said. “We’ve got our outside hitter, and our setter is healthy. They’re getting more confident with each other and beating as one heart and functioning in the way that they need to as a team. Before, it causes confusions with high school kids. They have to change positions. They’re not in a position that they’re used to playing.

Those brief setbacks aside, this year’s H.L. Bourgeois team is one of the most surprising units Verret has ever coached, he said.

Having to replace big hitters and blockers from last year’s team like Shannon Jones, Verret wasn’t sure if the team’s front row could rise to the occasion.

But the team’s diligence and determination never faltered.

“We knew we would be good defensively, but with this team, it’s their work ethic,” he said. “When they come to practice, they want to compete. They’re like sponges. They want to learn everything we teach them. They’re just phenomenal. They are hard-working and committed. It’s been a pleasure to coach them. When you come to practice and your kids are waiting on you, it means they’re ready to go.”

HLB volleyball