Lady Cardinals finally return home, looking for title repeat

It’s never easy for a team to win a state championship. The E.D. White Lady Cardinals volleyball team knows first hand.

After seven trips to the championship game (six straight), the Lady Cardinals finally returned to Thibodaux with a state championship in 2008, giving head coach Mary Cavell her first title in her 18 years of coaching.

But now that the team has gotten over that hump, they face another challenge – trying to stay on top and repeat as state champions.

Doing so will require the Lady Cardinals to move on without two key contributors. For the first time in almost six year, the Lady Cardinals will play without Kathryn Stock and Hailey Silverii, who graduated last year.

Cavell believes a late season ankle injury that kept Stock out of a few games last season may have actually benefited her team in the long run.

“Last year that little injury we had with Kathryn actually helped us a bit because (junior) Abby Filce was able to get some playing time last year,” Cavell explained. “(Junior) Emily Albert was able to play in multiple positions. The experience Abby was able to get at the end of the season is really going to help us entering this season.”

Both Albert and Filce have moved to middle blocker this season, leaving the door open for other players to step into new roles.

In addition to Albert and Filce, Cavell has been equally impressed with the play of junior Whitney Babin, who played junior varsity volleyball a year ago.

With seniors Lindsay Constant, Jessica Politz, Alaina Toups, Jeanne Robichaux and Emma Morel all bringing their experience and leadership back to the 2009 Lady Cardinals, a repeat isn’t out of the question.

“Yeah we lost two good ones, but when the others can step in and keep it going, that’s what we ask for,” the coach explained. “We wanted to be able to reload this year and be able to repeat, hopefully. They are allowing us to be able to do that.”

The success of this year’s team will be determined by how well the Lady Cardinals can establish their service game, according to Cavell. A good service game enables the team to fluently run their offense, something that Cavell believes is the key to winning another state championship.

“In our home opener against Morgan City, our serves weren’t horrible, but they weren’t as strong as they have been in the past,” Cavell admitted. “Once we can get that enthusiasm up and play like we are capable of playing I know we’ll be fine.”

However, the season is still young and with several tournaments on tap this season, the Lady Cardinals have plenty of time to get into a rhythm.

“We got to work on teamwork and get everybody comfortable playing with each other,” Cavell said.

“I think the focus is there and we just have to continue it as we go along in the tournaments and get some endurance. I think we’ll be right back in the picture.”

Of course, they’re hoping for a little less distraction this time around.

The season opening win against Morgan City last Tuesday also marked the first true “home” game for the Lady Cardinals in two years.After the ravages of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike caused damaged to the ceiling and warped the gymnasium, the Lady Cardinals were left scrambling to find a place to play.

In the end, the team called H.L. Bourgeois, Lutcher, Assumption and Thibodaux high schools and the Warren Harang Jr. Municipal Auditorium home last season on their road to the state championship

Not this season.

Over the summer, the new practice gymnasium and the renovations to the current gymnasium were completed, enabling the team to finally return home.

“It’s nice not having to worry about everybody else’s schedule and being able to have your own schedule,” Cavell said. “We have a great program and these girls are working hard. It was a little homecoming for us, so it is going to be nice to be able to stay home for our games again.”

Although the Lady Cardinals wouldn’t mind returning to their second home over the years, the Pontchartrain Center and the state championship game.

“That’s the goal,” Cavell exerted. “To get back to the state championship.”