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Lady Leopards use brooms to reach state
BY Kevin Hageland Staff Writer
Lovejoy volleyball head coach Ryan Mitchell has worked hard to ensure the Lady Leopards routine this postseason has mimicked their run to the Class 3A State Championship last year.
And while that routine includes following the same schedules and staying in the same places, Lovejoy has ensured that continuity flows over to the court too as the Lady Leopards continue to dispatch of their foes in devastating fashion. Save for a warm-up match against Class 4A State Tournament qualifier Richardson Pearce, Lovejoy hasn’t dropped a set in more than two months.
Lovejoy’s latest pair of sweeps came Friday and Saturday in Commerce at the Region II Tournament.
“Prosper really came out sharp,” Mitchell said. “I’ve seen them four times this season and they came out playing incredible defense.”
That trend wouldn’t carry out through the remainder of the set as Lovejoy fought off a slew of game points, going on a 7-2 run to take the opener, 28-26.
“I really feel like Prosper gave it their all in Game 1 and when they didn’t win, it kind of took the air out of their sails,” Mitchell said. “Our girls were very composed in Game 1 and then they came out and played really well in Games 2 and 3.”
The Lady Leopards took the next two games, 25-11, 25-12, to hand the Lady Eagles just their second loss in three months. Lovejoy would do much the same to Texarkana Pleasant Grove the following afternoon, winning 25-19, 25-19, 25-14.
Despite qualifying for state again, the Lovejoy celebration was subdued Saturday. Not surprising considering 11 of the girls on the roster were part of last year’s squad at state. That list includes: sophomore Andie Malloy, juniors Natalie Puckett and Addason Lamb as well as seniors Becki Kendall, Lauren McDaniel, Kate Turner, Whitney Stevens, Courtney Ray, Tyler Bradhser, Camille Collinsworth and Brennan Roehrig.
“Last year when we won regionals there was this mass hysteria,” Mitchell said. “This year it was more like a sigh of relief.”
That was concerning to Mitchell, so he and the team had a talk after the match.
“I know we won last year, but I told them what a huge deal it was just to make it to state,” he said. “We talked about what the girls were feeling and a lot of them talked about all the pressure they have been under; that’s one of the reasons it is so hard to repeat.”
Much of that pressure faded away by winning regionals. That and a trip to Saltgrass for a steak dinner.
Now that Lovejoy is headed back to state, the Lady Leopards will follow the same championship trek they did a year prior. That means leaving for San Marcos at 7 a.m. today and making a stop at T Bar M Ranch in New Braunfels. Lovejoy will practice there today at 3 p.m., the same time as Friday’s state semifinal match, and have team building exercises at the venue, which is also a resort.
While the Lady Leopards are mimicking their routine from last season, they will likely have to face new competition in defending their title.
Lovejoy and Caldwell are back at the Strahan Coliseum in San Marcos, but they will be joined by Wimberley and Monahans, two of the most storied volleyball programs in the classification.
“Yeah, it’s a pretty tradition-heavy field,” Mitchell said. “Look at Wimberley and Monahans, how many state titles do those two have between them?”
The answer would be 15 as Monahans has won nine state titles and Wimberley has captured six. Lovejoy will open state against Wimberley, at 3 p.m. Friday, which has won five state championships since 2001.
“Our girls really wanted to play Wimberley,” Mitchell said. “And when the team is motivated like that, it makes my job a lot easier.”
If Lovejoy gets past Wimberley, the Lady Leopards would face Monahans or Caldwell at 1 p.m. Saturday. The former is making its 15th state tournament appearance while the latter lost to Lovejoy in last season’s state semis.
A match against Caldwell would be especially apropos as Lovejoy would need a repeat performance from last season to repeat as state champions.
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