It’s been four years since Winston Academy first dove into the world of high school volleyball, and the Lady Patriots have gotten stronger and stronger with each passing season.
After getting their feet wet in the first two seasons, Candice Cefalu and her team were competitive with some really good teams a year ago and also got some historic wins. Couple that with the fact that the team went to the MAIS state championship tournament last year and put up a fight against Hillcrest Academy, and the team continues to take steps forward.
“I feel like now we’re not just playing because we were excited to have a team. Now we’re excited because we feel like we have the ability to win a state championship,” Cefalu said. “We’re now where we can groom younger girls into certain positions. Two years ago, we didn’t know much about the game. But now I’m looking at 6th graders, and I can see where we’re going with them.”
One of the evolutions of the program under Cefalu has been that each year the team has grown in some way. It started in year one as they just began to learn the rules of the game and the strategy.
Now the Lady Patriots are beginning to develop as players and as their coaches develop more of a scheme. The offseason was spent adjusting what they were going to do offensively and defensively, and it’s been a plus heading into the season.
“We’re running a new offense this year with just one setter on the floor. Our game is more intense because we have three big girls up front blocking,” Cefalu said. “We’ve grow so much, and our defense has really gotten better and that’s helped.”
The season began for the Lady Pats with two official games last week and also a Winston Academy Invitational over the weekend that was more of an exhibition.
In match one of the season, WA played an unfamiliar foe in the form of Russell Academy in Alabama. It was a good start in the first set, but Cefalu said the team let off the gas in what would be a straight-sets loss, 23-25, 20-25, and 11-25.
“I don’t know if they were tired or what, but we got in the gym and made some adjustments,” Cefalu said. “We came back and played like the team that I know we are last Thursday against Hillcrest.”
Against the same Hillcrest team that ended the Lady Pats season a year ago in the tournament, WA was motivated.
It was a dominant effort for the home team as they would follow up that 3-0 loss to Russell by getting a 3-0 win in this one, 25-13, 25-15, and 25-15 to even up the season record at 1-1.
Mt. Zion and Grace Christian came to Winston over the weekend and played a few matches in a Round Robin. The Lady Pats got two wins against Mt. Zion and lost two to Grace Christian, but those matches won’t count against the record.
It’s slated to be another big week this week. WA played Louisville on Monday and Nanih Waiya on Tuesday before traveling to Hillcrest on Thursday for a rematch.
Cefalu has created another tough schedule to prepare her team to compete again for a trip to the state championships and to take another step forward this year by possibly winning a game in the tournament.
She will rely heavily on the leadership of her four seniors to get there, and these seniors have more experience than any other players before them at WA.
“Each year the leaders get bigger. I had great leaders last year, but now we’ve got four girls that have been there since day one. Analeigh Dempsey is going to be playing big middle hitter. From the start of summer to the end, she’s been one of the most improved players that I’ve seen. She got in the gym and took lessons, and she’s come up with big blocks in scrimmages and games,” Cefalu said.
“Julianna Sims is our starting setter, and she doesn’t get all the credit because she’s giving the ball to the hitters, but she is really the team leader. She leads the team well, and I hate to lose her next year. Riley Peterman and Hannah Dalton are both back row players, and you’ll see them play libero some. They’re both hustlers and are really good at digging the ball. They’ll be a vital aspect on defense.”
