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2009 Recap



Xavier, after cruising through the EVC season with a perfect 9-0 record, finally got the monkey off its back in the Sectional final by sweeping Division 2 perennial powerhouse Waupun. The Hawks impressed at the State tournament as well, hitting an impressive .309 in the semifinals before running into the Catholic Memorial buzzsaw championship. Third-place Berlin earned a Regional final berth before losing to Waupun, while Little Chute, Winneconne, Freedom and Ripon were all knocked out of the second round.



2009 Final Standings

2009 All-Conference Teams



2010 Preview



Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Xavier

2) Little Chute

3) Winneconne

4) Berlin

5) Freedom

6) Fox Valley Lutheran

7) Clintonville

8) Ripon

9) Waupaca



Players to Watch:

Megan Jammer, Fox Valley Lutheran

Katie Gonnering, Freedom

Stacy Gloudemans, Little Chute

Ashley Solberg, Little Chute

Elle Kosciuk, Winneconne

Lauren DeShaney, Xavier

Brooke Schowalter, Xavier

Lexi Thein, Xavier



2010 Season Outlook:

Defending Division 2 runner-up Xavier will once again reload for the 2010 season, getting back plenty of firepower. Eastern Valley Player of the Year and Second Team All-State middle hitter Lauren DeShaney led the tallied over 375 kills and 60 blocks last season and will be back for her senior year more powerful than ever. Though the face of the program, DeShaney has plenty of supporting cast members, including Second Team All-EVC right side hitter Brooke Schowalter and outside hitter Lexi Thein. "Our offense should be fine this year," head coach Guy DeShaney said, "but we lost four starters from last year and the top two passers on the team." Those starters include Third Team All-State setter Emily Downey and All-State Honorable Mention Carlye Schuh. Regardless, the Hawks have the leadership, experience and talent to make a push for its second straight EVC title and Division 2 State berth.



Little Chute head coach Anna Maass has a solid back row returning, and will most likely use that as a base to rebuild this season. "We will be very strong defensively," Maass said,"but still have a question mark at the setting position." The Mustangs finished second in last year's league race and will need to find some offense as well in order to dethrone the Hawks. Look for Libero Ashley Solberg to anchor that defense with Stacy Gloudemans and Hannah Locy working the outsides. Little Chute is otherwise pretty short, which could make front-line defense an issue if larger opponents can hit around their block.



Winneconne may have come home with a silver ball last year on the basketball court, but this fall the volleyball girls are looking to come home with some hardware of their own. The Wolves have a great blocker in 6-1 All-Conference First Team middle hitter Elle Kosciuk, but must find two replacements from last year's All-EVC Honorable Mention squad, including outside Kat Koeck and setter Hailey Breister. Head coach Eydie Reiser will be entering her fifth season at Berlin, yet is still looking to break through into the top two positions. This season as a whole could be a question mark for the Indians, as they will be incredibly young. "While youthfulness could be a weakness, our strengths will be competitiveness and continued growth," Reiser said. Berlin had just one All-Conference nominee last season in Second Team setter Lindsey Swansby and must find a new set of hands for this team to succeed.



The Eastern Valley Conference definitely has no shortage of talented returning middle hitters, and Freedom is no different. Senior Katie Gonering, a Second Team All-EVC nominee last season, will likely be the Irish's go-to this season in the middle as the team looks to improve on last year's 4-5 finish. Fox Valley Lutheran graduated a trio of hitters from last season and head coach Wendy Bixby asked, "Who is our game-time go-to person that will lead our team?" That question could be answered by yet another middle hitter, All-Conference HM Megan Jammer who should be primed for a breakout season for the solidly defensive Foxes.



Clintonville lost a pair of All-Conference Honorable Mentions in setter Kirbi Dunlavy and middle Katilin Jarvis, and will need to round out its roster in order to jump into the thick of the conference standings. Ripon and Waupaca each picked up league victories last season over Omro, which packed up and left for the Wisconsin Flyway for the 2010-11 school year. The Comets and Tigers could battle it out for the basement this season; their scheduled showdown takes place in Waupaca on Sept. 23.