CHS, ESA ready for state

Two Teche Area teams head to Kenner Thursday with hopes of winning a state championship over the three days of the State Farm/LHSAA State Volleyball Tournament held at Pontchartrain Center.

Both Catholic High and ESA have been near the top of the power rankings all year and entered postseason play with top seeds, Catholic High the fourth seed in Division IV and ESA the top seed in Division V.

The Lady Panthers, who beat Iota in three games Monday in the quarterfinals to advance to the state tournament, and the Lady Falcons, who beat Delcambre in the quarters to move on, each face tough quarterfinals opponents on their quest for a state title, which would be Catholic High’s first volleyball title and ESA’s 18th.

At 3:15 p.m. Thursday, CHS faces No. 5 seed Academy of the Sacred Heart (New Orleans), which beat Berwick Tuesday to advance. ESA battles No. 9 seed Ascension Catholic of Gonzales at 10 a.m.

Coaches from both schools are ready for the challenge.

“All the girls are ready for the state tournament,” said first-year CHS coach April Harris. “They’re ready to go. That fire is there and they are ready to win state.”

Harris also knows that it will be a challenge for her personally as she faces the cauldron that is the state tournament for the first time.

“I think that I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” said Harris. “This is a great bunch of girls and I couldn’t ask for a better team to go to the state tournament with.”

What helps Harris is that her assistant, Joanne Uhl, has an extensive background in volleyball and coached three state championship teams in Washington.

“Her experience and her background help tremendously and I don’t think that we could be where we are without her,” said Harris.

For coach Becky Madden at ESA, going to the state tournament and having a chance to win a state title is always a thrill no matter how many times she and ESA have been there.

“We’re in a good bracket,” said Madden. “What I feel are the other two top teams, Country Day and Houma Christian, are in the other side of the bracket. I really feel that if we play our game and play strong then we should get to the final.”

ESA hasn’t won a state title since 2003 but has been state runner-up for the past two years.

“I think that this group of girls are hungry for it,” said Madden. “We can’t focus on the finals until we get there, but I think that we’re ready to come back.”