Lady Eagles Volleyball Makes A Historic Championship Run: One For The Books
By Wyatt Hardy
This recent Lady Eagles volleyball season proved to be an exciting journey filled with intense matches, broken records and clutch wins. Sullivan showcased their skills and determination for an unforgettable season.
The seniors gave it all in their last season and the newcomers stepped up to prove their capabilities. But what left the biggest mark on these girls was the life-lasting bonds they formed with one another.
Head coach Sarah Rochleau led the team to a season record of 21-13-3, a huge improvement over their last season which was 12-15-6. The Lady Eagles had a passionate group of girls ready to attack. Veteran members like Maci Nolie, Emma Brune and many others were eager to make their mark. Newcomers like Ava Blankenship and Stevi Staling showed promise of being superstars in the years to come.
Sullivan began their preseason with a jamboree on August 23, hosting Potosi and Owensville. They won all their matches that night and were ready to roll onto the home opener against Blair Oaks. Despite their enthusiasm, they could not pull it through and get the win. But the Lady Eagles brushed it off and learned from their mistakes to perform better. Just two days later, Sullivan swept Salem in all three sets on the road and not so long after that, Waynesville. Then that following Thursday night, they had hard fought matches against Warrenton and came in clutch.
They had formed an unbreakable chemistry and utilized teamwork to destroy any competition that came their way. On September 10, the Lady Eagles traveled to North County over the weekend for their first regular season tournament. Sullivan opened the day with a win against Bismarck, a tie with Fort Zumwalt North, a loss to Windsor (Imperial), another win over Bismarck and finished it by losing to Festus. Then in and against Rolla, the Eagles devastatingly lost but made up for the defeat by beating Cuba in a blowout in all three sets by a ten point deficit.
Pacific came to Sullivan on September 20, and the Lady Eagles were victorious in an exciting match that contained four sets. Then on the following Thursday, Sullivan was ready to blow Hermann out of the water, but fell short. At the Troy Buchanan tournament, Sullivan knocked down their opponents and boasted their strengths like never before. They tied with Montgomery County, fell to Whitfield, were victorious against Hannibal, defeated Troy Buchanan and secured a third place finish by playing Whitfield again and beating them.
On September 26, the Rockwood Summit Lady Falcons came back with a vengeance over their loss at the Oakville Tournament. Going back-and-forth in four sets, the Lady Falcons defeated Sullivan. The Lady Eagles then traveled to Rolla for a seven-game tournament. They defeated Summersville, fell to Washington, won against Helias in two sets, tied with Potosi and beat St. Charles and Washington. Sullivan fell to Potosi in the championship match, getting 2nd place.
October 3 came around and the Eagles crushed Herculaneum in this matchup. Sullivan continued with the same energy the next night. The Lady Eagles traveled to Owensville to sweep the Dutch girls. But then Union beat Sullivan in a tough matchup that went on to five sets. Thankfully, they beat Washington that following Monday. Sullivan defeated St. Clair the next night and, on Thursday, they defeated St. James at home. The Sullivan Lady Eagles volleyball team finished off their regular season on October 17 by traveling to New Haven and defeated the Lady Shamrocks in four sets.
During playoffs, Sullivan destroyed Owensville in all three sets of the semi-finals, 25-15, 25-13 and 25-12. The Eagles were on their way to face the Salem Tigers for the Class 3 District 9 Championship. Despite all of the setbacks they faced from tough losses, they preserved all the way to the finish line.
On October 24, all of the Lady Eagles stepped up and destroyed the Salem Tigers, 3-1. For the first time since 2018, Sullivan Volleyball took first in their Districts, emerging as champions. Each player brought their best in this game.
Now heading to sectionals at Eldon, the Lady Eagles’ confidence was stronger than ever before. With support from all of their fellow peers and the community, they did not want to let them down. Unfortunately, Sullivan fell short to Eldon in a very close game that went back and forth. By the 5th set, the Lady Eagles and Mustangs were tied and equally eager to go home as victors. But Eldon dominated the last set and Sullivan had ended their spectacular season that night.
Despite a devastating loss at Sectionals, all of the girls were proud of everything they had accomplished and making it farther than they had imagined. Seniors defined their legacy, and newcomers displayed their incredible strengths. Their strong chemistry is what brought them through the most challenging moments and into the record books. The Lady Eagles proved that the most successful teams are born from compassion, determination and selflessness.
Broken Records
During her senior year, Maci Nolie defined her legacy as one of the greats in Lady Eagles volleyball history. She made 895 season assists, 2,333 career assists, 8.36 single season assists/set, 1,122 career digs, 298 single season service points, 650 career service points, 89 single season aces and 165 career aces. Other seniors broke records including Emma Brune with 398 single season kills and 1,003 career kills. Not to be left out, Anna Brooks made it into the books with 468 single season digs.