As a newcomer to The News-Herald volleyball beat, I was curious to check out a preseason practice at Lake Catholic High School.
What struck me as I walked into the gym was how many girls were actually at the practice 30 minutes before it was set to begin. In various sports at some schools, athletes stroll into practice about five minutes before its scheduled start.
Not the Cougars.
This group was ready to roll.
One explanation could be the success the program has had during Rich Severino's 23 years as head coach. Over the past four years alone, the Cougars have won a Division II state championship (2010), finished as the state runner-up (2009) and been one trip away from state twice, losing in the regional final game (2008, 2011).
The Cougars have set the bar high and this year is no exception.
With two Division I players on their roster, the team is poised to make another run to state.
Leading the way will be 6-foot-1, junior setter/right side hitter Abby Detering, who has verbally committed to Florida, and 5-5 senior libero Sammy Kline who has committed to Duquesne.
When you have two Division I players on your squad, it's got to set the tone for the rest of the players.
It's got to give them a lot of confidence going into games in which opponents will be gunning for them, just because they are Lake Catholic.
What a great atmosphere to compete in.
Of course it makes the players want to come to practice early. It's also got to make the players want to dream big and think this could be their year, just like it was for the players who came before them.
The sky is the limit for the experienced Cougars who are proven winners.
It will be fun to see what they can accomplish this year.

-Theresa Neuhoff Audia