Fresh off district championship, Lady Tigers best Bruins for postseason win

Fresh off winning a district championship for the first time in a decade, Hahnville’s volleyball team was no less than dominant as it began postseason play with a victory in front of a loud and supportive home crowd Wednesday.The ninth-seeded Lady Tigers swept visiting Bonnabel 25-9, 25-11 and 25-9 in the opening round of the Division I playoff and advanced to the second round, where Hahnville will face No. 8 Chapelle.

Senior Kylie Roux said she and her teammates were “definitely a bit nervous” to start the match, but that the team quickly found their confidence.

“It’s been our goal to get past the first round for a while now,” Roux said. “Throughout the season, we put ourselves in a really good place to come out here with some confidence and play hard. Everyone helped get us to this point, and it just feels really great to be part of this team. It’s an amazing feeling, really.”

Hahnville (27-10) had reached the playoffs in each of the previous four seasons, but had lost in the opening round each time, the final three of those losses all three game sweeps.

But unlike those games, Hahnville entered as a top 10 seed and a first round host — and this time, they did the sweeping.

“We’ve all worked really hard from day one,” Roux said. “It’s just great to see it all come together and to know, we did that … we were able to break that 10 years of idleness that Hahnville’s had, and we’ll be able to can always look back and know that.”

Hahnville coach Mendi Leboeuf has been at the helm of the program for the past 23 years and said she was extremely proud of her players.

“We’re playing really well and consistent … we didn’t slow our side of the court too much,” Leboeuf said. “I think we dictated what we wanted to do with the ball.”

The Tigers wrapped up regular season play last week by putting the finishing touches on an unbeaten district record with a victory over rival Destrehan.

“Obviously, the district championship was a major goal for this group, especially our seniors, and it feels great to see them come through,” Leboeuf said. “This group of seniors, it’s just a great group of kids. They work extremely hard. I’m really happy with what we accomplished and they’re all extremely excited to be where we are.”

Hahnville brought its full lineup back from last season, when the Tigers reached the Division I playoffs as the No. 21 seed, falling three games to none to district rival H.L. Bourgeois, which entered that postseason as district champions.

But this season, the Tigers swept Bourgeois, earning two of their biggest signature wins of the season and clearing the way to win the district championship.

 

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