The Natchitoches Central Lady Chiefs volleyball team wrapped up a successful season by falling in the first round of the playoffs on the road to Northshore High School.
The Lady Chiefs entered the Division I state tournament as the No.17 seed in a 32-team field, and had to travel to Slidell for the opening round. The homecourt advantage and a good Northshore team were too much to overcome Wednesday night in a 3-0 loss.
NCHS finished the season with a 21-13 record, including 9-1 in district play. The Lady Chiefs’ only loss in district came from Ruston, who ended up claiming the district title. Teams in the Division I, District 1 included Airline, Alexandria, Benton, Byrd, Captain Shreve, Parkway, Pineville, Ruston, Southwood, West Monroe, with each team playing each other one time for district standings.
The NCHS team made major improvements along the way, and at one point in the middle of the season carried a 13-game winning streak.
As far as the program and the future, the Lady Chiefs had no seniors on the team and will return everyone for the 2022 season. There’s also young talent sure to blend in next year. The junior varsity team lost one match all season in a 3-game contest to Ruston, and the freshman team went undefeated, not dropping a game all fall.
“This year has gone by so fast, but all good things must come to an end unfortunately,” said Kerri Kiracofe, who wrapped up her first season as head coach. I cannot express how proud I am of all three teams we have.
“Coach Danna’s freshmen were undefeated, Coach Moore’s JV only lost one match, and our varsity placed second in district and made it to the first round of the state playoffs, where we lost to a good Northshore team. Thankfully, I have no seniors this year, so the future is bright with this group. I can’t wait to see what they accomplish next season.”
