Coach speaks highly of graduating team members
By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
From the beginning of the season to the end, the Big Foot High School girls volleyball team enjoyed continued improvement.
And that’s all a coach, especially a first-year one, can ask for.
Caitlin Dowden returned to her alma mater in 2014 and was pleased what her team accomplished. The Chiefs’ season came to a close with a 3-0 loss in a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 2 regional final to Edgerton.
Big Foot finished the year at 16-27-1 overall.
“Our improvement this season was tremendous,” Dowden said last week in an e-mail. “There were a lot of people who did not expect us to contend for a conference title, and we got a share of one plus won two regional games.
“These girls worked hard every day in practice to get better and learn to mesh and play together. When we had a full roster, we were tough to beat.”
Dowden, who replaced Jen Koplitz, said she enjoyed the chance to lead the program she was a part of as a player.
Not that it didn’t come with a few hurdles along the way.
“I loved this year and being back as a head coach,” Dowden said. “We had a lot going on throughout the season, but we worked through everything and got better each night.
“This team was great and my coaching staff was great. It was enjoyable to go to practice each night. I looked forward to practice-match time.”
The loss to Edgerton, which fell in the sectional semifinal, officially ended the Big Foot playing careers of seniors Ally Mazur (setter), Rachel Heidenreich (outside hitter), Samara Enz (middle blocker) and Morgan Hoey (defensive specialist).
All four brought something special to the table, Dowden said.
“These four girls will be greatly missed,” she said. “They accounted for a good portion of our team’s statistics (especially offensively), with Ally running the offensive end and Rachel and Samara being in the top three for kill leaders on our team.”
In addition to on-court contributions, the seniors also led the Chiefs in other ways, Dowden said.
“They also were a group that held this team together,” she said. “They were leaders on the court and set the tone for how the others should work in practice. They also knew the right time and place to get the team to laugh.”
Results of All-Rock Valley Conference voting and a statistical wrap up of the season will run in a future edition.
