Before Thursday, Lafayette High had never defeated Southside in volleyball during coach Caroline Dufrene’s tenure, which actually began when Sharks coach Julie Dawson left the Lions nine years ago to start the program in Youngsville.
After one set, it appeared that the Sharks were on their way to another victory in the series, but the Mighty Lions rallied to win a five-set thriller 19-25, 25-16, 25-20, 22-25, 15-7.
“Our grit and tenacity tonight was something I haven’t seen in a long time,” Dufrene said. “We got Ella (Larpenteur) back today from injury. That really helped us. She’s a security blanket.”
Larpenteur, who went down with an injury early in the first set of a loss to Barbe on Oct. 6, returned with a vengeance to finish with 15 kills, 27 assists, 23 digs and three blocks.
“We struggled the last week or so finding our team without Ella,” said Dufrene, whose 21-3 Lions lost to Barbe and St. Louis without Larpenteur. “She’s that missing piece.”
Ella’s sister, Avery, also enjoyed a stellar outing with 15 kills, 30 assists, 18 digs, four aces and five blocks.
“I thought it was a well-fought game from both sides,” Dufrene said. “We spread our offense out, from our pins to our middles. Everyone was getting touches and contributing tonight.”
Southside (14-9, 2-2 Division I, District 3) got 16 combined points in the first set from Brylee Slaughter and Kelis Burgess, who recorded several devastating kills from high above the net.
“I don’t think we slowed (Burgess) down very much, but once Chloe (Vice) got a hold of her a couple of times, (Chloe) was like, ‘I can get touches. I can control her a little bit.'”
Sophomore Abby Menard scored the winning point in the third set off an Ella Larpenteur assist and served the final three points of the fifth set, with an ace putting the Lions (3-1 in district) ahead 13-7.
“I love when people bring energy,” Menard said. “It just helps the team go, go, go. Coach gave us the right words to come back tonight. We really listened. We knew we had to put our minds to it and fight hard in order to get the win.”
Menard totaled 16 kills, 11 digs, four blocks and three aces for LHS, which is No. 9 in the Division I power ratings.
“When we light her up, that’s a cannon that’s hard to put out,” Dufrene said of Menard. “Hopefully we can keep this momentum up to keep moving forward through district and the playoffs.”
Additional standouts for the Lions, who conclude district play at No. 16 Sulphur (21-11) next Tuesday, included Alex Beairsto (15 digs, 8 kills, 3 aces, 3 blocks), Adeline Bobo (7 kills, 10 digs) and Brae’ona Smith (22 digs).
“I’m just proud of everybody, their hard work and dedication,” Menard said. “All the hard work we put into drills. I love when people motivate me and bring a ton of energy. That really boosts my system and helps me become better and more focused.”
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