Wildcats are young but formidable

As a ninth grader starting on the Leopold varsity volleyball team, Casey Bucher has acquired the nickname "fresh."

The players who gave her that nickname aren't exactly old hands.

Sophomores Cassi Jansen, Cassie Seiler, Maddy Hutchings and Desiree Arnzen all played big roles for the Wildcats on Friday in a 20-25, 25-14, 25-9 victory over Zalma in the Mississippi Valley Conference championship match. The victory lifted Leopold to 18-4.

"We're very, very, very young," Leopold assistant coach Sandy Davis said. "But this group has played hard all year long. They're improving. And they get along well together."

Jansen and Seiler vouched for that following the title win, when Leopold had to rally from losing the first game to beat Zalma for the fifth time this season. As junior varsity players last year and teammates for five years, they said the adjustment to varsity has been natural.

"It hasn't really been that hard," said Seiler, Leopold's setter. "We've all moved up as a team."

Davis has had no choice but to put her faith in young players like Jansen and Seiler. She has been rewarded with the MVC title and a No. 1 seed in the upcoming Class 1 District 3 tournament at Meadow Heights.

"They are very strong, young players," Davis said. "I can trust them when they have the ball."

Seiler showed her decision-making skills in Leopold's comeback win against Zalma. She finished with 22 assists.

Arnzen had three aces. She held on to the serve in a six-point run in the final game after a similar six-point run in the second game that allowed Leopold to take control at 20-7.

Hutchings, returning from a recent ankle injury, had seven kills, accumulating three points on kills and blocks during Arnzen's service spree in the final game.

And then there was Jansen, Leopold's 5-foot-11 outside hitter. She led the team with nine kills and put an exclamation point on the match with three kills in the closing run.

"Cassi is a very strong player, and they look to her as a leader," Davis said. "She has a very strong voice and she's a strong person. She gets the team going."

Although Jansen was a little quieter than normal after a recent bout with bronchitis and laryngitis, Seiler agreed with her coach.

"When Cassi is on the floor, we talk a lot more," Seiler said. "Everyone is up when she's out there."

Being the diplomatic setter, Seiler added that the Wildcats have plenty of weapons even when Jansen is off the floor.

"Someone will step up," she said. "I can set it to anybody because everyone is dependable."

Zalma's Achilles' heel

Zalma (9-11-1) has lost to Leopold five times this year and the two teams may meet again in the district tournament at Meadow Heights on the week of Oct. 23.

"They're going to be up every time they see us," Davis said.

Zalma started strong Friday night, taking a 20-14 lead in the first game when junior Chelsea Snider hit through a block for her fourth kill of the game. Zalma's lead dwindled to one before they held on to win the first game, but Leopold won the next two.

"This is always a tough opponent," Zalma coach Tobi Layton said. "I was very pleased with the way we started. I think we just got scared. We're looking forward to a definite rematch."

Seiler said she has no worries the Wildcats won't take Zalma seriously in the district.

"We always look forward to final games because we want to win," she said. "Even though we've played them, every game we play seems different."