Tigers aim to contend

Julie Yearout is always reminding her team to talk.

In volleyball practice, Yearout stops a drill on the court and tells her girls to play the next couple of minutes without saying a word.

“Since you girls aren’t talking anyway, see how things go when you don’t talk at all,” Yearout said.

Things don’t go well and Lewis and Clark sophomore Oceana Bush admits, “That was hard, I don’t like that.”

There is other talk that is surrounding this team. Half the Greater Spokane League volleyball coaches still give Mead the nod to win the league while the other half said LC is the team to beat this season.

Mead is not a bad selection. The Panthers have won three consecutive state titles and finished last season ranked ninth in the nation. Not bad at all. But keep in mind the Panthers lost eight seniors from last year, six of whom started and five three-time state champions.

That circumstance has opened the door for discussion about LC being the powerhouse this year. The Tigers finished fifth in state the last two years. They graduated five last season, including both starting setters and four-year standout Ivy Bush. But there are still quite a few players worth talking about.

At the top of the list is senior middle blocker Janae Forney.

“Janae is a presence at the net. She is an incredibly smooth, strong blocker,” Yearout said.

Forney finished last season with an average of 5.25 solo stuff blocks per match and 10.58 block touches. She led the team in kill percentage, hitting .414.

Senior Hannah Zimmerman will also start as a middle blocker.

“(Hannah’s) blocking was not as strong last year, but she had one of the highest kill percentages on our team,” Yearout said. “She makes (hitting) look effortless and has a deceivingly quick arm swing and she makes minimal hitting mistakes.”

The job of setter will be handled by junior Laurie Yearout. Laurie, daughter of the coach, played right side last season and switched to setter in the off-season, knowing her team would need the leadership.

“Laurie used to set in club when she was 11 or 12. She has played right side for LC for two years and last winter told me she wanted to switch to setting because of the uncertainty in that position for our team. She’s worked hard at it and the girls trust her,” Julie said.

Erica Ehlo will also switch positions, moving from middle blocker to outside hitter. The senior didn’t start a lot last season, but it wasn’t because she didn’t have the talent.

“Erica is a great example of a kid who had to wait her turn,” Julie Yearout said. “For two years she played on varsity with great outside hitters who didn’t play other positions and with great middles in Janae and Hannah.

“We needed Erica to be able to go into matches as either a middle or an outside, depending on where we were breaking down and where we needed help. Unfortunately for Erica that meant not starting, and not playing as much as she would on most other teams. The thing that Erica brings is a great, loud, enthusiastic attitude on the court. And she is a strong player.”

Then there is the youngster of the group, Bush.

“Oceana is just so much fun to have around,” coach Yearout said. “The thing I see in Oceana is a willingness to make a mistake if it means trying something new. She sees the court so well and helps her teammates and she is one of the smartest hitters I have ever coached.”

There’s also talk within the team.

“The senior leadership (on the team) is awesome and there are truly no egos,” coach Yearout said. “We talk about wanting to perform for your teammates and for your school, but this group is really wanting success more for each other than for themselves.”

The Tigers should have plenty of success this season, which will give everyone something to talk about.