By Jeremy McDonald
Jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
TURNER, Ore.– The Cascade Volleyball team has surely made a name for themselves through the last five years.
It all started in 2021 when they won their first-ever State Championship, from there they finished second, third, sixth and fifth respectively in 4A. Creating a standard of winning around just doing the little things and doing those little things right.
“I always come into the season…my goal coming is for them to be competitive, that’s all I want from them and that’s our goal: To be competitive and the rest will come. Teaching them the little things like discipline, commitment, being selfless, team-first mentality,” starts Cascade Head Coach Cristina Williams. “Those are the things that I input in them and make them do, so when that happens, things just come together.”
“Just consistency really, we’ve basically the same thing all those five years and we’re hoping to do the same thing this year once again. Team Chemistry, the hustle that we all have and the grind and grit that we have to get there every single year keeps us going,” adds Macie Theis.
Theis is one of three returning seniors from last year’s fifth-place team, joined by Brayley Ford and Jordyn Patterson to help lead a predominantly sophomore-heavy squad entering this year. For Theis, she’s hoping to be that senior leader that she looked up to the last three years in the Cougar program.
“When I was a little freshman, I was timid and those seniors made me feel like I wanted to do everything I could to beat them and be up to their standards. Now I want to push these girls to the best version of themselves and just being their biggest cheerleaders is the big thing.”
And bringing them up to their level and supporting them throughout it will be huge for Cascade this year if they hope to reach the final site for the sixth-year in a row.
It’ll be a tough road however. The 4A field just got tougher with Valley Catholic, the 3A State Champion from last year, moved up to 4A; as did Cascade Christian, who finished third in 3A last year. Crowding an already crowded Top 10 in 4A with even more talent.
“I think it’s going to make us work ten-times harder. We got some new, incoming teams to 4A. Usually we got everyone pretty locked down. We know what they’re going to hit, what they’re going to set, but I think this year it’s going to be harder for us to lock those things down,” said Theis. “But once we get it, I think we’re there.”
The Cougars open the season on Thursday at the Silverton jamboree before heading to Cascade Christian to take part in the Cascade Christian Invite. Cascade’s first home game of the year will be September 10 against Marist.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
