Indiana 2A Preview: Raiders On The Rise?

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Want $10 off of your registration to our Freshman/Stock Up showcases? Use code KypDig2025 at checkout!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I spent yesterday talking about the strength of Burris' roster and what their ceiling might be. I'm sure the folks at Wapahani have a few questions for me, as their senior-laden team remembers EXACTLY how their season ended last fall. Hosting the sectional is an absolute honor---until your volleyball rival beats you in the final. Similar to Burris, only one major graduation affects this squad, making their rematch in the sectional <em>that</em> much more intriguing. Here is my preview of what the Wapahani Raiders have coming back, and my prediction for their season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Wapahani (28-5 in 2024)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Losing your last match of the season is tough. Losing your last match of the season after beating that very same team earlier in the fall is even tougher. The Raiders do have one thing in common with the Owls; their top attacker from a season ago was the lone graduate that made a difference in both matches. From the numbers side of things, replacements are incoming for Wapahani, starting with <strong>Kami Rivers.</strong> She'll receive a good amount of the offensive load for the team, while also taking some of the defensive pressure off of senior libero <strong>Emily Luce.</strong> The combination of these two in serve receive and floor defense will be much needed due to their lack of size as a program. I also like pin attacker <strong>Tatum Dudley,</strong> an excellent complementary piece to Kami listed above. A solid pair of seniors running the 6-2 are here also, namely <strong>Megan Luce</strong> and <strong>Caroline Hutzinger.</strong> Both can run a well-balanced offense, and might have to considering their loss due to graduation. This is as senior-heavy as any roster I've reviewed thus far this summer, in any class. Those seniors might have to do a bit more heavy lifting and lead the youngsters a bit more get over the Burris hump.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Prediction: I would love to see this program go far. I really would. But until they can beat Burris' size and athleticism in October (when it counts), their season might end in the sectional. Again.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Size is a big deal to this author. Yes, you can win a lot of matches with exceptional serve receive and floor defense. We've seen previous iterations of Yorktown, New Castle, Delta and others in and around Delaware County thrive on ball control and defense. But after a while, you need to have someone---anyone---be the big bully in the postseason. This roster just doesn't have that kind of athlete. Setters? Great. Libero/defensive specialists? Plenty. A couple of role-playing attackers? Both can terminate. That last loss for the Raiders showed that if all things are equal, what's the difference? In the match on October 19, the disparity in blocks (23.5-2) and finding secondary attackers (Burris had three in double digit kills, Wapahani had one) were those differences.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->