Volleyball players honored

Two Lady Wolves volleyball players were named All-Conference, while one was also named All-State.

Katie Banks was named both to All Conference and All State, while Madelyn Heiser was named to All Conference. Banks was also named All State in 2017.

All-State honors are determined by members of the Wyoming Coaches Association. Those members vote on which players they believe are the best in Wyoming for the season.

As for All Conference, volleyball coaches vote on which players they believe are the best in their respective conference for the season.

Even though these two ladies were honored for their work, it’s really about working as a team, head coach Rikki Shantz said. Seniors who will be leaving the team are Katie Banks, Erika Wilson and Hayley Hernandez.

“We will miss their leadership in and off the court,” Shantz said. “They each bring something special and different to the table.”

Every year, the team goes through this and each time Shantz isn’t sure how the team will move forward with the loss of such great leaders.

“Every year, I ask myself this question, and year after year I have some athletes that want to step up and fill those spots,” Shantz said. “They work hard in the off season and come to practice ready to fill a void. This year will be no different.”

Even though the team missed out of attending state this year, Shantz was happy with how the season as a whole went because the team had some great moments.

“We beat Laramie this season, who ended up taking second at state,” Shantz said. “We played some amazing games that I will always remember. It definitely didn’t end the way we had hoped, but we have plenty to be proud of this year.” 

She also enjoyed how the team played against Evanston on their senior night and how the team performed against Cheyenne East, Star Valley and Riverton. The Lady Wolves came back from being behind 17-24 to beat Riverton in the fourth game at regionals. This was one of Shantz’ favorite memories of the season.

“We had a small team this year. That helped us be a lot more unified,” Shantz said.