The 2006 Magnolia Lady Bulldogs are aiming for the stars!
Well, Lady Bulldogs Fans, we're almost there!.....The 2006 Magnolia High School Lady Bulldogs will be kicking off their season on Tuesday, August 15th with a great matchup of 2 very strong volleyball programs. Magnolia will be traveling to southwest Houston to take on the Dulles Lady Vikings - who have always fielded competitive teams loaded with talented, well-coached athletes, and this year...it's not expected to be any different!! The Lady Vikings (who were last year's District 23-5A Champs, and the 2005 Spring Branch Tournament Champions) no longer have the services of setter Brittany Collins who's anchored the team for the last 3 years, nor do they have their tall MB who has transferred - but they are coming off a scrimmage held in Kingwood this past weekend with other perennial power teams (Kingwood, Cy Creek, Cy Fair, Stratford, Katy, and Pearland) and looked very impressive. The non-district match will be covered by our blogcasters: 'Kibbles and Bits'.....so tune in right here, next Tuesday evening and "listen in" on the audio file for the action.
This year's squad at Dulles is rated as the "Dark Horse" to win a tough District 23-5A, that again is loaded with teams to beat such as: Fort Bend Austin, Clements, and Hightower. Although at one time Dulles High School had over 4,000 students, there are currently around 2,300 students enrolled in the school, but this number grows yearly. Dulles High School is located in southwest Houston- in a suburb in Sugar Land, with a population of 60,000+.
Driving instructions:
Get on the Sam Houston Tollway South or get on 59 South and Exit 59 South towards Victoria. Take the exit toward W. Airport Blvd/ Kirkwood Rd. Take a left onto S. Kirkwood Rd. Turns into Dulles Avenue. Address is 550 Dulles Avenue Sugar Land, TX 77478. School phone number for better information is 281-634-5600.
Here's a little prediction of how the Houston area teams (by districts) are expected to finish from the Houston Chronicle:
Aug. 13, 2006, 12:25AM
DISTRICT-BY-DISTRICT VOLLEYBALL BREAKDOWN
By JENNY DIAL
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
District 15-5A
• Teams to beat: Magnolia, The Woodlands.• Dark horse: College Park.
• Top players: Magnolia MB Michele Williams, The Woodlands MB Kristen Martel, The Woodlands S Bryn Baker, College Park S Marcie Nordt.
• Did you know?: College Park, a program in its second year of existence, returns its entire varsity team from last season.
District 16-5A
• Teams to beat: Klein, Tomball.• Dark horse: Klein Oak.
• Top players: Klein S Katie Koop, Westfield MB Shawonna Davis, Klein Oak OH Leigh Cravens.
• Did you know?: Klein Oak jumps to Class 5A after reaching 2005 4A semifinals.
District 17-5A
• Teams to beat: Cy-Fair, Cypress Creek.• Dark horse: Cypress Falls.
• Top players: Cy-Fair OH Nneka Ogwumike, Cy Creek MB Lily Morse, Cy Falls MB Julia Novosad.
• Did you know?: Cy-Fair was 16-0 in district play last season and 35-5 overall. The Bobcats' junior-varsity squad went 36-2.
District 18-5A
• Teams to beat: Cinco Ranch, Katy.• Dark horse: Katy Taylor.
• Top players: Taylor MB Jyoti Ruffin, Cinco Ranch S Kate Choice, Cinco Ranch OH Ally Becker, Katy OH Lori Hunsucker.
• Did you know?: Katy Taylor's only playoff appearance came in its inaugural season (2002) without a senior on the team.
District 19-5A
• Teams to beat: Eisenhower, Memorial.• Dark horse: Stratford.
• Top players: Northbrook S Yessica Torres, Stratford OH Sarah Grace, Eisenhower MB Sharonda Marshall.
• Did you know?: Five of Stratford's seniors are three-year letterwinners.
District 20-5A
• Teams to beat: Bellaire, Westside, Lamar.• Dark horse: Chavez.
• Top players: Bellaire MB Kalynn Evans, Lamar OH Auria Johnson, Sam Houston DS Stephanie Palomares, Bellaire S Alyssa Moniaci.
• Did you know?: In addition to opening district play against Bellaire (Aug. 30), Chavez faces early tests against Lamar (Sept. 1) and Westside (Sept. 12).
District 21-5A
• Teams to beat: Kingwood, Baytown Sterling.• Dark horse: Channelview.
• Top players: Lee S Lori Ward, Kingwood MB Caitlin Rance, Baytown Sterling OH Destiny Mason.
• Did you know?: For the first time in five years, Kingwood returns only one starter from last season's squad. Every year for the past five years, the Mustangs have returned at least three.
District 22-5A
• Teams to beat: Deer Park, La Porte.• Dark horse: Dobie.
• Top players: Deer Park MB Paige Jenkins, Deer Park OH Lauren Rice, Dobie L Briana Blakely.
• Did you know?: Briana Blakely made the transition to the libero position last season when it was added to UIL and did so seamlessly. District 22-5A coaches agree that she is a natural at being a defensive specialist.
The Dulles Lady Vikings
District 23-5A
• Teams to beat: Fort Bend Austin, Clements.• Dark horse: Dulles.
• Top players: Austin MB Stormi Gale, Austin OH Dana Gilson, Clements MB/OH Becky Belt, Hightower MB Jessica Maas.
• Did you know?: Fort Bend Austin coach Plemens said that this year's squad is the strongest she has seen in her five years at the school.
District 24-5A
• Teams to beat: Clear Lake, Clear Creek.• Dark horse: Pearland.
• Top players: Clear Creek MB Sommer Ivory, Alvin S Amber Brooks, Pearland MB Holly Moreno, Pearland OH Amanda Aguilera.
• Did you know?: Clear Creek returns five starters and has six players from last year's 32-2 junior-varisty squad.
District 18-4A
• Teams to beat: Brenham, Huntsville.• Dark horse: Caney Creek.
• Top players: Huntsville OH Courtney Sparkman, Caney Creek MB Rachel Barton, Caney Creek S Erin Sapp.
• Did you know?: Huntsville coach Melanie Donahoo posts recipes on the team's Web site that are good for tournament days, including macaroni and cheese and olive salad.
District 19-4A
• Teams to beat: Sterling, Kashmere.• Dark horse: Jones.
• Top players: Jones OH Carmen Smith, Reagan OH Brenda Lopez, Furr OH Jasmine Salinas.
• Did you know?: Jackie Remo replaced Bob Jonas as coach at Jones after Jonas left to start the program at Carnegie Vanguard.
District 20-4A
• Teams to beat: Waltrip, Yates.• Dark Horse: Washington.
• Top players: Washington MB Jessica Walker, Yates OH Porshe Gadison, Waltrip DS Natalie Gadison.
• Did you know?: Waltrip led the district last year with three first-team honorees, three second-teamers and the coach of the year — the Rams' Darcy Ruffino.
District 21-4A
• Teams to beat: Barbers Hill, New Caney.• Dark horse: Galena Park.
• Top players: Barbers Hill L Brittany Connally, Barbers Hill MB Courtney Johnson, Galena Park A Diamond Phillips.
• Did you know?: Barbers Hill will be making its 4A debut this year after moving up from District 23-3A after last season.
District 23-4A
• Teams to beat: Friendswood, Dickinson.• Dark horse: Santa Fe.
• Top players: Angleton MB Amy Rhodes, Santa Fe MB Kinsey Mims, Dickinson MB Krystal Jefferson, Dickinson MB Kaylee Hawkins.
• Did you know?: Dickinson MB Kaylee Hawkins and S Holly Anderson, key factors in the Gators' run to the 2005 regional quarterfinals, started as freshmen on last year's team.
District 24-4A
• Teams to beat: Foster, El Campo.• Dark horse: Seven Lakes.
• Top players: Faster OH Emily Bledsoe, Foster OH Julie Bates.
• Did you know?: Seven Lakes is in its second year and will be playing a varsity schedule for the first time. Last year, they only had a freshman and sophomore team. They do not have any seniors at the school.
Class 2A/3A
• Teams to beat: Needville, Bellville.• Dark horse: Splendora.
• Top players: Tarkington OH Katy McKnight, Bellville S Kayly Schmidt, Stafford L Tanya Tellez, Needville OH Sarah Black.
• Did you know?: Twynia Atkins will begin her 12th year as coach at Splendora on Tuesday when the Lady Wildcats open the season at Navasota.
Private schools
• Teams to beat: Baytown Christian, St. Agnes.• Dark horse: Second Baptist.
• Top players: Lifestyle Christian OH Elsa Leal, Episcopal MB Amanda Reese, Baytown Christian MB Chris Brantley.
• Did you know?: Lifestyle Christian will play in a new gymnasium this season.
GO LADY BULLDOGS !!!
