Photo by Matt de Simone
By Matt de Simone
Contributing writer
Last Thursday at the Botetourt County School Board meeting, members of the board recognized the Lord Botetourt High School girls’ volleyball team for its third consecutive Virginia Class 3 State Championship. The team went 31-0 and dominated in the Virginia High School League (VHSL) state finals on their way to the title.
“This has been one incredible ride,” Julie Conner, the head coach, explained to the School Board and members of the community who were present. “Many of them I’ve had for the past three or four years. We had four new underclassmen who came in with the seniors and took off. We had fantastic practices and very competitive practices. We knew we would have to do that throughout the season in order to reach our goal of a third straight title.”
Botetourt County Superintendent Dr. Lisa Chen and Lord Botetourt High School Principal Andy Dewease presented members of the team with certificates of recognition for their efforts in securing yet another state championship.
“They are a team that gets along so well and it’s been a joy watch them on the court grow as volleyball players and meet the goals they set out to accomplish,” Conner continued. “I have great assistant coaches who have been a tremendous help and I really appreciate them and everything they’ve done for our program. It’s been a lot of fun.”
The School Board also recognized three players for their exceptional efforts this season. Senior Miette Veldman received VHSL Class 3 Player of the Year honors and will play volleyball for James Madison University next year. Veldman, along with teammates seniors Kenleigh Gunter and Jordan Kepler, were all named to the VHSL Class 3 All-State volleyball team.
