<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3T0kvL_1E1orJYK00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3T0kvL_1E1orJYK00" width="1500" height="1024" ><figcaption>The Goliad Tigerettes practice on Aug. 6 at the Goliad Event Center. (Photo by Coy Slavik)</figcaption></figure>GOLIAD – The state championship rings occasionally come out of their boxes.The Goliad Tigerettes will find almost any reason to wear them, senior Addison Yendrey said. They are reminders of a season that ended with a state championship and symbols of what the Tigerettes hope to accomplish again.“We all love our rings,” Yendrey said. “We find any excuse to wear them because we're just so happy about them. And of course, our goal this year is to get another one.”Before Goliad can think about adding more jewelry, however, coach Jess Odem wants her players to remember everything that went into earning the first ring.The defending Class 3A Division I champions opened preseason practice with much of their championship roster intact, a group of experienced seniors and the expectation that accompanies a program attempting to win consecutive titles.Odem has delivered a straightforward message.“There's pros and cons to it, of course,” Odem said of trying to defend a state title. “Everybody's goal is to win state. But I told the girls to let it go because it's a new season. No team is going to be the same team. There are new things to fix and there are old things that are still good, so we're just trying to put it all together with the team we have this year and see what we can do.”<h2>Putting in summer work</h2>The Tigerettes did not wait until the official start of practice to begin preparing for their title defense.Odem said the players consistently attended summer workouts and competed in summer tournaments. That work helped the team begin two-a-days without having to start over.“They've done really good and I have to take pride in these girls because they showed up all summer,” Odem said. “We played in probably four summer tournaments, and so getting that head start has made these first few days of two-a-day's smooth sailing.”The practices may have gone smoothly, but Yendrey said they have not been easy.“They're tough, of course,” Yendrey said. “I mean, every Goliad practice is going to be tough because we're always working to get better.”Goliad must replace three players who were instrumental in the championship run. Odem said the preseason emphasis has been on filling those openings while developing chemistry and trust among the new combinations on the court.“We're just trying to plug those holes in, which we have been doing a great job," she said. "We want to make sure the mesh is there and the chemistry is there and the trust is there next to each other.”Yendrey said the Tigerettes remain largely the same team, but coaches have moved players into different positions as they search for the best lineup.“We're rebuilding,” Yendrey said. “But we're pretty much kind of the same team. We did lose a few key pieces, but we're moving people around to make it work.”The development began during the summer and will continue throughout Goliad’s nondistrict schedule.“I think so far, just from the start of the summer, we've grown so much already, and I feel like by the time we get to district and all the way through preseason, we'll just keep growing as a team,” Yendrey said.<h2>Remembering what it took</h2>Goliad’s returning players know what a championship team should look and feel like. Odem considers that experience an advantage, provided the Tigerettes do not allow it to create a sense that another title is inevitable.“I love that they've been there, so they know what it's supposed to feel like and what it's supposed to look like,” Odem said. “But at the same time, they know how much they had to work to get there.”Senior setter Isabel Sanchez said the Tigerettes understand they are unlikely to receive an easy match from anyone on their schedule.“We're working on staying humble. No one's going to come light on us,” Sanchez said. “Everyone's going to play their best game against us. We talk about that a lot.”Sanchez said consistency, particularly in serve receive, has been one of the team’s early priorities.“Practice has been doing good,” Sanchez said. “We're working on staying consistent with everything we do.”Senior Sophi Wallek said each player is also concentrating on the details she can control.“We're trying to all individually focus on our own skill sets,” Wallek said. “We're focusing on what we can control on our side and to work on all of the things that we individually need to work on.”<h2>One match at a time</h2>The Tigerettes would like to return to the state tournament and give their seniors an opportunity to finish their careers with consecutive championships."That's the end goal, but we're going to take it a game and practice at a time,” Yendrey said.Yendrey said a theme used by a previous Goliad team continues to fit the program’s approach.“A few years ago, our team theme was 'Us against them,' so it doesn't matter who we're going against,” she said. “It's our team versus the other team, so we're always focusing on getting ourselves prepared for the next game and then we'll eventually get there.”Wallek offered a similar assessment.“We really want to stay focused and take one match at a time,” she said. “We don't want to get ahead of ourselves.”The Tigerettes’ hunger has not diminished since winning the championship. Sanchez said experiencing the state tournament and understanding what it took to win have made the players eager to return.“We know what it takes to win and knowing how it feels,” Sanchez said. “It's a really good feeling. So we want to obviously go back and do it again.”Yendrey believes the Tigerettes can challenge themselves to become more dominant, eliminate unnecessary mistakes and avoid surrendering easy points.“I feel like we could challenge ourselves a little bit more this year than we did last year and just dominate more in every game and not give up the easy points,” she said.<h2>Seniors chasing another ring</h2>For Goliad’s seniors, another championship would provide a storybook ending.Sanchez said winning consecutive titles alongside her teammates and closest friends would be a fitting conclusion to her high school career.“I think that would be so fun, especially going back to back would be a great way to end my senior year,” Sanchez said. “It would be pretty exciting to do that with all my best friends.”Wallek has already experienced three trips to the state tournament. Adding a second championship would make her final season even more memorable.“It would make me the happiest thing in the world,” Wallek said. “It would be super exciting to get to say that I had the opportunity to not only go to state three times, but to win twice, I think that would be amazing.”Yendrey also likes the thought of wearing two championship rings when she receives her diploma.“I'd love to be blinged out walking across the stage," she said.</div></body>

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GOLIAD – The state championship rings occasionally come out of their boxes. The Goliad Tigerettes will find almost any reason to wear them, senior Addison Yendrey said. They are reminders of a season that ended with a state championship and symbols of what the Tigerettes hope to accomplish again.

Tigerettes begin title defense with same hunger

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GOLIAD – The state championship rings occasionally come out of their boxes. The Goliad Tigerettes will find almost any reason to wear them, senior Addison 

Tigerettes begin title defense with same hunger

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