Westminster Christian wins Division V state championship | High Schools

It’s a journey that began in 2021.

Hoping to accomplish a school’s first in volleyball, the Westminster Christian Crusaders’ quest to reach the state finals was thwarted by the ESA Falcons in a five-set thriller.

Sure, it wasn’t the outcome they would have liked, but it was that moment in which the Crusaders announced to the state they’d be a force to be reckoned with moving forward.

And as a result, the Crusaders led by their head coach Keith Leon began thinking even bigger.

Instead of simply wanting to make the finals, the Crusaders wanted to win it all.

Since then, the Crusaders not only have accomplished the feat of reaching the finals, but they have finished as the state runner-up three years in a row from 2022-24 before losing in the semifinals again last season.

However, Saturday in the Cajundome, the Crusaders’ journey culminated as for the first time in school history Westminster Christian was crowned the Division V state champions after defeating ESA in four sets 25-21, 25-20, 24-26 and 25-18.

“Our girls fought hard all year,” Leon said. “We had an amazing season, and we ended it on the note that we wanted to. I’m so proud of these girls right here. It takes a village, and they did it.”

Leon said the journey has been bittersweet.

“We went five sets with (ESA) to not get into the finals. They (the Crusaders players) wanted to play ESA,” Leon said. “Of all the teams, they said ‘lets play ESA.’ They fought well, they played a good game. But (we) pulled it out.”

The Crusaders (37-5) took control of the match after winning the first two sets. And just when it looked like they were on the brink of sweeping the Falcons leading 23-20, the Crusaders couldn’t close it out and were outscored 6-1 to end the set.

“Going into the fourth set, we were in the huddle, and we were like ‘alright, they just took a set from us, but that doesn’t matter,’” said Crusaders’ Aidan Magee, who had 17 assists in the win. “That set happened, but we have to come and play like it is a brand new and we did. We had ups and downs, but we played very well.”

That was the first set the Crusaders had lost during the postseason. But the Crusaders came out firing on all cylinders in the fourth set, jumping out to a 7-0 lead en route to claiming the victory.

“I think leaving lost points behind you is the biggest thing for our team,” Crusaders’ Sophia Wiltz said. “So, when we are down, we have to pick our minds back up and leave it behind us. That’s what gives us the momentum moving forward to forget about what we have lost and focus on what we can win.”

Wiltz, who was outstanding in the match, was named the most outstanding player after recording 11 kills and five blocks.

The Crusaders’ entire front line wreaked havoc and made things tough for the Falcons. In addition to Wiltz, the Crusaders’ top performers were Taylor Lazard (11 kills), Ana-Camille Melancon (11 kills), Jules Angelle (26 assists) and Isabella Guy (13 digs).

“Our front line is huge,” Leon said. “The thing is we don’t just count on one person. If you see our stats, it’s probably equal kills across the board. That’s what makes a team.”

“They have some heavy hitters,” Falcons head coach Sarah Robichaux said about the Crusaders. “It was hard to catch up to the speed and they run a really fast offense on top of having really effective hitters. They have so much fire power. They are a really good team.”

For the Falcons, who were in the finals for the first time since 2021 and were seeking the program’s first state title since 2006, head coach Sarah Robichaux said, “It was a great season.”

“They gave it everything they had,” Robichaux said. “I’m super proud of them. You don’t want to come to a final and get swept… We’re a tough team to beat and so are they. They were just the better team (Saturday).

The Falcons, who end the year 26-8 overall, were led by Lauren Conroy, (22 kills), Avery Monica (16 kills, 22 digs, 2 aces, 1 block), Emary Fugarino (24 digs, 2 aces) and Kellen Giglio (41 assists).

“We were riding on this high,” Conroy said. “We were super excited. It has been a really good season. This has been the best season that I’ve had. Everyone is super proud.”

“It feels amazing… All-in-all we had a great season,” Melancon said. “It’s a wonderful way to end our senior year. I couldn’t be prouder of our team. We’ve worked so hard to get to this moment, it feels amazing.”