![Walking through the tunnel created by the cheerleaders and Celebrities, senior Frances Tran smiles as the soccer team is sent off during DEN for their playoff game against Rouse tonight. Tran said the wins against Smithson Valley and Alamo Heights gave the team a morale boost to take on the Raiders tonight. “I know we were not 100% confident in those games,” Tran said. “But, Rouse is a big opponent for sure. We’re definitely going into tonight with a lot of morale [because of the previous wins].”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/frances-tran.jpg)
![Holding a bucket of materials in one hand and a roll of tape in another, anatomy and biology teacher Tyler Terry prepares for a lab. Terry said his proudest moments are when his students are happy to see him. “When I take my wife to a football game or something and a bunch of students want to say hi to me or they like to smile and wave and it just makes me feel good that the students are really kind and supportive of me,” Terry said. “[I’m also] proud when I see students perform really well in their extracurriculars because I can see how hard they’re working in my classes, [so] when I see that they’re also working so hard in other things. Like they’re winning band competitions or they’re getting awards for their theater productions, or I see them put on their choir shows, that’s like, wow, you guys are incredible.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rags-6.png)
![Catching a ball, junior Alivia Robinson plays at the Cedar Park vs Glenn game. Having played since she was 5 years old, she is dedicated to softball and has committed to UTPB for softball. “When I got my offer it took me a very long time to decide where,” Robinson said. “Softball has always been my dream for college, and UTPB is my fit. When [I committed] I knew I was going to be loved and supported.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Lilly-Adams-3.13aliviaedit-901.jpg)
![Holding her dog, Nova, senior Ariana Balakrishnan poses for her senior pictures while Nova wears a bandana with her college decision. Balakrishnan applied to 18 colleges in total, but she decided on Columbia in the end. “Right before I clicked the button to open Columbia’s letter, I literally looked at the camera and go ‘This is just gonna really suck because I wanted it so bad,’ and I clicked it and all of a sudden you hear trumpets,” Balakrishnan said. “There’s a video that plays when you open it and I actually didn’t watch the video, I just watched the screen go black, because every day of December before ED [Early Decision] I would go on YouTube and watch the acceptance video to manifest it, so immediately when the screen went black, I started screaming and jumping up and down. And my parents in the video are like ‘What are you doing, where’s the letter,’ and I was just screaming ‘I got in, I got in.” I just started crying, and it just felt like everything in the world came together.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ariana-2-300x217.jpg)
The gym rings with the snapping of skin meeting leather. With this crack, the ball flies high over the court and a constant rally matches the intensity of any sport out there. Nails are chewed down to the bit as the ball is saved from hitting the ground and then is smacked across the net to the other side. When the curves of the ball grip the rubber floor, one side of the gym erupts in chaotic cheers, while the other sulks quietly.
The Cedar Park volleyball team caused many opponents to hide and quiver in fear this past season at the thought of facing a team that was making history. The team ended the season with a 40-8 record and can now check competing in the state semifinals off their bucket list. Head Coach Rebekah Almanza beams with pride about the team and attributes their success to the dynamics that they established.
“The girls had a sense of fight and this made us successful as a whole,” Almanza said. “The chemistry this team had was unmatched.”
This feeling of accomplishment hasn’t escaped one person. Senior Jordyn Ledyard, a defensive player for the team, has been forever changed by the experiences she has had this season and is still in awe at the distance that the volleyball team has gone.
“Being a part of the volleyball team that went to state is an unbelievable experience,” Ledyard said. “Everyone always dreams that they’ll make it to state, and this year we made our dream a reality.”
The volleyball team has ten seniors graduating this year. Because of this, the team will not only be losing many players, but will also be without almost all of their starters. Though more than half of the varsity team is leaving, one thing remains- the legacy that has been left behind from this season.
“This senior class has always wanted to leave a mark on Cedar Park volleyball, and this year we did,” Ledyard said. “The legacy we have left is one that won’t be forgotten, and we’ve also set the standard high for future teams.”
Coach Almanza agrees that the team this year has left legacy behind and she too knows the magnitude that this legacy extends to.
“There is a new standard that has been set; now going to state is going to be just what we do,” Almanza said. “The tradition will continue.”
The JV team has also felt the implications of the varsity season this year. Kirstyn Conwell is a setter for the JV team and admires not only what the varsity team has accomplished, but also their spirit.
“They inspired me to keep my head up and play my hardest like they do every game,” Conwell said.
The legacy has been left, and the shoes are waiting to be filled. The expectations for excellence are now on top of the future Cedar Park volleyball team’s shoulders. Groups of girls come up every year and every year the dynamic of the team changes. Each team will have a standard to reach and will remember the varsity team that made history.
