The Notre Dame Cougars senior girls volleyball team has a young squad this season but the coaching staff sees a lot of potential.
Led by just four returning Grade 12 players the team has seen a lot of change and has added players who are new to the program. In total, they have 12 players including three in Grade 11, two in Grade 10, and seven in Grade 12.
Co-head coach of the Cougars Anne-Marie Purdy, who's joined by community coaches Geoff Trentham and Devon McNamara, said she's been impressed by the team's ability to adapt quickly and work as a team.
"I'm excited to see how far that takes us this season," Purdy said.
"It is pretty early in the season and with all the games and practices, they've worked hard to do one thing better each day so we've been seeing some steady development. I'm hoping we can continue that."
Purdy graduated from Notre Dame High School in 2020 and has since returned as a teacher after graduating from university. While at Notre Dame she played multiple sports including volleyball.
She looks back at that time fondly and once she landed a teaching position she knew she wanted to coach.
So far this season, the Cougars beat the St. Joseph Falcons and the Lacombe Rams but lost to the Lindsay Thurber Raiders.
"We want to push ourselves and try to fight for the top spot in the league and a chance to play at provincials," she said.
"Ultimately if that doesn't happen I want the younger players to gain confidence and grow... For the Grade 12s that will be leaving, I want them to have fun and be able to look back when the season is over and know they gave it their all."
Winning the league title won't be an easy task as they'll most likely have to go through the Lindsay Thurber Raiders who have dominated the league for years.
"When we met them last week we won the first set but went on to lose in the fourth set... I think the girls have proven to themselves and to everyone else in the gym that they can compete at that level," she added.
The Cougars' next league game is set for Wednesday, Oct. 9 when they face the Falcons at St. Joseph High School.