This story originally appeared in the August 30 edition of the weekly LINK Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here.
Seniors Tori Chasteen and Keira Hans are smiling and giggling as they talk about Simon Kenton volleyball and their relationship with the program. They are in practice uniforms near the high school gymnasium as their teammates work out inside the gym.
One of the topics of discussion is the Pioneers’ 32-match winning streak against 32nd District competition, one of the more unheralded streaks in northern Kentucky. It dates to Oct. 17, 2017, when rival Walton-Verona beat them at Simon Kenton in the district tournament final.
“Wow. That’s a while ago,” Chasteen said. “I was 10 years old and playing volleyball at Sports Of All Sorts.”
Hans wasn’t playing volleyball. It was still in her future. She was a 10-year-old soccer player the last time Simon Kenton lost to a district opponent.
“I was playing at ISC,” Hans said of the Independence Soccer Club. “I started playing more volleyball after that.”
When they realized how little they were the last time a district team was able to take down Simon Kenton, it was a laugh out loud moment for the volleyball teammates.
“It shows how good we’ve been for a long time,” Chasteen said. “It’s a great program. The girls are very into it. We all love celebrating each other.”
Something the Pioneers haven’t been able to celebrate is a regional championship. The last time the Pioneers advanced to the state tournament was in 1999 when they were competing in the 9th Region and advanced to the state semifinals. They went as 9th Region runners-up back when the state tournament accepted two teams from each region instead of today’s standard one entry.
Chasteen and Hans know where they were then, too: deep in the imaginations of their parents.
“That was a really long time ago,” Hans said.
Despite all those district wins and six consecutive years as champions of the 32nd District tournament, the Pioneers remain vexed by their three 8th Region rivals in Oldham County who have formed a blockade preventing the Pioneers from further advancement. Simon Kenton has never won a regional volleyball title.
“North Oldham, South Oldham and Oldham County. They are a trifecta of a nemesis,” said coach Amy Marx, who needs 25 wins to reach 200 in her Simon Kenton career. “We’ve been eliminated in the regional by one of them the last six years and no one else.”
Chasteen and Hans say this is no laughing matter. Working to win a regional title is serious business at Simon Kenton but capturing the crown has been an elusive endeavor.
“That doesn’t mean we can’t do it,” said Hans, daughter of Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball coach Jeff Hans. “It’s one of our goals.”
Chasteen and Hans are part of a group of seven seniors that also includes Madeline Johnson, Gracie Meyer, Sarah Meyer, Aleayah Russ and CeCe Scalf.
“We have five returning varsity starters, four seniors and one junior,” said Marx, 44-4 in district play. “They bring high-level playing experience to our team.”
Jenna Kitchens is the junior. The sophomores are Taylor Jones, Maria Mullis and Jayden Turner. They all worked together to defeat South Oldham in the Aug. 19 season opener on the road in Crestwood. The Pioneers play North Oldham Sept. 3 at home. They play Oldham County Sept. 9 at Simon Kenton.
The Pioneers downed South Oldham twice during the regular season last year and finished 30-8. They fell to North Oldham during the regular season but avenged the loss with a win in the 8th Region tournament semifinals. They beat Oldham County twice during the season but lost in the regional final.
The Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association is projecting a similar scenario this season in its 2024 preseason poll with North Oldham ranked No. 1 followed by No. 2 Oldham County. No. 3 Simon Kenton, No. 4 Woodford County and No. 5 South Oldham. North Oldham is No. 19 in the KVCA statewide poll. Even though they set a program record for wins, the Pioneers were unranked statewide after finishing No. 19 in last season’s final poll.
Part of that is statewide perception. The pecking order has been pretty clear in the 8th Region. Simon Kenton lost five seniors and has an entirely new rotation at setter and several inexperienced players.
Finding the right combinations and developing confidence in them has been a focus since the beginning of preseason. Team chemistry is not an issue. Chasteen, a libero and three-year varsity player, and Hans, a feared hitter and a four-year varsity member, ensure that. They are on the KVCA 2024 statewide preseason watch list along with Kitchens, an outside hitter.
Kitchens and Hans ranked 1-2 in kills in the quick-tempo offense last season. Chasteen, a key in the hybrid middle-middle defense, led the team in digs. Hans and Chasteen were co-leaders in service aces. Coach Marx is encouraging them to accentuate the positive.
“We have made it to the regional final three out of the past four years in a very competitive 8th Region,” said Marx, a two-time KVCA 8th Region coach of the year. “We look forward to making a run to advance to the state tournament this year.”