Dialog reporter
Catholic Conference players pepper all-state roster; Vikings’ McCarthy named coach of year
The Catholic Conference had three teams among the final four in the state tournament, including both finalists, Ursuline and Padua. The conference is also well-represented on the all-state teams, which were released Nov. 14, the day after Ursuline won the state championship. Selections are made by the Delaware Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association.
Padua senior hitter Emily Jarome was named the state player of the year. Jarome led the Pandas to an 18-1 record, and she had 41 kills in the title match. She was joined on the first team by her teammate Emma Lucey, also a senior, along with senior Sam Davis of Ursuline and sophomore Savannah Seemans of St. Mark’s, who did a bit of everything for the Spartans.
Other first-team selections include three juniors: Maddie Sachs, Tower Hill; Madeline Matheny, Wilmington Charter; and Dani Nathan, Wilmington Friends.
Taylor Wright, a senior hitter from Ursuline, is on the second team, along with two Archmere
players, sophomore Julia Kochie and senior Lexi Kelly. The other second-team selections are Jules Campbell, senior, Tatnall; Kamani Conteh, junior, Wilmington Christian; Logan Shuttleworth, senior, Cape Henlopen; and Alyssa Faville, sophomore, Conrad.Padua placed two players on honorable mention, sophomore Jess Molen and senior Katie McGonigal. St. Mark’s senior Erin Derick also earned this distinction. Others who made honorable mention are Kody Dillon, senior, Caravel;
Jackie Shields, junior, Delaware Military; Abigail Carbajal, junior, Newark Charter; Carly Burns, senior, Appoquinimink; and Alex Thomson, senior, Tower Hill.
Jerry McCarthy of St. Elizabeth was named coach of the year. McCarthy took over a Vikings program that went 1-14 in 2016 and engineered a turnaround that resulted in a 6-8 regular-season record and a berth in the state tournament, where St. Elizabeth lost in the first round.
