Few athletes in the Rhode Island Interscholastic League have been as prepared to move up to Division I as the girls who play volleyball for The Prout School in Wakefield.

They arrived this fall with a string of three consecutive Division II championships, a stunning 56-1 record during that run and another offseason of club volleyball and summer camps.

Can you say confident? Before they hit a ball in their first Division I match, they were convinced that they have the best team in Rhode Island, hardly a surprise given their belief that they were the best team last year, when they beat the eventual state champion La Salle and Division I powers East Providence and Classical.

“The girls I have playing right now really take volleyball seriously,” Coach Dan Greene said Thursday before his Crusaders defeated Coventry, 3-0, and improved to 16-0. They have won 48 of their 51 games.

Can you say dynasty? Prout won the Division III title in 2005, so the current team is going for five in a row.

“This team came in ready to beat everyone,” Green said. “They got a taste of Division I last year when they beat North Kingstown and won the Koch Eye Tournament by beating La Salle, East Providence and Classical. They didn’t have a case of nerves (this year). Maybe they have the opposite of nerves, a confidence that we are the team to beat.”

Only one starter graduated from the 2008 championship team, first-team All–Stater Katie Walsh. Current seniors Kellie Welsh, Paige Williams and Kristen Rameika started as sophomores, and junior Elise Walsh, Katie’s sister, started as a freshman.

“Being young and being competitive, I knew only great things were ahead of us,” Greene said.

Greene expected his team to play in Division I last season, but in August he learned that Prout’s application had been lost, and by then it was too late to change. So, Prout did a farewell tour of Division II.

“We did everything we had to do last year. We beat every team we took the floor with. This year, we’re trying to do the same,” he said. That’s a scary thought because the 2009 Crusaders are “head and shoulders” above the 2008 champs.

“We’re much more balanced. Last year we had Katie Walsh, who was super, and our setter, who was super. The rest of the players were in roles and played them very well. This year we have five hitters who can kill.”

But let’s start with the playmaker, the setter.

“Elise Walsh makes our hitters look super. She knows when to set certain people, where to put the ball. She can take a mediocre pass and turn it into an excellent attack,” Greene said.

Outside hitter Kellie Welsh is a “tremendous defensive player” who has improved her offense the last two weeks to the point that “she is becoming one of our kills leaders.”

Outside hitter Kristen Rameika “can attack on the left and in the middle and has been our leader in kills most of the season.”

Right side Addie Pendergast, a junior, is a “solid blocker and solid attacker. She’s provided offense from the right side that most teams aren’t used to seeing. It’s not too often that a team has a right side attack that gives them trouble. We have that, too,” Greene said.

Middle blocker Nicole Peacock, a senior, was a part-time starter last season but is full-time now. She boasts the highest hitting percentage on the team, about 65 percent.

Middle blocker Emily Caswell, a junior, played soccer as a freshman, switched to volleyball last year and worked her way into the starting lineup.

“She has an all-around game that with one more year of experience she can be a superstar. She is getting better all the time and has the strength and height and jumping ability to be an impact player,” the coach said.

Libero Paige Williams “is the best at that position in Rhode Island. She passes great, she has a difficult serve, and I haven’t seen a better defensive player in high school, ever. She is just tremendous. She had 30 digs against East Providence,” Greene said.

Senior Marie Labossiere backs up Elise Walsh at setter and started two games last week because Walsh was sick. She has a strong serve, and Greene uses her instead of Pendergast in the serve rotation.

Seniors Ashley Bishop and Megan Walsh, Katie and Elise’s cousin, are the other key reserves. Senior Stacey Moskwa and juniors Victoria Kern, Kimberly Rameika and Georgia Gates complete the squad.

Prout has two games remaining before the playoffs, Monday night at Chariho and Wednesday night at home against second-place North Kingstown.

mszostak@projo.com / (401) 277-7340

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