Escambia Academy’s volleyball team endured a miserable regular season in 2010 only winning one match throughout the season.

Things changed when they reached their region tournament as they plowed through the competition to finish as the runner-up and advance to the AISA state tournament.

The Lady Cougars continued their strong run to finish second in the state.

With the 2011 season slated to start on Aug. 27 at Marengo Academy, the Lady Cougars are working feverishly to be prepared to continue their success.

Before the season begins though, the Lady Cougars will be tested in a preseason Elite 8 tournament featuring the Top 8 teams from last season.

Playing in the tournament is an honor for the Cougars, Lady Cougars head volleyball coach Chad Weaver said.

“It’s a tremendous honor for our team to be able to play in this tournament,” Weaver said. “The company that Sharlie (Terry) and I work for, Alto Products, donated the entry fee to the tournament. We are very blessed for that.”

This will be a rebuilding year for the Lady Cougars having lost several starters.

The team is improving and only has one senior, Weaver said.

“We only have one senior this year,” he said. “The girls have come a long way since we started practicing, and they continue to improve.”

The Lady Cougars’ goal is to get back to the state tournament.

After a second place finish, the mind set is that will happen, Weaver said.

“Our attitude is that we finished second in the state last year, so we plan on going back to the state tournament again this year,” he said.

With the season starting son, Weaver and the Lady Cougars want more fann support, he said.

“We want to see more community support when we have home games,” he said. “The parents are always here, but we are trying to build a program. We want the community to support us more, so we can do that.”