Vermilion Catholic Lady Eagles did better than expected

With only two starters returning off of last year’s Class 1A state finalist team, little was expected from this year’s Vermilion Catholic Lady Eagle basketball team.
The returning starters were guard Leah Camel and small forward Kelly White. The two combined to score a total of 10 points a game last year. Graduating last year were 43 points.
Well, after the second game of the year, it did not take long to figure out how well the 2015-2016 Lady Eagles were going to be.
The two girls quickly figured out this was not going to be a rebuilding year as both predicted.
“Everyone thought this was a building year and that we would be the underdog,” said Camel. “I think we surprised everyone. We came out and worked well as a team, better than I thought we would.”
The Lady Eagles won an impressive 26 games despite a mixture of girls who had never played together in a varsity game.
Tonight, the No. 5 seeded Lady Eagles will play host to St. Edmunds of Eunice in the opening round of the Class 1A playoffs. Game time is at 6 p.m.
The new starters this year are Bella Doucet and Meredith Stutes,. They both give their team scoring under the basket. Olivia Chiasson is their relief player off the bench.
With the graduation of all-state guard Ashailey Brailey, VC reloaded at the guard position with a freshman named Jay Demouchet. Demouchet showed her basketball talent early, as a five-year-old beating the boys three years older than her in Biddy Basketball.
Her first year at varsity, Demouchet is averaging 14 points a game and four assists.
“We knew we had talent but as we continued to play throughout the season, we knew we had more talent than expected,” said Camel.
White admits she did not expect to have this well of a year.
“I was not expecting how it turned out,” said White. “We had to regroup.”
They regrouped and surprised many. The Lady Eagles finished second in district and tonight, they begin the second season.
When Camel and White were freshmen, they were members of the team that won the Class A state title.
As sophomores and juniors, both were taught to pass the ball to the scorers on the team. Their job was to feed the ball to Brailey or to Katie Frith. So, now, they are having to step up and shoot the ball more. For some players, shooting is natural. That is not the case for the two seniors.
If they are lucky, one will score as high as 10 while another will score six to nine points a game.
White’s top point production this year is 14 points, and Camel’s is 20 (early in the year).
“We are used to passing the ball to the high scorers, and they will make it,” said White. “We are used to doing that, and we can not get out of that habit.”
Camel, VC’s point guard, is also not a fan of shooting the ball. After playing for four years, Camel said she still gets nervous. Camel would rather fight for a rebound or dive for the basketball.
“I know I don’t shoot more than I should,” Camel added.
VC head coach Kim Guidry is happy with the role White and Camel play on the court.
Guidry said of Camel, “She is our Energizer bunny. She is the best defensive player. This year she is starting to score more. In a couple of games, she was our leading rebounder. She has no fear. I tell her to go out there and give 100 percent. “
Guidry described White as the “silent leader” on the team. “She is the type of player who does the right thing on and off the court. She gives 100 percent and is a coachable kid. She will go through fire if that is what we needed her to do. It is nothing about self. She would rather get the assist than score.”
The four years they have been on the team, VC has won 88 games and lost 22. Included in that is a Class A state title and state runner up finish.
The three years they have been starters, VC has won 60 games and lost 17.
“Their leadership is counted on and off the court. They do all of the little things right and do everything I ask,” said Guidry.