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• Published: Nov 22, 2009

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THIBODAUX — St. Joseph’s Academy’s Cori Martone added another individual honor to her trophy case and the East squad got another victory in the annual Louisiana High School Coaches Association All-Star volleyball game.

Martone earned Miss Volleyball honors after finishing with six kills, including four in the final game, helping the East sweep the West 3-0 on Saturday.

The East won by scores of 25-13, 25-14 and 25-18 in the contest played at Nicholls State University’s Stopher Gym.

A week after being voted the MVP as SJA won its third straight Division I-Class 5A state title, Martone helped lead a strong East attack by also contributing three aces, three digs and two solo blocks.

“They’re all All-Stars,” East head coach Val Whitfield-Dunn of McGehee said. “They were high-energy when they walked in the door to get their uniforms.

“They were very energetic, and as a coaching staff, we thought our group as a whole just had people skills. They came in, communicated, and acted like they’d known each other for a long time. When we got on the court, they were able to communicate and get excited.”

The East parlayed the energy Whitfield-Dunn saw into an 8-0 run early in the first set to take an 11-3 lead. The teams played even after that with the West unable to close the gap in what turned into a 12-point East win.

In the second set, the West jumped out to a 6-4 lead, but the East regained control by scoring 11 of the next 12 points to build a 15-7 lead. Once the East built the lead, the teams matched point for point.

The East clinched the victory in the second set on a service error by the West.

It was a slightly different story in the third and final set. The East held leads of 10-5, 15-11, 19-15 and 24-18, keeping the West at bay.

A kill by McGehee’s Samantha Tillery on set-point wrapped up the East victory.

Martone and Fontainebleau’s Jessica Gutierrez each had four kills in the final game.

“There were a lot of MVPs,” Whitfield-Dunn said.