There's one major difference surrounding this year's Helias volleyball team, but that change hasn't resulted in other changes.
For the first time ever, the Lady Crusaders will open a season as the defending state champs, thanks to last year's title in Class 3. But other than playing within view of a new banner in Rackers Fieldhouse, nothing is changing.
"It doesn't really make things different," Helias coach David Harris said. "I've thought about it often, like "Are we really the defending state champs?' That's because we lost so many players. If we had exactly the same team, then I could say we were the defending state champs. Technically, I guess we are.
"But that hasn't changed how we've approached things. We're still working on the fundamentals and still working on trying to make sure we improve every day, and then whatever happens at the end of the year happens."
Helias lost six seniors off that title-winning team.
"We lost all our hitters," Harris said. "I'm trying to think back, and I'm not sure we've ever done that before, had to replace all the hitters."
Still, the cupboard is far from bare.
"What's really good is we have an all-state setter in Ashley Dudenhoeffer, an all-state libero in Blake Berhorst and a defensive specialist in Maddie Dunkmann who will be playing her third year on the varsity," Harris said. "We have a really good foundation to build on.
"If you've got good passing, good defense and good setting, that's very important. Now we just try to fill in the pieces around them."
Those pieces will come in the form of players who did a lot behind the scenes to help Helias win the championship last year.
"I told people right after we won the state championship ... that some of the best matches we played last year, nobody got to see them, because they were on the practice floor," Harris said. "Those other girls pushed and pushed and pushed and made us better. Hopefully that will carry over to this year.
"Some of the ones who sat on the bench last year and didn't get a whole lot of playing time, in other years they would have been starters. So now they've got to come in and fill some pretty big shoes, but they're talented and I think they can do it."
When things are working, as they obviously are, there's no sense in changing. To that end, the Lady Crusaders' summer schedule was very similar to years past.
"This year was even more important to see them in different situations and throw the young kids into the mix early and see how they would respond," Harris said. "I was very pleased with our offseason."
And as usual, two areas of concentration stood out.
"My philosophy for the last several years has been that if we serve better than the other team, and if we pass their serves better than they pass ours, then our chances for success go way up," Harris said. "So that hasn't changed.
"Even though we have some really good servers coming back from last year, they've been working hard and making their serves even better. And we work on serve-receive all the time. If people would ever come to my practices, they'd go, "Why don't they ever hit?' Because we don't spend a whole lot of time in hitting lines."
This year's varsity roster is made up of 16 players, with four of them swinging between the varsity and JV teams.
Harris said the team will start the season with a 5-1 offense, with Dudenhoeffer, a senior, as the setter. But the Lady Crusaders could run a 6-2 on other occasions, with junior Lexy Lamb serving as the second setter.
Suzie Kuensting and Hannah Eynard, both seniors, will spend time at middle hitter, with Eynard also playing some outside hitter.
"Suzie and Hannah Eynard both would have gotten more playing time last year than they did, but they were hurt half the year."
Freshman Ellie Rockers will also play some middle and outside hitter.
"She's going to be really good," Harris said.
A pair of sophomores, Hannah Borchelt and Erin Wyrick will see time at outside hitter.
Berhorst, a senior, will return at libero. Three others seniors - Dunkmann, Megan Brown and Clarissa Fennessey - will all play various roles as defensive specialists.
Others in the mix at various spots include junior setter Abby Shepard, freshman middle hitter Korie Otto, freshman outside hitter Callie Henson, sophomore outside hitter Regan Bruns and sophomore defensive specialist Bradi Berhorst.
Helias opens today at Waynesville before hosting Fatima at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.