Hometown Final Four shot brings DeBeer back for one last Louisville volleyball dance (2024)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Anna DeBeer has been a foundational kind of player for the University of Louisville volleyball program. She’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer for the school, whenever that time comes (along with a good many of her past and current teammates, most likely). The Assumption High School and U of L grad has helped lead the Cardinals to a Final Four and an NCAA title game appearance.

The only thing left for the All-American outside hitter to accomplish at Louisville is winning a national championship.

Faced with the decision of whether to return for a post-graduate season at the university, however, there was one additional carrot hanging in front of her. This season’s NCAA Volleyball Final Four is being played in her hometown, at the KFC Yum! Center.

“I don’t think I could turn that down,” DeBeer said. “. . . I’m really just looking forward to hopefully ending it with a bang.”

The Cardinals and coach Dani Busboom Kelly have been to two of the past three Final Fours and likely would’ve gone a year ago but for a razor-thin margin costing them a chance to host an NCAA regional.

The addition of national power Stanford to the ACC, plus the return of Final Four qualifier Pittsburgh with a strong team has Louisville this season in a strange position – picked to finish third in the conference. But don’t let that fool you. The Cardinals could still have one of the four best teams in the country, with a talented group returning – including All-American libero Elena Scott, also a Louisville native.

Their expectations remain high, even against a rigorous schedule with some new organizational challenges. But the return of DeBeer was a game-changer when it comes to legitimate Final Four aspirations.

“We wouldn't be probably talking about a Final Four as much if Anna decided not to play her fifth year,” Busboom Kelly said. “So, it's huge for our team, huge for leadership. And some of those freshmen play the same position as Anna, so just for them to be able to learn from her for a year and not have to take on that starting role will be huge for their development. It's a huge advantage for this season. But I don't know if the fans or even our team really understand its lasting impact. But we’re very excited. I think that having the Final Four in Louisville was a big deal and something, if she would have balked at it (coming back), I would have been like, ‘This is a once in a lifetime chance, so you’ve got to come back.’ If we didn't have a chance to make it (to the Final Four), maybe that'd be a different story. But I think she believes we have a chance to make it, and it would be a pretty amazing way to end an amazing career.”

DeBeer said she’s hoping for a full, healthy season. COVID helped derail her first season. She was out with a knee injury for a good portion of 2022.

“I never really feel like I’ve had a good, healthy, full-on year,” DeBeer said. “So I knew I really wanted to take (a fifth season) just because of that, and just to keep everything in line for the season.”

The climb, both DeBeer and Busboom Kelly acknowledged, will be steep. Louisville opens its season on Tuesday, August 27, against Wisconsin, which ended last season ranked No. 3 in the nation, in the KFC Yum! Center at 9 p.m., after Kentucky faces 2023 NCAA runner-up Nebraska at 7 p.m. in the American Volleyball Coaches Association First Serve Showcase.

The Cards will host a nationally ranked Tennessee team before visiting nationally ranked Penn State. They’ll also visit Kentucky and play host to Nebraska in September, before beginning conference play – which will include home-and-home matchups with national powers Pittsburgh, Stanford and Notre Dame.

“When I saw the preseason schedule on paper, it was a little aggressive,” Busboom Kelly said. “But we want to play great teams. . . . A lot of people have asked about where we stand across the country, and I would say the top 10 teams, most of them have everybody back from last year. This is going to be a really exciting year. Volleyball is super competitive. Some players that will probably be in the Olympics one day will be competing this year in NCAA, so we're going to need a little bit of luck. And honestly, it's going to probably come down to the best team and culture, because the talent is going to be pretty even across the board. So what team is the toughest and which team plays together the best?”

Busboom Kelly knows that the target of a Final Four at home, in addition to bringing opportunity, also brings pressure. Coaches have tackled that head-on, discussing the pressure, encouraging players to discuss how they feel about it, and looking for ways to make sure they handle that.

Beyond that, there is pressure every game. A single regular-season loss cost Louisville a chance to host an NCAA regional last season. The Cardinals face huge national matchups in a number of games this season, so how the team handles those ups and downs will be important.

“We want to make it (to the Final Four), Busboom Kelly said. “It would be big for the city, big for the program, big for the university. So, we're going to feel that pressure throughout the year, but we're not going to be afraid to talk about it, or just say, ‘Oh, this is just like any other game.’ It's not. So, I think being honest and making sure everybody feels they can share their feelings is important, especially when you're talking about longevity of a season. Volleyball is a little bit unique in the fact that it’s so RPI based and the seeding -- it might be one of the only sports where the top four seeds get to host until the Final Four. So, every game is so important, and one game can make or break you. We saw last year between the fourth or fifth seed, where you get the host or you're on the road trying to get to the Final Four. So, every game is equally important, and you have one mess up, and there it goes. We're going to be talking about that and working to stay ahead of it.”

It's a challenge, but one DeBeer was eager to take up. She watched seniors return after COVID to lead the program to its first Final Four. Now she’s hoping to do the same, to help the program take just as significant a step. Part of that, she said, is not letting it become the elephant in the room, but talking about goals and pressures head-on.

“We're trying to be open to those conversations,” she said. “Just to kind of get used to (the pressure), so we can kind of get our minds ready and know that that's going to be how this season is going to be. And obviously we want to be there, so just finding the ways to make that happen. I think for me personally, it's kind of a motivation, like we really want to use that as a motivation for our whole team to get there. So I think it's a positive, but it can be a negative too.”

The public can get its first look at Louisville’s team on Saturday with its annual Red-White game in L&N Arena at 3 p.m.

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