Madison’s Nora Waddoups helped lead Bobcats to a 3-peat state title
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REXBURG – Madison setter Nora Waddoups is the EastIdahoNews.com Volleyball Player of the Year.
The Bobcats have won the past three 5A/6A state titles, and even with three different head coaches, it’s clear the program thrives when its setter thrives.
Setter Kinley Kerbs was the 5A state Player of the Year in 2022 when Madison started its streak of championships.
Waddoups took over the position last year as a junior and took advantage of a talented group of hitters on the way to another state title and a first-team All-State selection.
This year she was the driving force to No. 3.
“Because of her, she made a good team a championship team,” coach Keanu Pukahi said. “She’s a very offensive-minded setter so … she was able to also score points.”
Waddoups, who has signed with Idaho State, had another stellar season for the Bobcats, earning High Country Conference Player of the Year. The All-State selections have yet to be released, but it’s a safe bet Waddoups and Madison will be well represented.
“Her work ethic was great,” Pukahi said. “It set her aside from others. She would do work on days we had a break.”
The setter-hitter dynamic can be harmonious if everyone is working on the same page. Pukahi said he wanted Waddoups to dictate the offense.
“I told her you set the ball and I’ll make those hitters adjust to her,” he said. “There were some growing pains and some struggles, but we were able to take care of it and it showed at the end of the season when were pretty much firing on all cylinders. We were very hard to defend.”
That philosophy kept everyone involved and the Bobcats were rarely challenged during the season, finishing 36-2, with both losses coming against teams from Utah in the Volleyball Challenge Tournament in Orem.
That was the tournament Pukahi focused on as a chance for the Bobcats to face their toughest competition of the year and get ready for the postseason push.
Madison actually beat Idaho power Skyview 3-2 at that tournament.
The Bobcats would go on to play Skyview in the 6A state tournament, beating the top-seeded Hawks 3-1 in the semifinals and 3-2 in the championship match.
“I truly believe they played their best volleyball at the end,” Pukahi said.
And that includes the EastIdahoNews.com Player of the Year.
“I’m super stoked,” Pukahi said, adding he expects Waddoups to continue her success at Idaho State. “The way she is and her work ethic, she deserves everything.”