Spencer Homes Female Athlete Of Month: Ciara Cunningham Leads Edwardsville Volleyball As Senior

EDWARDSVILLE - Ciara Cunningham, who has played all four years on the Edwardsville girls volleyball varsity, enters her senior year with the Tigers as only one of two seniors on the team, and will provide valuable leadership and experience to the club.

Last season, in which Edwardsville went 23-14, and lost in the IHSA Class 4A regional final to Belleville West, Cunningham had a very good season, serving up 103 points and 31 aces, while having 250 kills, 34 blocks, 31 assists, and 84 digs in helping to lead the Tigers to their final record.

As 2025 preseason practice got underway, Cunningham has been duly impressed with the team's work rate and is very excited to get the season underway on Sept. 2, 2025, at Lucco-Jackson Gym against Belleville West.

Cunningham is a Spencer Homes Female Athlete of the Month for the Tigers.

"They've been going really well," Cunningham said about the workouts. "It's just exciting to see everyone so motivated and excited to get games started, since this year, we do have an extra week of practice. So you just kind of feel the intensity building up in practices, and everybody is getting ready for our first game. It's just really fun, and an exciting environment."

Cunningham does have many goals and aspirations, both for herself and the team as the new season is about to get underway.

"I'm just looking to improve all I can," Cunningham said, "before I head off for college, and just making my senior year the best it can be. This is my last ride, and we're going to have this team again, so I'm just living it up with my teammates and having fun while I do it."

She's very hopeful of good things happening to both herself and the Tigers this season.

"I feel like every team, we're hoping we can make it as far as we can into the postseason," Cunningham said. "I'm just hoping that we put up a good fight, we give it all we have, and obviously, going to state and winning, that's always the goal, and that's the dream. But just seeing how hard everyone's working to get there, it puts your hopes up really high, and it's really showing how much we can accomplish when we put our minds to it."

Cunningham and talented Savannah Ford are the only two seniors who will play for the Tigers this season, and they'll provide leadership for the team, as well as being key players on the floor. Cunningham is feeling very confident in her qualities.

"Our other senior, Savannah, we have been kind of a duo since sixth grade together, and know that there's an unspoken bond between us, having each other's backs, even without asking each other, we've always had kind of that connection, and ability to work together and show that leadership," Cunningham said. "I think it's really exciting to see that this year, with just us two, and seeing how we can lead a program."

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