FIFTH TIME IS JUST AS SWEET: Somerset Christian claims 12th Region All "A" volleyball title
- Jacob Pratt
- Aug 26, 2024
- 6 min read
SOMERSET - Teams from three different counties walked in to the Cougar Den on Saturday morning with one thing on their mind, win the 12th Region All "A" crown. For all but one of them, they hadn't seen that mountaintop since before 2020. But for the hosts of the day's games, Somerset Christian, four years in a row they have claimed that title, one for each year since they transitioned to KHSAA play. With the Cougars now missing all-time great Addison Cunnagin, now was the time for a new team to claim that throne. Or so everyone thought at least.
Although at points they looked shaky, the Cougars would not drop a set en route to a dazzling FIFTH-straight 12th Region All "A" trophy.
In the first game of the day, Trinity Christian, another team with a recent transition to KHSAA play and last year's runners-up, took on the Danville Lady Admirals. It was all Titans early on, as kills from freshman Amelia Stanton and two straight aces from junior Claire Connor got Trinity out to a quick 4-0 lead. Danville finally got on the board after a lift call on the Titans, with senior Sarah Young earning a block soon after. Trinity Christian got out to a 12-3 lead, forcing head coach Kayleigh Hunsted to call for a timeout.
More stellar play from junior Brooke Bridgewater, freshman Elizabeth Battaile and senior Mary Katherine Waters further increased that massive lead to 22-7 and it looked like the Titans were going to roll in the set. The Lady Admirals were able to rally a bit and make the score a bit closer, but a service error gave the first set to the Titans 25-14.
The teams battled early on in the second set, before a flurry of four straight aces from senior Alexandra Bottom brought the Trinity Christian lead up to 15-7. Danville battled back however, and after an ace from senior Hadley Terrell, Trinity head coach Chad Gray was forced to take a timeout to get his players' heads back into the game.
A kill from senior Ava Mayes-Meaux brought the Admirals to within one before the Titans finally woke back up, scoring seven of the 11 final points, with the final point coming off a Danville attacking error, to claim the second set 25-21 and advance to the semifinals with a 2-0 win.
For the second time in the last week, Somerset took on Danville Christian in the first of the day's semifinals. When the two played earlier in the week, Somerset took home a nail-biting 3-2 win, with this game expected to be similarly as close. Early on, however, it was all Jumpers as kills from junior Sarah McBride and senior Serenity Haynes gave Somerset an 8-3 lead and forced Danville Christian to call for a quick timeout.
McBride had two straight aces out of the short break and Somerset seemed to be running away with the game. The lead only got larger in the set after kills from sophomore Mati Cooper and senior Whitney King. The Lady Warriors attempted a comeback late in the set though, as kills from juniors Anneliese Doty and MaKayla Sizemore brought them as close as within six points. However, a kill from McBride eventually handed the Jumpers the first set 25-18.
Danville Christian had the advantage early on in the second set after kills from Sizemore and senior Bliss Swabey and an ace from junior McKenzie Dailey. They continued their early momentum by scoring a point after a hit from junior Grace Meyer that came from her foot, as they found themselves ahead 7-4. However, the Jumpers never wavered and after kills from Cooper and Haynes, tied the game right back up at 10-10.
More kills from Meyer and Sizemore and suddenly Somerset found themselves with their back against the wall as they were down 21-14. An insane five aces in a row from freshman Kaitlyn Mobley put the Jumpers ahead for good in an intense rally, before a kill and ace from Haynes sealed the deal, putting Somerset in the championship game with a 25-23 second set victory.
The hosting team finally took the floor for the second semifinal game, with this contest being a rematch of last season's instant classic between the Cougars and the Titans that was won by Somerset Christian 2-1. Trinity Christian started with an early advantage, although their leads would be immediately answered by kills from junior Sophia Barnett and sophomore Sara Tucker. Neither team could create much space in the set, with Somerset Christian taking a slight 16-14 lead midway through after three straight kills from junior Elise Meggs. A kill from Tucker forced a late timeout by Trinity Christian, with the Cougars ahead 23-18. That timeout meant little in the grand scheme of things though, as sophomore Caroline Mounce scored two straight aces to give her team a 25-18 victory in the first set.
It was a battle between Barnett and Stanton early on in the second set, with the two getting multiple kills for their respective team. The hitting of the Titans was a tad more consistent it seemed, and that came into play later in the set as they got production from multiple players on a run that have themselves a 21-15 lead, forcing Somerset Christian head coach LaDawna Tucker to call for a timeout.
Following kills from Battaile and Bottom, the Cougars were facing a 24-20 deficit and it seemed like this game, just like last year's championship, was heading to a tie-breaking set. However, the Cougars came together and rode the energy of their home crowd to an improbable comeback. After kills from Barnett and sophomore Catherine Hardy, an attacking error by the Titans knotted up the set at 24-24, meaning the first team to go up by two would claim the victory. Both teams traded attacking errors, before an emphatic kill by Barnett seemed to clear the way for a Cougar victory. It did just that as well, as an ace from freshman Selah Scicchitano gave the home team a 29-27 second set victory, ensuring a chance at a fifth-straight title for the Cougars.
It was then time for the championship game, an all-Pulaski County affair between the Lady Jumpers of Somerset and Somerset Christian. In eight meetings previous, Somerset had only taken down the Lady Cougars once, so history has not been kind in this rivalry to the Jumpers. There was a certain level of tension in the air at the Cougar Den as the players lined up for introductions, with an attacking error by the Cougars giving the visitors the first point of the title game. Somerset got out to a rather-surprising 5-0 lead after an ace from Haynes, before a kill from Tucker giving the Cougars their first point.
Somerset continued to have an early lead before Barnett and Tucker took over once again from the right side, eventually giving Somerset Christian their first lead of the game at 12-11. Kills from Tucker and Mounce ran up that lead to 18-11, forcing Somerset head coach Heather Baker to call timeout to try to stop the Cougar run. Battle as they may, the Jumpers didn't have enough to make the first set competitive, as they ultimately fell 25-16 after they were called for a lift.
Again, Somerset surprisingly started out the second set with an early lead, with a kill from King giving them a 4-1 advantage. However, it wasn't long before, almost as if on cue, the Cougars came roaring back. Another Somerset timeout was called with the Cougars ahead 17-10 after a five-point scoring run, including Barnett adding another two kills to her tally for the game.
After the timeout, the Cougars seemingly decided they wanted the game to be over almost immediately. Barnett scored four kills in the next 10 volleys, as the Cougars scored eight of the final 10 points in the set to blowout their crosstown foes 25-12 in the second set, handing Somerset Christian a fifth-consecutive All "A" regional title. Not bad for a team that just six years ago wasn't even part of the KHSAA and a team with only three upperclassmen.
Somerset Christian will represent the 12th Region in the All "A" state tournament at a later date.
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