Sports Update
One for the thumb: Lovejoy sweeps Aledo for fifth straight state volleyball title
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
GARLAND -- When Lovejoy senior Ebony Nwanebu fired off a kill just inside the line to end the first game, 25-16, in Saturday afternoon's Class 4A State Finals, Lady Leopards head coach Ryan Mitchell quickly glanced up to the sky and mouthed, "thank you."
He knew what was on the verge of happening in front of 5,531 fans at the Curtis Culwell Center.
"It was just the feeling of we finally showed up and were playing ... we were possessed today," Mitchell said.
Two sets later, Lovejoy (48-4) had swept Aledo (41-6) for its fifth straight UIL State Volleyball Championship and first at the 4A level (25-16, 25-18, 25-21).
That was a far cry from the semifinals where Lovejoy struggled in a four-set win over Cedar Park.
"We did not play to our potential in that match," Mitchell said. "So we spent the last 36 hours on our own; we took away everyone's cell phones and tried to make things right with ourselves."
Saturday went according to plan.
"When we were in the locker room beforehand I told the girls, 'we aren't just going to win, we are going to win in three and show everyone we are the best team in Texas," Mitchell said. "And we did; we finally played our best match at state."
That description would be apropos for Nwanebu as well.
The 6-foot-4 outside hitter was named Class 4A State Tournament MVP after amassing 26 kills and 11 digs with a .449 hitting percentage in the finals. It was a stark contrast from last season's state finals when Nwanebu was benched due to academic issues and had to watch as Lovejoy beat Abilene Wylie in five sets.
"Last year was really tough and I knew I had to play well today," Nwanebu said. "I wanted a chance to redeem myself."
She did that and more.
"I'm so happy for Ebony," Mitchell said. "She showed so much class through everything last season and has matured so much over the past year, so this is total vindication for her. It really is a storybook ending."
Nwanebu helped jumpstart the storybook ending for the team in Game 1 with kills on two of the first seven points for a 5-2 Lovejoy lead. The Lady Leopards expanded that lead to 13-7 off multiple kills by senior Lucy Tweedie as well as a block and ace from senior Shannon Connell, who also had 36 assists.
"I think there was a lot of emotion out there tonight," Connell said. "All of the seniors really wanted to finish with a win."
But so did Aledo.
The Lady Bearcats made their first sustained push of the match, and pulled to within 14-12, with a four-point run led by Briana Sharratt, who had a team-high 12 kills.
"Our biggest concern was [Sharratt]," Mitchell said. "She has a whip of an arm and we changed some of our rotations to account for her."
Sharratt could only do so much as the Lovejoy front line took over offensively and defensively from there. A block by junior Katelyn McKenzie and kills by Tweedie, who had seven terminations, paced an 11-4 Lady Leopards run that ended at 25-16 via a kill by Nwanebu.
Lovejoy parlayed that momentum into a controlling Game 2 start, winning 10 of the first 12 points with many coming on the arm of Nwanebu. The Lady Leopards' lead got as high as 11 points and wouldn't drop below seven from there. Senior Mallorie Puckett, who had six kills and 10 digs for the match, put down her team's final two points for a 25-18 win.
"We've had a lot to prove all year," said Puckett, who won her fourth state title Saturday. "When we moved up to 4A a lot of people said we wouldn't come out on top and we wanted to prove we could."
Lovejoy appeared as though it would prove that point in leisurely fashion in Game 3 after a string of kills from Tweedie, Puckett and Nwanebu equated a 14-8 advantage. But as was the case in Game 1, Aledo pushed back, with Raygan McLelland (14 digs and two aces) the catalyst this time. The Lady Bearcats put together a 4-0 run and had a 5-0 surge later in the set, but could never get closer than two points.
Lovejoy's defense, which was paced on the back row by 16 digs from senior Bailey Martin and nine by senior Brooke Ray, can take credit for that as Aledo hit just .098.
"I don't know about the numbers," Mitchell said, "but our block was all over them tonight."
The offense wasn't too shabby either. Kills from Nwanebu, Connell, Puckett and Tweedie as well as back-to-back aces from Nwanebu led to a 24-18 lead. Aledo made its aforementioned spurt after that, but a termination from Tweedie gave Lovejoy the 25-21 set win, a sweep and its fifth straight state title.
One season ago, Lovejoy became the first volleyball team in UIL history to win four consecutive Class 3A State Championships. On Saturday, the Lady Leopards became the first team to win Class 3A and 4A State Titles in back-to-back seasons.
"I think that shows consistency and that we've been at a high level year-in, year-out," Mitchell said. "And I'd say this is the best state win we've had ... a fitting cap to a great season."
He knew what was on the verge of happening in front of 5,531 fans at the Curtis Culwell Center.
"It was just the feeling of we finally showed up and were playing ... we were possessed today," Mitchell said.
Two sets later, Lovejoy (48-4) had swept Aledo (41-6) for its fifth straight UIL State Volleyball Championship and first at the 4A level (25-16, 25-18, 25-21).
That was a far cry from the semifinals where Lovejoy struggled in a four-set win over Cedar Park.
"We did not play to our potential in that match," Mitchell said. "So we spent the last 36 hours on our own; we took away everyone's cell phones and tried to make things right with ourselves."
Saturday went according to plan.
"When we were in the locker room beforehand I told the girls, 'we aren't just going to win, we are going to win in three and show everyone we are the best team in Texas," Mitchell said. "And we did; we finally played our best match at state."
That description would be apropos for Nwanebu as well.
The 6-foot-4 outside hitter was named Class 4A State Tournament MVP after amassing 26 kills and 11 digs with a .449 hitting percentage in the finals. It was a stark contrast from last season's state finals when Nwanebu was benched due to academic issues and had to watch as Lovejoy beat Abilene Wylie in five sets.
"Last year was really tough and I knew I had to play well today," Nwanebu said. "I wanted a chance to redeem myself."
She did that and more.
"I'm so happy for Ebony," Mitchell said. "She showed so much class through everything last season and has matured so much over the past year, so this is total vindication for her. It really is a storybook ending."
Nwanebu helped jumpstart the storybook ending for the team in Game 1 with kills on two of the first seven points for a 5-2 Lovejoy lead. The Lady Leopards expanded that lead to 13-7 off multiple kills by senior Lucy Tweedie as well as a block and ace from senior Shannon Connell, who also had 36 assists.
"I think there was a lot of emotion out there tonight," Connell said. "All of the seniors really wanted to finish with a win."
But so did Aledo.
The Lady Bearcats made their first sustained push of the match, and pulled to within 14-12, with a four-point run led by Briana Sharratt, who had a team-high 12 kills.
"Our biggest concern was [Sharratt]," Mitchell said. "She has a whip of an arm and we changed some of our rotations to account for her."
Sharratt could only do so much as the Lovejoy front line took over offensively and defensively from there. A block by junior Katelyn McKenzie and kills by Tweedie, who had seven terminations, paced an 11-4 Lady Leopards run that ended at 25-16 via a kill by Nwanebu.
Lovejoy parlayed that momentum into a controlling Game 2 start, winning 10 of the first 12 points with many coming on the arm of Nwanebu. The Lady Leopards' lead got as high as 11 points and wouldn't drop below seven from there. Senior Mallorie Puckett, who had six kills and 10 digs for the match, put down her team's final two points for a 25-18 win.
"We've had a lot to prove all year," said Puckett, who won her fourth state title Saturday. "When we moved up to 4A a lot of people said we wouldn't come out on top and we wanted to prove we could."
Lovejoy appeared as though it would prove that point in leisurely fashion in Game 3 after a string of kills from Tweedie, Puckett and Nwanebu equated a 14-8 advantage. But as was the case in Game 1, Aledo pushed back, with Raygan McLelland (14 digs and two aces) the catalyst this time. The Lady Bearcats put together a 4-0 run and had a 5-0 surge later in the set, but could never get closer than two points.
Lovejoy's defense, which was paced on the back row by 16 digs from senior Bailey Martin and nine by senior Brooke Ray, can take credit for that as Aledo hit just .098.
"I don't know about the numbers," Mitchell said, "but our block was all over them tonight."
The offense wasn't too shabby either. Kills from Nwanebu, Connell, Puckett and Tweedie as well as back-to-back aces from Nwanebu led to a 24-18 lead. Aledo made its aforementioned spurt after that, but a termination from Tweedie gave Lovejoy the 25-21 set win, a sweep and its fifth straight state title.
One season ago, Lovejoy became the first volleyball team in UIL history to win four consecutive Class 3A State Championships. On Saturday, the Lady Leopards became the first team to win Class 3A and 4A State Titles in back-to-back seasons.
"I think that shows consistency and that we've been at a high level year-in, year-out," Mitchell said. "And I'd say this is the best state win we've had ... a fitting cap to a great season."
Copyright © 2013 - Star Local News