Sale Creek won its first-ever Class A state volleyball championship on Friday with a 3-1 win over Loretto in Murfreesboro.
photo by Contributed
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Friday, October 20, 2023 will go down as a historical day in the history of Sale Creek High School on three counts.
The first and most important is the fact that the Sale Creek Lady Panthers beat the Loretto Lady Mustangs three sets to one here at Siegel High School to win the first state championship in any sport for Sale Creek. They’ve had a bunch of state tournament participants, but the Lady Panthers captured the first state title with the 22-25, 25-15, 25-19 and 25-21 victory.
Sale Creek also won 50 matches for the most wins ever and they lost only two, also a record, finishing a spectacular season on a 44-match winning streak.
Not only was Friday’s win rewarding for everyone involved for general reasons, it was even a bit sweeter by beating Loretto as the Lady Mustangs have been a thorn in Sale Creek’s side as long as the Lady Panthers have played at the state tournament. Friday’s win makes the overall record 4-6 with two of those wins this week.
Ava Higgins, an outstanding four-year starter who never changes her facial expression regardless of the issue, was honored as the tournament MVP after getting a season-high 26 kills in addition to 11 digs, one block and an assist. The 17-year-old senior is hoping to continue her volleyball career next fall at Tennessee Wesleyan.
“We just needed to win this match, no ifs, ands or buts about it,” she said after receiving the only individual award presented by the TSSAA in volleyball.
“It was an emotional ride to be sure, but we were able to get it done. I was a little bit nervous at the start, but once we got started, everything turned out alright. I’m just sad that this is my final match for Sale Creek and I won’t get to play with my family any longer,” she added.
It’s been an incredible rewarding season for head coach Erin Briner, who was All-State as a player before taking the top job three years ago. It’s been a whirlwind past couple of weeks as just two weeks ago, she gave birth to her second daughter.
“I’m really tired, but also really proud right now,” Briner said after taking a deep breath and sitting down for the first time since the match began.
“Our girls wanted it so bad they were in tears before we started, but we just played our game after the first set as I wasn’t really worried after we lost the opening set. We gave up two runs in the first set that hurt us and we just had to prevent that from happening again.
“This is such an emotional event and I had to remind my girls just to stay level headed. Winning a state title isn’t supposed to be easy, but luckily, we were able to put it all together today. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for these girls and it’s even sweeter by beating Loretto. They are always well-coached and extremely competitive as they never go away, regardless of the score.
“I’m just glad it’s over as we can all take a few deep breaths,” Briner concluded with a smile.
As was the case in Sale Creek's first meeting with the Lady Mustangs on Wednesday, the Panthers played well early in building a 7-2 lead, only to watch as Loretto got seven straight service points from Ella Potts to take a 10-7 lead. A kill from Eisa Eilertson got the Lady Panthers within a point at 20-19, but it never got closer as Sale Creek dropped the first set 25-22, the same score as the first time around.
A kill from Ava Higgins knotted the score at 4-4 in the second set before the 6-2 senior knocked down five straight serves for a 10-5 Sale Creek lead. It never got closer as the Lady Panthers kept extending the lead, finally winning by 10 on a Loretto hitting error.
A kill from Breleigh Winters knotted the score at 10-10 for the Lady Mustangs, but back-to-back kills from Enslee Norwood and Higgins put Sale Creek up two and it never got closer as the Lady Panthers used a kill from their senior hitter to take the 2-1 lead.
Two straight kills from Higgins gave Sale Creek a 6-4 lead in the deciding set with the biggest lead being five points before two kills from Anna Cheatham got Loretto within a point at 20-19. It didn't take long for the Lady Panthers to get their biggest win of the season as kills from McKenzie Parks and Hailee Blaylock sealed the deal.
While Ava Higgins led with her 26 kills, younger sister Karma Higgins tallied 51 assists. Kiley Blaylock had 16 digs while Norwood had 14. Parks and Ava Higgins added 11 digs apiece while Eilertson led the team with five blocks and three aces.
While Sale Creek finishes at 50-2, Loretto ends its season at 46-9.
SALE CREEK STATS:
Eisa Eilertson – 12 kills, 3 aces, 2 digs, 5 blocks
Karma Higgins – 2 kills, 51 assists, 2 aces, 9 digs, 3 blocks
Enslee Norwood – 8 kills, 1 ace, 14 digs, 2 blocks
McKenzie Parks – 8 kills, 1 assist, 11 digs, 2 blocks
Hailee Blaylock – 3 kills, 2 digs, 3 blocks
Ava Higgins – 26 kills, 1 assist, 11 digs, 1 block
Kiley Blaylock – 3 assists, 16 digs.
LORETTO STATS:
Alyssa Green – 3 kills, 1 assist, 2 digs
Mallory Corbin – 4 kills
Rebecca Heineman – 10 kills, 17 assists, 1 ace, 7 digs, 2 blocks
Ally Weathers – 11 kills, 3 assists, 1 ace, 12 digs, 2 blocks
Anna Cheatham – 10 kills, 2 digs
Sophie Weathers – 4 kills, 5 digs
Ella Potts – 2 aces, 1 dig
Breleigh Winters – 1 kill, 2 assists, 2 aces, 10 digs
Jacy Franklin – 1 kill, 15 assists, 1 ace, 10 digs
Aubrey Ezell – 2 assists, 20 digs.
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)