The Lady Warriors went against District One, Sacred Heart Academy, who has been ranked above them all season. Sacred Heart was number one, while West Branch was number two. Going into the game, the team felt nervous, but they knew they had what it took to win. The team brought in the confidence they had played with all year and defeated Sacred Heart Academy in three sets, with all scores being 25-20. They became the first team in West Branch to go to the State Championship Finals.
In set one, the Lady Warriors had all the momentum as they kept the lead the whole game. Their most significant set lead was 19-10, but Sacred Heart kept chipping away at the score. The score was 24-20, but the Warriors took set one on a service error by Sacred Heart.
The Lady Warriors wanted to keep the momentum and start strong in set two. During this set, the Lady Warriors had a few errors but managed to pick it up and take a lead of 18-16 by the serve of Matayha Kerin. She had four of her nine service points in this set. The momentum shifted to Sacred Heart as they took the lead 20–18 by a service run, but Katrina Cowder would serve up six straight points to finish the second set. Marley Croyle had two kills during this run, and Makiya Mack had one.
In set three, the Lady Warriors did not let up and played to the best of their abilities, as they knew Sacred Heart would play as hard as they could. The team got off to a quick start by going up six to one by the serve of Hayley Wooster. She had four of her nine service points in this set. During the run, Katrina Cowder had a kill and a block. The game moved back to Sacred Heart as they took the lead nine to seven, but the Lady Warriors would side out and keep the lead throughout the set. The set ended 25-20, and the Lady Warriors could celebrate their victory.
Senior, Matayha Kerin, finished the night with nine service points and six kills. She said, “I think we did an amazing job of keeping their hitters out of system. They had strong hitters but we didn’t give them many chances to get the ball down.”
The Lady Warrior Volleyball team will be against District 10, Maplewood, and play on Saturday, November 19th, at Cumberland Valley High School at 10:30 A.M. Fans can purchase the tickets on the PIAA website for 1A volleyball. Make sure to come out in all your red gear and support the Lady Warriors as they strive to be the first team in West Branch history to win a State Championship!
