Lexington Catholic ‘left it all out on the floor’ as run ends in state volleyball semis
Lexington Catholic’s players knew the odds were stacked against them against No. 1 Assumption, the 24-time and two-time defending KHSAA Girls State Volleyball Tournament champions, when they lined up against the Rockets on Saturday morning at George Rogers Clark High School for this year’s semifinals.
Assumption, after all, is ranked No. 9 in the nation in the USA Today Sports/American Volleyball Coaches Association Super 25 and hasn’t lost a set in almost a month.
The Knights told themselves if they were going to go down, they were going to go down with everything they’ve got.
“We put forth our best foot on every single practice, every single game, and we literally worked our butts off to get where we are,” senior hitter Ella Blackburn said after Lexington Catholic’s 3-0 loss to the Rockets by a count of 25-15, 25-22, 25-15. “Although we’re upset we didn’t come out with the win, we are exactly where we want to be. We worked our hardest.”
On Friday evening, Lexington Catholic swept 16th Region champion Ashland Blazer 25-8, 25-15, 27-25 to earn the school’s first state semifinals appearance. The back-to-back 11th Region champions bowed out in the first round to Notre Dame last season. Making the quarterfinals and semifinals this year represents a huge step forward.
“They’re a tough team. They’re an amazing team. But we left it all out on the floor. All six seniors, of us, all left it out there,” fellow senior hitter Payton Avilez said. “I’m glad that we showed everyone that we deserve to be up there with the big teams.”
Lexington Catholic (33-4), ranked No. 10 in the final Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association poll of the season, did not go as quietly as the score suggests. In the second set, the Knights twice took the lead in the late stages, prompting Assumption timeouts.
An ace by Assumption’s Stella Clements gave the Rockets the set by a score of 25-22. It was the closest set Assumption had faced since Oct. 14 against No. 2 Notre Dame, this year’s other state finalist.
“We talked to the girls about what it’s going to take. It’s just going to take their absolute best effort. They did that,” said Lexington Catholic coach Jeff Kaufmann, who received his KVCA 11th Region coach of the year award after the game. “I was so proud of them from start to finish, especially in the second set — to put it 22-22. That was the spirit of our team. That was how they played all year long — together, working hard.”
The state tournament weekend in Winchester marked the first time Kaufmann and the Knights had seen Assumption live. Kaufmann marveled at the Rockets, even during Saturday morning’s match.
“Their default mode is ‘always on.’” he said. “We tried to put away some balls that I thought, you know, would land against other teams. But the hustle, and then just the precision that they had with keeping the ball alive. There’s always somebody ready to back another person up.
“It was fun to watch as a coach and as a fan of volleyball, to see how well they move together. And that was actually the first time we’d seen somebody like that that could sustain it for that long period of time. We’ve played other teams that could put together good runs, but not for three straight sets.”
Assumption (39-4) went on to defeat Notre Dame 3-2 (19-25, 25-22, 25-19, 20-25, 17-15) Saturday evening in an epic finals battle that ended on a call reversal that awarded the Rockets the championship-winning point in a confusing sequence. It marked Assumption’s third consecutive state title and 25th overall.
The Pandas, who had been swept by the Rockets during the regular season, had two championship points in the fifth set but could not seal the deal. Notre Dame reached the title game with a 3-0 win (25-13, 25-20, 25-10) over North Oldham in Saturday afternoon’s other semifinal.
Lexington Catholic will take home its first girls state volleyball semifinalist trophy and the memories of competing on the biggest stage against one of Kentucky high school sports’ all-time dynasties. And they’ll know they earned it. That’s the memory that will last.
“We didn’t just get lucky that we were here. We worked hard for it,” Avilez said. “We started in March doing spring workouts. We woke up at 5 a.m. in the summer just to work out and come and do open gyms. Everybody stepped it up.”
All-State Tournament Team: Brooke Codey, Emily Keiran and Jillian Bohannon (MVP), Assumption; Teagan Kondik, Dara Jackson and Audrey Dyas, Notre Dame; Payton Avilez and Ella Blackburn, Lexington Catholic; Vita Sensenbrenner and Lilah Anthony, North Oldham; Miley Riddle, Shelby Valley; Jessie Pate, Apollo; Elise Marcum, Ashland Blazer, Amirra Bailey, Bowling Green.
