The Westminster Christian girls’ volleyball team falls in the 3A state title game
One year after coming within one point of a state title in a heartbreaking five-set loss to Sarasota Cardinal Mooney, the Westminster Christian Warriors girls’ volleyball team battled their way to the brink of a state title that had eluded them in 2019.
They brought a perfect 22-0 record, No. 19 national ranking (Max Preps) and No. 3 state ranking into Saturday afternoon’s Class 3A state title match against Ocala Trinity Catholic.
But less than two hours after it started, Warrior players stood in stunned silence as they had to once again settle for runner-up medals and pose with the second place trophy.
Westminster Christian — which had lost just four sets all season, including two to eventual Class 6A champion Mater Academy Charter — dropped three in a row as Trinity Catholic won the 3A championship 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-23) at Suncoast Credit Union Arena. It was the second state title in three years for the Celtics (18-6) and kept Westminster Christian from winning its third.
“We’re all mad right now,” said Westminster coach Julie Doan. “We all hold ourselves to a very high standard here and expect to win every match whether it’s the first one of the year or the state championship.”
The veteran team — led by Saskia Hernandez and Sydney Bond (541 combined kills) — was behind 11-5 early and TC held on to win the first set 25-20.
After falling behind early in the second set (6-1), Westminster, led by Hernandez finally caught its stride and went on a 12-5 run to go up 13-11. After the Celtics went on a 10-5 run to go up 21-18, the Warriors put together a 5-0 run of their own to go up 23-21 and appeared poised to take the second set. Only to have Trinity Catholic score the final four points — including a controversial set point call that went TC’s way.
That when Westminster’s Ariana Arteaga appeared to have nailed a perfect kill shot to make it 24-all. But, even though Doan and the Westminster bench didn’t agree, she was called for touching the net giving the point and set to the Celtics and a 2-0 lead.
“We talk to the girls about it all the time,” Doan said. “Sometimes there are things out of your control. Bad calls can happen at times and when you don’t get a call that goes your way, don’t pay attention to it. Maybe it would’ve made a difference, maybe not, I guess we’ll never know.”
The third and what turned out to be final set of Westminster’s season was equally as frustrating. The set was close throughout until WC went on a mini-run late to go up 22-19 and was poised to at least force another set.
But, as they had all match long, the Celtics made some remarkable saves, extending points and frustrating the Warriors, going on a 6-1 run to close out the match and capture their second state title, the first coming two years ago.
“The fact that even got all the way back here after such a tough loss last year is a really magnificent accomplishment and says a lot about our determination and heart,” said Hernandez, a senior outside hitter and North Carolina State commit who led the way for her team with 16 kills. “I thought we came out today and played hard but sometimes your opponent is just better than you on a given day and that’s what happened out there today, they just made more plays.”
Said Doan: “We didn’t really struggle. That team out there [Trinity Catholic] is good, everybody is good when you get to a state final and winning a state championship is incredibly hard to do. So you have to always make sure you give your opponent credit before you go tearing yourself down. I’m still super proud of our girls for making it all the way back here and again.”
Regular-season games
▪ Southwest d. Ferguson (25-13, 20-25, 25-13, 23-25, 15-9): Layla Cortez 16 kills, 2 aces, 3 blocks; Sheila Rodriguez 10 kills, 4 aces, 3 blocks; Aimee Lopez 10 kills, 10 digs; Samantha Vigo 9 kills, 4 blocks.
▪ Hialeah Gardens d. Westland Hialeah (25-18, 25-5, 25-12): Sabrina Cabrera with 16 kills, 4 aces, 2 assist blocks; Samantha Ramos 6 kills, 10 aces, 2 assist block; Cynthia Lopez 4 kills, 4 aces.
