Jonesboro claims 13th state title
Less than a year after losing, 3-1, to Greenwood in the Class 6A state volleyball finals at Bank of the Ozarks Arena, the Jonesboro Lady Hurricanes got their revenge on the Lady Bulldogs with a 3-0 sweep of the Class 5A state finals at the recently renamed Bank OZK Arena.
The first set was a massive battle with eight ties and five lead changes. Greenwood (21-2) fell behind early, 5-1, but the Lady Bulldogs battled back to take a 24-23 lead. Jonesboro (22-2) dug deep however, snagging the final three points to take the 26-24 win.
“We had our chances in that first set,” said Greenwood head coach Jennifer Golden. “We just didn’t execute like we should have, and the momentum swung, and that got us.”
The Lady Bulldogs struggled in the second set as the Lady Hurricanes rolled to a 25-12 win for the 2-0 lead.
“We got a lot of points off serving,” Jonesboro head coach Craig Cummings said. “Their passes started coming off the net. Their middles, who are very good and effective, it took them out of the offense, so they had to go outside, and it gave our block a better chance and the defense behind the block to get better. It simplified the game a lot more, especially in Game 2, because we were able to get those digs and convert them back into kills.”
The third set started off strong with both teams battling for the lead, but following a 10-10 tie, Jonesboro took control and sped away with the 25-16 win to claim the program’s 13th state title.
“Jonesboro is a good team,” Golden said. “We just got beat today. We tried to execute. We tried to make our game plan, and they matched us for everything we did. Kudos to them. Great job.”
Cummings said he was pleased to see his team take the win after losing Clara Parker in last year’s final due to an injury.
“It feels wonderful, especially after last year, because we had a great match going then Clara got hurt,” he said. “The whole match changed after that. It was different. It was kind of like unfinished business, so to speak, but playing against Greenwood, they’re top quality. That’s who you want to play in the championship, have the two top teams go at it and see what happens from there.”
Parker was named the Most Valuable Player, picking up nine of her team-high 15 kills in the first set while also picking up six digs. Junior middle Mikayla Johnson and right-side hitter Gabby Thrower picked up where she left off with nine kills and seven blocks for Johnson and seven kills and three blocks for Thrower.
Kate Gschwend dominated the back row for Jonesboro, leading the team with 16 digs.
Greenwood spread the work around with senior Abby Cagle and junior Zoie Benton leading the team with seven kills each and juniors Brooke Jones and Camryn Presley added six each, Presley with 12 assists.
Sophomore setter Anna Johnson ended with a double-double with 12 assists and 12 digs, and Benton also had 12 digs. Junior libero Izzy Davis finished with 11.