The Jasper Eagles never trailed during a dominant 3-0 win (25-17, 25-19, 25-14) Tuesday evening over the College Heights Christian Cougars for the Class 1 District 11 title at the Thomas Jefferson Fieldhouse.
Jasper went on a 5-0 run early in the first set to go ahead 12-6 and then a 4-0 run later on after the Cougars trimmed it to 18-15.
Jasper and College Heights traded more punches and runs in the second set, as the Cougars overcame a 6-2 deficit early on to earn a 20-17 score after their 4-0 run.
Jasper sophomore middle hitter Crystal Smith ended the Cougars’ run with a kill and the Eagles’ three straight points gave them a six-point cushion late in the set with only two points to go for 25.
College Heights earned three tie scores early in the third set before Jasper built a commanding 21-8 lead with a 13-0 scoring run.
“Jasper played great,” College Heights coach Mary Colin said. “They played great, and we knew they would. They’re a good team. They’re fun to watch. They’re fun to play. We prepared for them and we had the tools in our tool belt. We just came out on the wrong side.”
College Heights’ Lauren Ukena and Addie Lawrence finished with 11 and 10 kills respectively. Maddy Colin led the Cougars with 24 assists, Ava Masena made nine digs and five different Cougars served one ace.
College Heights finished the season 23-10-2 overall.
“I just told the girls they had a great season,” Coach Colin said. “Lots of great stats. They’re a fun group of kids. They’re in there encouraging each other. They love this game, but even as much as they love this game, they love each other so it’s not just the game that ended today, it’s their volleyball family that ended. We already miss each other. We want to see each other tomorrow and seasons come to an end and that’s part of the journey. This was a great journey with some great kids.”
College Heights seniors Ukena, Masena, Lawrence, Lindsay Griesemer, Marley Woodford and Sophia Wilkins played their final high school games on Tuesday.
“I’m standing here with Hannah Graham, who was their junior high coach,” Coach Colin said. “One of the seniors hugged her and said we’ve had you since we were in seventh grade, which is true. That’s going to happen at a small school. We get to watch them for six years, not just four years. They have come along and when they were young in high school, they took their turn watching the older girls and when it was their turn, they stepped in and they played some great volleyball.”
Jasper improved to 25-8-3 overall with a 3-1 record against College Heights this season and the Eagles will play host Drexel (28-5) in a Class 1 sectional match on Thursday.