By Carl Holcomb
Moorefield Examiner
East Hardy Cougars returned the WVSSAC Class A State Volleyball Tournament for a third year in a row as regional champions and 17th time in program history enduring snow and ice on a roller coaster ride opening the first round with a joyous victory over Madonna before crashing against top ranked Wirt County in four sets during the state semifinals for an agony of defeat on Wednesday in Charleston.
The Cougars path to the state tournament yielded a 24-9 season record overall with a topsy-turvy single day of competition in Charleston.
East Hardy was the Class A state runner-up last season and had a tall order this season battling adversity with injuries and just eight players primarily competing throughout the year to make the return visit happen.
Last year the Cougars played on the West Virginia State University campus due to a delay causing a change in venue, but this time around the team got to experience the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center like the other squads.
The brackets for each class were on display with team placards affixed and the teams celebrated moving their name after winning bringing more joy to the experience.
The atmosphere at the coliseum was electric as this state volleyball tournament was the first event to be held there with the new seats added as the noise level resounded with student sections and families cheering from each side of the courts.
“It was great being back in the coliseum; the girls were really excited,” East Hardy Volleyball assistant coach Chris Hahn noted.
“We are so proud of this team, only having eight healthy players most of the season and 10 on the roster at the end, they overcame a lot to get as far as they did and maximized their potential. The team chemistry was great all year, and this was a special group we couldn’t be prouder of our team.”
The fourth seeded Region II Co-Champion East Hardy Cougars commenced the WVSSAC Class A State Volleyball Tournament on Wednesday morning with a straight set match victory over fifth seeded Madonna Blue Dons: 25-18, 25-18 and 25-18.
This was the first state tournament appearance in program history for the Blue Dons.
“Every single girl on the roster contributed to the team’s success this year and I am very proud of that. While the season didn’t end how we wanted it to, I am confident we will come back stronger than ever next year. This has truly been a year of milestones for the program,” Madonna Volleyball coach Jaedyn Hissam remarked.
“Being the first team in program history to make it to the state tournament is a huge accomplishment and says so much about the hard work and dedication that these girls have given.”
East Hardy opened the first set with a 5-nil edge behind the service accuracy of Amelia Garrett notching a couple of aces.
Garrett led the Cougars this season with 88 aces out of a team total of 278.
Madonna responded to cut the deficit to 7-5, then the Cougars pounced for seven consecutive points behind the attacks from Morganne Miller and Madison Kerr off sets from Xavia Barber.
The Blue Dons attempted another rally in the opening set, but East Hardy thwarted the comeback with solid passing from Danica Wolfe, Jaylynn Combs and Emerson Pearce en route to a 25-18 win.
Madonna reversed course in the second set collecting a 9-5 advantage, but the Cougars wouldn’t be denied as they clawed back to claim a 25-18 win.
East Hardy fell behind again in the third set 12-7, but shifted gears with consistent attacks from Kerr and Miller to smash a 25-18 third set victory and seal the match 3-nil to advance to the state semifinals.
Kerr had a great presence at the net for the Cougars with blocks teaming up with Emerson Pearce and Miller to keep the Blue Dons backpedaling.
Morganne Miller led East Hardy with 376 spikes among 800 total team kills.
Madison Kerr denied 35 volleys pacing the Cougars net defense out of 67 team blocks.
“In the win over Madonna, we did a really good job of attacking their defense. We were able to keep our serves in and aggressive, and that let us get in a position to hit with power. We stayed focused, and the bench kept the energy high, and we were able to keep Madonna on their heels the entire match,” Coach Hahn commented.
In first round action, fellow Potomac Valley Conference member and Class A Region II Co-Champion Pendleton County (8th seed) was eliminated by top ranked Wirt County in straights sets 25-16, 25-10, 25-9.
The Tigers would advance to face the Cougars before pouncing over Gilmer County the state championship match to claim the 14th state title in program history and first since 2020.
No. 6 seeded St. Marys entered the state tournament for the second time in program history and second straight year.
The Blue Devils lost to East Hardy last season, but this year fate was different as St. Marys ousted third seeded Sherman in straight sets 25-22, 25-21, 25-20 to have a battle against second seed Gilmer County in the state semifinals.
Gilmer County eliminated Class A defending state champion Greenbrier West during the first round in four sets 25-21, 20-25, 25-20, 25-17.
Wirt County was known for having a dynamic serving troupe, but the Cougars managed to keep up the pace collecting the first set of the state semifinal 26-24.
The Tigers took an early lead in the second set before being called for an uncharacteristic rotation violation which caused a lengthy pause and disrupted the tempo of the match.
The Tigers pounced with a couple of aces by Jasmine Williams to build a 10-4 lead and kept thrashing to grab the second set.
“That’s the first out of alignment we’ve had in about a month, but no better time than now. They pulled themselves out of it. If anything, I think for some reason, it was a good break in play and switch it up a little bit after that and get going,” Wirt County Volleyball coach Katie Frazier explained.
“Glad we could use it as a little momentum break for ourselves. East Hardy is a very, very good team. We’re just very fortunate to be able to get that against them. The first set was a little tight and we were able to pull away a little more in the sets after that. They are a very good team. Just kind of decided we wanted to play a little bit toward the end and got into a rhythm and got into a groove a little bit.”
East Hardy wasn’t able to adjust and fell 25-16 in the second set as Wirt County was able to find openings on the floor.
The Cougars battled ferociously in the third set with good hustle, but Wirt County commandeered a 25-23 win with a final push and a little lucky roll.
Wirt County proved powerful at the net with Addie Stephens landing 14 kills and had some help on 47 total assists from Breigyn Dawson.
East Hardy showed good presence in the third set, but the Tigers were responding with critical digs as Mya Hatcher and Makayla Moore cleaned up the floor with double digit effort.
Stephens had a wild attack that danced along the top of the net before finally falling down on the Cougars side before ricocheting out of bounds resulting in a point for a 24-22 edge in that third battle.
Wirt County took the fourth set 25-14 with more service accuracy and momentum on attacks to advance to the state championship match against the Titans.
“In the semifinal against Wirt, we knew their serves were going to be tough. I thought we did a good job of passing. The energy was good throughout the match; we never felt out of it, even after losing the second set. They were just able to get into a favorable rotation and scored a few more points than we could make up. #10 for them got comfortable and when she was getting a good set outside she was able to find the floor pretty consistently, we had to trade defense for offense to try and block her and was unable to find the floor from our middle attacks. There was never really a turning point; we just didn’t have enough to get over the top,” Coach Hahn said.
East Hardy’s Amelia Garrett was good at the corralling the Tigers serves with initial passes and led the Cougars this season with 222 receptions out of 876 total team first touches.
Barber was instrumental in getting the set assists for Kerr and Miller to hammer away during the state tournament and the entire season led the team with 381 assists out of a team total of 771.
Barber proved to be dynamic on the defensive side hustling for a team best 381 digs out of a Toal of 1,109 digs and that tenacity continued in Charleston.
East Hardy duo of Morganne Miller and Madison Kerr were selected to the WVSSAC Class A State Volleyball All-Tournament Team along with Wirt County trio Addison Stephens, Breigyn Dawson, Peyton McKown and Gilmer County trio Emeri Hickman, Blair Dobbins and Ava Dobbins.
The Cougars proved that a small team with faith in each other could move mountains with a successful journey reaching the state semifinals again and the middle school program just won the Potomac Valley League 8th grade title, so the future is very bright in Baker.
