HOT SPRINGS — Shiloh Christian senior Reagan Robinson admitted she was a little nervous early in Saturday’s night’s Class 4A state volleyball championship match against Mena.
But Robinson and rest of the Lady Saints put the butterflies to rest with a big surge to win the first set then went on to claim a 3-0 (25-23, 25-10, 25-14) sweep at Bank of Ozarks Arena in a rematch of the finals from last year.
“To be honest, I was so nervous I was shaking,” said Robinson, who was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. “But once I got a couple balls down I started feeling more comfortable. I just wanted to play for my teammates.”
And play she did. The 6-foot outside hitter, who has verbally committed to play at Arkansas, finished with a match-high 16 kills and 23 digs for the Lady Saints (29-9-1) who won their first state volleyball championship.
Robinson and Shiloh Christian got off to a shaky start. Mena (31-3) led most of the opening set, but Lady Saints coach Nate Bodenstein called time with his team trailing 21-16.
“I said ‘Y’all, calm down. We’re playing in the state championship game now. Chill out,’” Bodenstein said after the match. “We turned around and played Shiloh ball. That’s what has gotten us 28 wins. That’s what’s gotten us here.”
The Lady Saints caught fire from there, finishing the first set with a 9-2 run keyed by four kills from Robinson to rally for the win. They never trailed again.
Bodenstein credited his defense for doing a great job against a potent Mena attack. The trio of Robinson, Morgan Stoecklein and Celestene Sebag combined for 58 digs. In addition to Robinson’s team-high 23, Stoecklein added 18 and Sebag 16. Setter Allie Pitts also contributed 10 digs to go with her teamhigh 25 assists.
“That’s what took the fight out of us last year, Mena’s defense was outstanding,” Bodenstein said. “I told them offense is gonna be there, but your defense has to be outstanding to win against Mena and it was.”
Haley Richards chipped in nine kills and Anna Gookin seven for Shiloh Christian.
Mena coach Brad Lyle said the scenario played the same a year ago, just with a different result.
“They had the momentum early and were able to turn the tide and run away with it,” Lyle said. “We missed some big serves. I don’t know if we let up just a little bit. But you finish off game one and I think it may have played out a little bit different.
“But volleyball’s a momentum sport and they stole the momentum and we never got it back. Honestly, they made some plays tonight that I thought we had them beat on. They just wanted it.”
Paul Boyd can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter@NWAPaulb.
SHILOH CHRISTIAN 3, MENA 0