Owensboro Catholic were dethroned as regional champions after losing a dramatic final 3-2 against Meade County. Owensboro Catholic along with Trinity and Owensboro had multiple players named to the 3rd Region All-Tournament team.
The players who were awarded the honors are as follows:
- Hannah Nash- THS
- Addie Travis- OHS
- Chase Mather- OHS
- Karsen Tipmore- OCHS
- Kennedy Murphy- OCHS
- Blair Riney- OCHS
Both teams came out ready to win the title as the first set saw them go point for point to start out. Owensboro Catholic forced Meade to make some errors early on that gave them a narrow 10-7 lead. The Lady Aces built up momentum with accurate passes and powerful hits to run away with their lead at 21-13. They comfortably took the first set 25-15.
The Waves came back into the second set more aggressive than the first. Their placement with kills gave them a 10-6 lead to start off. Meade’s offense kept up the pressure on OCHS and extended their lead to 18-10. The Lady Aces kept their cool and dug in on defense. The fluid transitions from defense to offense helped them make an impressive run to tie the score at 21-21. They completed the comeback and won the set 25-22 to go up 2-0 in the series.
It was at this point that head coach Brian Hardison said the team went on cruise control and allowed Meade to gain steam.
“Personally, I thought we were the better team, but we made the errors,” he said. “We did what we do all the time and went on cruise control and dug ourselves holes in the last three sets. If you come to play you come to play the whole time. I don’t think we gave up, but it’s like we’ve done most of the season and dug ourselves into holes. Then they let their hitters get going.”
The third set started evenly matched for the first few points. Meade once again began to accumulate a small 10-7 lead. Just like in the previous set, Meade began to slowly build their lead up to 15-7. They extended their lead to 20-13, but the Lady Aces once again upped their tempo to make yet another big run on offense to bring the score within two at 22-20. They couldn’t complete the comeback this time however, as a few errors gave Meade the set 25-20 putting the series at 2-1.
OCHS saw themselves fall behind again at 10-7 to start the fourth set. The Waves defense continued to make big digs so they could capitalize on offense and extend their lead to 19-9. Owensboro Catholic once again rallied to try to push back into the set, but it was too late as Meade took the set 25-17 and forced the match into a dramatic fifth set.
With the help of their supporters in the crowd, the Lady Aces took their intensity to another level in the final set as the emotions on their faces after every point they scored showed their determination. After scoring the first three points, OCHS began to feel the pressure as the Waves tied the score at 5-5. Meade made scoring difficult for the Lady Aces with solid defense and quick recovery. They built up momentum and took the lead to 11-6. OCHS tried to mount one final push to cut the lead, but failed to claw their way back and Meade won the final set 15-9 along with the regional title.
Owensboro Catholic finished their season with an impressive record of 27-9 along with a district title. They may have missed out on being repeat regional champions, but Hardison said the team has nothing to be ashamed of given their performance throughout the season.
“Our season went great,” he said. “I mean we’re here for a reason, but once again we’ve got to finish. That makes only nine losses, so that’s not a bad season.”
