By HUNTER O. LYLE
lyleoleanstar@gmail.com
There are some moments in sports, some spans of time when all the pieces fall into place. Potential is a word often associated with these teams and can be held over them with the threat of wasting it.
The Portville volleyball team, on the other hand, embraces their potential, manifests it. Their destiny materialized as they claimed their fourth-consecutive New York Public High School Athletic Association State Championship, beating Mount Academy in four sets for the program’s ninth title.
The Lady Panthers have been undeniable the entire year. Already having three state banners under their belts, Portville continued their dominance with an undefeated regular season where they conceded only two sets in 17 matches. From there, they cruised through the Section VI Class C postseason, sweeping their way to the finals where they took down Falconer, again in just three sets.
Sitting atop their Sectional throne, the Lady Panthers then moved into the NYPHSAA tournament, earning a bye-week through the first round. In the Far-West Regional, Portville met Section V champions Bloomfield before moving into the semifinal pool play on Saturday, where they would play three pool-play matches.
Against Stillwater from Section II, the Lady Panthers won their best-of-three match 25-20 and 25-15. Next up was Mount Academy of Section IX, who fell 25-23 and 25-19. Lastly, Portville faced Tioga of Section IIX, who were defeated 25-15 and 25-13. Securing the spot in the title game, Portville would get a rematch against the Lady Eagles, who won two of their pool play contests, earning another crack at dethroning the defending state champions.
After a night’s rest, both squads took to the court once more. This time, Mount Academy refused to be pushed over, drawing a win in the first set at 25-23. While they were able to temporarily celebrate, their moment in the spotlight would soon fade as Portville retook control with authority.
In the next set, the Lady Panthers evened the score with a 25-15 win before fending off the Lady Eagles once again in the second, 25-18. Sitting just one win away from yet another state championship banner, Portville seized their potential, dominating once again for a 25-15 set three win over their listless opponent. While Mount Academy had come the closest to beating Goliath, they still couldn’t find an answer. All they could do was watch as the Lady Panthers hoisted the trophy once again.
Leading her crew with 27 kills and 13 digs, Ali Haynes earned the title of State Most Valuable Player. Mia Rhinehart and Adelyn Walker were both selected to the All-Tournament team, with Rhinehart posting 32 digs and four aces and Walker finishing her season with 50 assists and eight digs. Laney Vincent recorded 10 kills, 19 digs and five aces while Adriana Ensell had 13 kills and 18 digs. Leigha Stives defended the net with three blocks while also recording three kills.
