'Best fighters in the state': Kings volleyball advances to DI state championship final

As Kings senior Dakota Henry got set to serve in the fifth set of the Division I state semifinal, she closed her eyes, looked down and took a deep breath.

"At that point, mentally, I'm just right where I am. I just know that this is where I'm supposed to be. It's not anywhere else, not in the crowd, anywhere. I think it's really important knowing who's got my back. God has my back and I always just say a quick little prayer before I go to serve," Henry said.

Her teammates also had her back, and she had theirs. The Knights defeated St. Joseph's Academy 25-23, 25-27, 27-29, 27-25, 15-9 in a two-and-a-half hour match that left the players scrambling for words 15 minutes after the final ball hit the ground.

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It was the fourth five-set match for Kings this year; they've won them all.

"We just never quit fighting. Going into the game, we just knew we were gonna be tough. We knew it wasn't going to be easy," Kings head coach Amanda Meadows said.

The Jaguars didn't make it easy, taking a 2-1 lead after three sets. In the two sets they won, they kept it close throughout and pulled away at the end. In the first and fourth sets, St. Joseph's let Kings open up four-point leads before storming back.

Junior Belle Groomes led all players with 23 kills through four sets. Groomes, Avery Anders and Addison Buckner all had three aces, catching the Knights out of rotation. Clare O'Malley and Chloe Smith also combined for 23 kills. Hannah Foor had seven of the Jaguar's 12 blocks, making it tough to gauge how the Knights could get the ball over the net.

That's where Sydney Barrett and Elise Marchal stepped up. The two combined for 44 kills and 26 digs. After struggling at the service line, Barrett delivered an ace as the Knights took a 9-2 lead in the fifth set.

"I think it helps knowing we have a whole team of hitters and it's never like, 'Oh, the pressure's all on me.' It's okay if I'm doing not as good as I normally do, I know someone else will pick me up," Barrett said.

Kings' 12-6 lead in the fifth set tied its largest of the day. Meadows didn't have to motivate her team for the race to 15; she knows they live for those moments.

"I can honestly say not one person looked like getting tired was a problem," Meadows said.

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Bringing the noise

The Knights had played in front of Girls Greater Catholic crowds before, but the St. Joseph's student section was no joke, especially considering the stage it was on.

Jaguars fans, however, were flooded by the Red Sea that was the Knights's cheering section. It wasn't lost on anyone that Kings is the first public school from Cincinnati to be in the state semifinals in 29 years.

"Our community has been crazy supportive. I mean, I've always known we had a great community, but the support, I mean so, so many people that aren't volleyball people are here," Meadows said.

The crowd for Saturday's state championship could be even larger as the Knights play for the first team championship (in any sport) in school history.

One final match

The Knights continue to go where no Kings team has gone before. They will face the Olentangy Orange Pioneers in the state championship match at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 11. The Pioneers are 25-3 and on a 12-match winning streak. Their last loss actually came against St. Joseph's when they were swept on Sept. 23.

"I think we're the best fighters in the state is why we're in the state finals. We refuse to lose," Meadows said.

Cincinnati has a chance to win three state championships as McNicholas faces Lake Catholic at 11 a.m. and Mercy McAuley plays Gilmour Academy at 1 p.m.