Belmont claims Class 2A volleyball title
Oct. 23—RIDGELAND — Belmont's tears of defeat in last year's Class 3A volleyball state championship turned to tears of joy on Saturday.
The Lady Cardinals swept Sacred Heart 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-12) in the Class 2A title game, fueled by the heartache they experienced this time a year ago.
"We knew what it felt like to lose this game and we were determined not to," said Belmont head coach Stephanie Cleveland. "It's exciting to get here, but a strong weapon is knowing what it feels like to lose here."
It's the first state championship in program history for Belmont (33-4).
OTHER AREA TEAMS TO WIN VOLLEYBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS:
»Hickory Flat wins Class 1A volleyball title
»Alcorn Central volleyball wins Class 3A state title
»Pontotoc volleyball finds redemption, captures 4A title
The Lady Cardinals, ranked No. 3 in the Daily Journal's area rankings, had to make sweeping adjustments on the fly early on.
The officials consistently called illegal sets on both teams, causing a shift to a bump set, that was executed to near perfection Madasen McCaig. The junior setter served up the potent Belmont offense, who totaled 34 kills in the match off of 28 assists from McCaig.
"We haven't had hands like that called in the North, so I was real proud of Madasen McCaig the way she overcame adversity. She could have crumbled on me, instead of playing good and adjusting so I was tickled to death," said Cleveland.
The game's MVP was senior outside hitter Kate Greene. Greene notched nine kills, that was second only to sophomore Kerstin Moody, who had 10.
"I've been working for this for six years and my team's always had my back," said Greene. "... This feels amazing."
Greene was instrumental in helping the Lady Cardinals pull away in the first set, and setting the tone. Green picked up a pair of kills in part of a 5-0 run to break an 18-18 tie.
A 7-0 run that broke a 7-7 tie in the second set cemented Belmont's standing, as the Lady Crusaders (24-4) started falling apart and never really competed in the third set.
Sadie Randolph added seven kills and six blocks for Belmont. Anna Karen Merino had five kills and three aces. McCaig led with four aces.
