Keller out-duels Ridge Point in state semifinal, advances to volleyball title game
Fort Bend Ridge Point pushed Keller to the brink on Friday night, but the Indians pulled through.
Now the volleyball team continues to rewrite history with its first trip to the state championship game.
Keller lost the opening set, but ended up winning in five, 22-25, 26-24, 25-11, 24-26, 15-11 in a Class 6A state semifinal game at Culwell Center.
Keller (32-12), which finished as the No. 1 6A team in the Fort Worth area, plays for the title against San Antonio Brandeis (46-2) at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Culwell Center. Brandeis beat Cypress Bridgeland in four during the first 6A semifinal.
“Great match and super competitive. They played us really tough and didn’t give us any breaks,” Keller coach Lauren Rao said. “They swung well to the corners and challenged us defensively.
“That’s what you want, competitive volleyball. They challenged us. In our last match we won in three so we needed a challenge to get us ready. Volleyball is fun, it’s competitive.”
The Indians started hot in the fifth set with points from Taylor Polivka and Melanie McGann that gave them a 5-0 lead. Leah Ford smashed a Polivka assist to make it 6-2, and points from McGann and Polivka extended it to 9-3.
Ridge Point (38-11) wasn’t out of it, inching its way, making it 10-8 and 11-9. Ford went off the block and Keller led 12-9. Reagan Sharp had a pair of kills to give Keller a lead at 13-9 and 14-11 and Ford finished off the match with a game-winning block.
“Started off most of the sets with the momentum and leading, but struggled through the set to keep that momentum going,” Rao said. “In the fifth set, I told them there is no time for a break and you can’t let your foot off the gas. They stayed focused and did a really good job at that.”
Keller opened the scoring in the first set with a pair of kills from Ford and Sharp and the Indians led 5-3 and 7-4. The Indians led 17-15 leading to a Ridge Point timeout, but the Panthers returned to the court on fire.
A 5-0 run sparked Ridge Point and gave it a 20-17 lead. Keller pulled within 23-22 before the Panthers closed out the set to take the 1-0 advantage.
Keller had a strong start to the second going up 9-4 after scoring seven in a row. The run extended to 10-3 and Ridge Point called a timeout. The Panthers were able to tie it at 17 then take the lead at 20-18. Sharp and McGann helped the Indians tie it at 24. Polivka served up an ace for a 25-24 lead and Ridge Point had a hitting error to give Keller the win.
After dominating the third set, the Indians looked to close out the match in four when it led 20-18, but Ridge Point got back-to-back kills that tied it. Keller still led 22-21 following a point from Lauren Bingham and it was 24-24 on a Jenna Clifford block. But Ridge Point closed it out to send the match to five.
“In the beginning, we doubted ourselves in preseason. It was a little rough for us, but it was our last season so we didn’t want to end it like this,” McGann said. “We wanted to go as far as we can and now we’re in the championship. It’s unreal.”
McGann, who is signed to play college at West Virginia, finished with 24 kills and four blocks. Ford and Sharp added 15 and 14 kills, respectively and Clifford chipped in 10 kills and four blocks.
“There were some nerves, we’re in the state tournament, so we were a little on edge, but we gathered ourselves nicely and calmed ourselves down before our game so we weren’t frantic,” Clifford said.
Added Rao on Clifford’s play, “She’s been amazing on the slide all year long. They struggled to block that. She was able to go down the line. We continued to work to be system so we could get her the ball.”
Polivka had 52 assists and six digs, and Landry McEachern and Kea Whillock combined for 52 of the team’s 88 digs.
Sydney Jordan led Ridge Point with 14 kills while Kennedi Rodgers and Alexis Roberson added 10 apiece. Nina Moorer flirted with a triple-double with 30 assists, 20 digs and nine kills.
This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 11:17 PM.
