Fort Worth All Saints volleyball wins TAPPS 5A state championship
The Fort Worth All Saints Lady Saints secured consecutive state volleyball titles, sweeping past the Houston Lutheran South Lady Paladins 25-23, 25-23, 25-16 in the TAPPS Class 5A state championship match Friday at Robinson High School.
After a grueling five-set semifinal victory over rival and district foe Fort Worth Southwest Christian the day before, All Saints head coach Mary Schindler said the title game opponent was a better matchup for her team.
“We were able to use our size advantage against Lutheran South,” said Schindler, who is in her first year guiding the program. “The semifinal against Southwest was emotional, and went the distance. I am so proud of the way the girls came out in the final and produced.”
In the final, All Saints (27-4) faced challenges in the first and second sets.
Trailing 20-18 in the opening set, All Saints used a 5-0 surge, including a pair of kills from junior Nevaeh Richardson, to swing the momentum. Richardson then closed the set with another kill.
Down 23-19, in the second set, All Saints ended with a 6-0 spurt, with senior Malia Miller generating three points during that span, and senior Elizabeth Sellers putting an exclamation kill to win the set.
“This team knows how to rally,” Schindler said. “We kept our poise. Stay calm. But I think most of all it is the confidence in themselves that they can overcome anything.”
The decisive third set belonged to All Saints. After an early 2-1 deficit, All Saints scored four straight points and was never seriously threatened, with Miller’s kill giving the Lady Saints their second straight TAPPS crown.
Miller and Sellers were part of last year’s title team, and they said this one is “just as sweet”.
“Great way to go out,” Miller said. “Going back-to-back is just amazing. We have such a great team. And we play as a team.”
Sellers credits all the hard work the players put in during the season and practice.
“It certainly all paid off,” she said. “Just a tremendous job by all the players. Total team effort. We worked so hard during the season for this, and we earned it.”
Fort Worth All Saints has now claimed titles in all three of its Final Four appearances, having claimed the crown in 2017 as well.
The Lady Saints, in winning their 14th straight match, were led by Richardson, who had 10 kills. Miller and Sellers added nine and seven kills, respectively. Senior Martha Lujang, a Weatherford College signee, had five blocks.
Miller and Sellers, along with seniors Chava Nuckols and Avery Bingham, were selected to the 10-player all-tournament team.
Houston Lutheran South (31-8) was making its sixth state tourney appearance; its lone title came in 1981.
This story was originally published November 14, 2025 at 6:34 PM.