A decade that started with a landmark state championship for the Baldwinsville girls volleyball team concluded with the Bees chasing that exact same prize for the third time, only to get denied at the last hurdle.
The Bees fought its way to Sunday’s New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class AA title match at Glens Falls’ Cool Insuring Arena before Long Island powerhouse Connetquot stopped them in a three-set decision.
In the years since it claimed a second state title in 2013, B’ville had continued to make Section III titles an annual occurrence, but had found it more difficult just to make it back to the state final four.
However, that hurdle was cleared on Nov. 16 when the Bees swept Niskayuna in the AA regional final at Jamesville-DeWitt. Now, back in Glens Falls, the Bees not only had to deal with Connetquot, but Section I’s Ossining and Section V’s Rochester Mercy.
It could not have started better late on Saturday afternoon, B’ville taking on Ossining first in round-robin play. The Bees comfortably topped the Pride 25-18 in the first set and then pulled off a 25-11 rout in the second set.
Mercy was next, and the Bees scored the first six points against the Monarchs and built a 16-4 advantage before cruising to the 25-14 victory. One more set victory would clinch a state finals berth.
Yet it was Mercy fighting back to take the second set 25-21, and then, facing Connetquot, the Bees lost the opening set to the Thunderbirds 25-19. If it didn’t win the second set, B’ville would have to go through a tie-breaker with Mercy.
But since Connetquot had already advanced to the final, it didn’t need the second set, and B’ville had little trouble claiming the second set 25-11 to earn a rematch with the Thunderbirds the next afternoon.
From the start of the championship match, Connetquot asserted control through its power at the net and with strong serves. Down 6-1, the Bees traded point for a while, but the Thunderbirds got away and claimed that set 25-12.
For a brief moment in the second set, B’ville grabbed a 5-4 lead, and stayed within range for a while even when Connetquot got the lead. Just as in the first set, though, the Thunderbirds would prove too touch and claim a 25-17 decision.
All through the third set, any time the Bees tried to put together any sort of run, Connetquot shut it down and pulled further away. By a 25-16 margin, the Thunderbirds earned its third state championship to match those it earned in 2015 and 2017.
As for B’ville, it will see eight seniors graduate, including Rileigh Kimball, Summer McClintic, Sophia Kordas, Maddie Shuler and Jenna Wallace, but returns key players like Brooke Clute, Jenna Garvey and Kyrah Wilbur in 2020.
