2021-22 Girls Volleyball State Tournament

November 6, 2021

Lafayette Central Catholic rallied to win third state title
Lafayette Central Catholic rallied in the final two sets to pull out a 3-2 (30-28, 18-25, 17-25, 25-12, 15-7) victory over Trinity Lutheran in the Class A title match.

Coach Brad McCarter’s Knights thus captured the program’s third state title, as LCC won in both 2010 and 2017.

The Knights appeared destined for an easy win in set one, building a lead of 24-19 before Trinity (30-5) rallied to take a 28-27 lead. Central Catholic, however, scored the final three points, the last two on a service ace by Rachel Vorst and a kill by Caitlin Dineen to wrap up the set.

The Cougars of coach Faith Wilder-Newland took control in sets two and three and were looking to close out the first state title in school history. Central Catholic, however, warmed up in the fourth set and never trailed to force the deciding set.

In that final set, LCC (27-9) also never trailed and closed the match on an 11-4 run. The Knights hit .333 in set four and .259 in set five, compared to .130 and .040 in the final two sets for Trinity.

Kassisy Boener led LCC with 20 kills, Caitlyn Dineen added 15 and Grace Roah had nine and also had six blocks. The Knights served up 16 aces in the match.

Trinity got 17 kills from Ruthie Bingham, 15 from Bailey Tabeling and 11 from Stella Kleffman.

Trinity Lutheran was making its second appearance in the final, also losing in five sets in 2019.

Central Catholic's Caitlin Dineen earns Mental Attitude Award
Following the match, Caitlin Dineen of Lafayette Central Catholic High School was announced as the recipient of the mental attitude award by the IHSAA Executive Committee.

Caitlin has been a straight-A student throughout her high school career earning a 4.07 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society at LCC.

She is a two-sport athlete starting for both the Knights' volleyball and basketball teams. She is a co-founder and vice president of the school's Environment Club, a four-year member of the Interact Club, a four-year member of the yearbook staff, and has volunteered for the Champions Together program through Special Olympics Indiana.

She is the daughter of Brian and Amy Dineen of West Lafayette and is interested in studying Psychology at a college yet to be determined.

The mental attitude award is annually presented to a senior, who is nominated by her principal and coach, and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability during her four years of high school.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, a corporate partner of the IHSAA, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Lafayette Central Catholic High School’s general scholarship fund in the name of Caitlin Dineen.

Nov. 6, 2021

Andrean rallies to win second state title in five years
In the second five-set match of the day, Andrean rallied from a 2-1 deficit by winning sets four and five to claim the Class 2A title by scores of 25-20, 20-25, 25-27, 27-25, 15-12.

The marathon match ended after Andrean broke from a 12-12 tie with the final three points – match point coming on a service ace by senior Madison Kmetz. Kmetz finished with a match-high three aces and 55 assists.

The championship for coach Grant Bell’s No. 1-ranked 59ers is the second in as many appearances. Andrean (31-5) also won the 2A title in 2017.

The teams traded 25-20 results over the first two sets, then traded 27-25 scores in sets three and four. All told there were 47 ties in the match and 23 lead changes.

Marin Sanchez led the stats parade for the winners with 23 kills and a .275 hitting percentage. Angelina Majchrowicz added 15 kills.

Raegan Durbin led WeBo (27-9) with 19 kills.

Coach Laura Bragg’s Stars were making their first-ever state finals appearance.

Western Boone’s Marli Ransom earns Mental Attitude Award
Following the match, Marli Ransom of Western Boone High School was announced as the recipient of the mental attitude award by the IHSAA Executive Committee.

Marli ranks second in her class of 116 students and has served as president and secretary of the National Honor Society.

She has been voted first team All-Conference the past two years as team captain while leading the team in digs and is an Academic All-State honoree.

In addition to volleyball, she is a three-year varsity tennis player and finished undefeated while playing No. 3 singles for the Stars last spring.

She is the daughter of Mark and Carrie Ransom of Lebanon and plans to study Speech Pathology at Purdue University. She also hopes to work as a team manager for the Boilermakers volleyball team and is considering coaching someday.

The mental attitude award is annually presented to a senior, who is nominated by her principal and coach, and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability during her four years of high school.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, a corporate partner of the IHSAA, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Western Boone High School’s general scholarship fund in the name of Marli Ransom.

Nov. 6, 2021

Brebeuf Jesuit outlasts Bellmont in five-set thriller
On the heels of marathon matches to decide the Class 1A and 2A state titles, Brebeuf and Bellmont decided to join the party in the Class 3A championship match.

After spotting Brebeuf Jesuit a 2-0 lead, Bellmont rallied to tie it and held a four-point lead early in set five. When it was over, Brebeuf held on for the win when senior Maddie Siegel converted her 11th kill of the match, giving coach Kat Haugh’s squad a thrilling, 3-2 win (25-19, 25-22, 22-25, 23-25, 15-13).

As a result, Brebeuf not only claimed its fifth state title in girls volleyball, it also made it back to the top after a runner-up finish in 2020.

Perhaps more impressive is the title capped a stretch for the school in which its athletic program claimed three state championships in an eight-day span – a feat never before accomplished by any school in IHSAA history. Last weekend, Brebeuf won both the boys cross country and boys Class 2A soccer titles.

This title appeared as though it would be the easiest to achieve, as Brebeuf held a 16-1 lead in set one and went on to the two-set lead, but perhaps turned into the hardest.

Bellmont (30-6) warmed up in set three as sophomore Delaney Lawson and senior Meg Saalfrank turned up the heat on the front line and as they recorded 19 and 16 kills, respectively.

In set five, Bellmont stormed out to a 7-3 lead, only to see Brebeuf (32-3) storm back to tie it at 7-7. A seesaw battle followed until Brebeuf broke from an 11-11 deadlock to close with a 4-2 spurt.

Sydney Robinson led the Brebeuf attack with a match-high 27 kills.
Bellmont was seeking its third state title under coach Craig Krull, but finished runner-up for the second time in three seasons.

Bellmont’s Paige Busick named Mental Attitude Award recipient
Following the match, Paige Busick of Bellmont High School was announced as the recipient of the mental attitude award by the IHSAA Executive Committee.

Paige ranks seventh in her senior class, is a two-year member of the National Honor Society, and a four-year member of the Early College program at Bellmont. She is one of four representatives from her school with the Drug Free Adams County campaign and will also become a four-year letterwinner with the Bellmont softball team in the spring.

She is the daughter of Rod and Sandy Busick of Decatur, IN and plans to study to become a Physician’s Assistant at Ball State University where she will also play volleyball for the Cardinals.

The mental attitude award is annually presented to a senior, who is nominated by her principal and coach, and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability during her four years of high school.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, a corporate partner of the IHSAA, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Bellmont High School’s general scholarship fund in the name of Paige Busick.

Nov. 6, 2021

McCutcheon sweeps Castle for first volleyball state championship
After a long day of volleyball, McCutcheon and junior outside hitter Chloe Chicoine thought it was best to send everyone home early.

Chicoine capped a 24-kill performance on match point to give the Mavericks a 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-23) win over Castle in the Class 4A championship match. The match ended championship day after three previous five-set matches.

The 4A combatants were each seeking their first state titles and both were making their first appearances in the state finals after long dry spells. McCutcheon hadn’t been to the state finals since a runner-up appearance in 1989; for Castle it had been even longer as coach Daniel Watson’s Knights hadn’t been to the state finals since 1981.

Coach Sara Sutter’s Mavericks, who came in ranked sixth, went home happiest after a phenomenal hitting performance by Chicoine, who racked up her 24 kills at a .321 clip. She was far from the only strong hitter, however, as the team recorded a .305 percentage – running up 49 kills against only 13 errors in 118 attempts.

McCutcheon (30-6) had little trouble in the first two sets, but trailed, 12-9, in the third before going on a 12-6 run to take a 21-18 lead. The ninth-ranked Knights (32-3) fought back to tie at 23-23 before a Liz Pelfree kill set up match point that Chicoine converted. Chicoine also had a match-best 17 digs.

Katie Kopsherver led Castle with 10 kills.

McCutcheon's Shelbey Carrico named Mental Attitude Award recipient
Following this evening's match, Shelbey Carrico of McCutcheon High School was announced as the recipient of the mental attitude award by the IHSAA Executive Committee.

Shelbey ranks among the best students in her senior class with a 3.94 GPA, is a member of the National Honor Society, serves as Student Council president, and is involved in the Good Decision Makers Club, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Honors Choir.

In addition to four years playing for the volleyball program, she will play her fourth season with the Mavericks basketball team this winter and her fourth with the softball team next spring.

She is the daughter of Donald and Linda Carrico of Lafayette, IN and plans to attend Butler University to study Criminology and Psychology.

The mental attitude award is annually presented to a senior, who is nominated by her principal and coach, and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability during her four years of high school.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, a corporate partner of the IHSAA, presented a $1,000 scholarship to McCutcheon High School’s general scholarship fund in the name of Shelbey Carrico.