Yorktown volleyball swept its way to a 12th straight Delaware County championship, finishing it off with a strong victory over Wapahani on Saturday.
SELMA ― At first, it felt like Yorktown volleyball was being given a run for its money in the county championship.
Wapahani came out fired up on its home floor to start the action, and the Lady Raiders and Tigers entered a defensive battle highlighted by tough blocks and digs all across the court. After the first 24 points, the first set was all knotted up at 12-12.
Then Yorktown shifted gears.
The Tigers took firm hold of the momentum with a 13-2 run to close out the first set with a 25-14 win. From there, it was smooth sailing, as Yorktown won the next two sets 25-13 and 25-8 to sweep its way to a 12th consecutive Delaware County championship on Saturday, Oct. 4.
"We talked about in our gym this week, just the history of Yorktown volleyball, because so many of them don't know," Yorktown coach Stephanie Bloom said. "I think especially being young, they don't even know that this was going to be the 12th, so we talked through that this is a chance to build on a legacy that's been set before them. I'm really proud of all of them along the way."
Yorktown has a much younger team than in previous years, but those young players showed out on the way to the county title. Freshman Kendall Rowray dropped 20 kills and tied her season-high with five aces in the championship match, while sophomore Liv Jones had a strong night up front with four total blocks (one solo, three assists). Sophomore libero Chloe Ritchie logged nine digs, and freshman setter Landree Johnson put up 35 assists.
"I think it just speaks to the growth that we've had throughout the year," Bloom said. "The toughness that we're trying to build, the grit we're trying to play with. We're trying to get kids to come out and be gutsy, and I think we're seeing our freshmen just continue to rise. It's a testament to our senior class, too, just the way that they're leading and making them feel a part and believed in."
For Wapahani, it was a tough end to a Saturday that started out with a strong win over Delta in the semifinals. After losing to the Eagles in a thrilling 3-2 match in their season opener, the Lady Raiders swept them out of the county tournament 25-16, 25-16, 25-17. Senior Marin Hopkins led the way with 13 kills, two solo blocks and an ace.
"I think we just really wanted to prove ourselves, all the hard work we've put in this season, and I think we all just really wanted it," Wapahani coach Valorie Wells said. "We were all in the same place, we all had the same mindset, and we just played together. We played for the person next to us, we were really like a family in that sort of sense, and we just worked hard for every single point."
Although the Raiders couldn't manage to carry over their energy from the semifinals to the final, the opportunity to play a team of Yorktown's caliber with sectionals right around the corner was not taken for granted.
"I just tell them we get to learn things that we need to get better at," Wells said. "It's going to get harder from here on out, and each team is different. Yorktown's fast, so trying to just keep up with that speed, and maybe we need to be faster."
The 1A schools of Delaware County got a tough bracket draw. In the first round on Thursday, Oct. 2, Daleville was swept by Yorktown (25-9, 25-16, 25-14) and Cowan was swept by Wapahani (25-9, 25-10, 25-9). Wes-Del drew a bye for the first round but found itself on Yorktown's side of the bracket; the Warriors were swept by the Tigers in the first semifinal match (25-8, 25-10, 25-16).
All three of Delaware County's 1A schools are set to compete in the same sectional at Northfield, and they each made the most of their chances to hone their skills against higher class teams like Yorktown and Wapahani as the postseason looms.
"It's good for us to keep it going," Daleville coach Gayle Hicks said. "I'd rather play teams like this than somebody that's not very good to keep our momentum going."
2025 Delaware County Tournament full bracket results
First Round: Thursday, Oct. 2
- Match 1: Yorktown def. Daleville, 3-0 (25-9, 25-16, 25-14)
- Match 2: Wapahani def. Cowan, 3-0 (25-9, 25-10, 25-9)
Semifinals and County Championship: Saturday, Oct. 4
- Match 1: Yorktown def. Wes-Del, 3-0 (25-8, 25-10, 25-16)
- Match 2: Wapahani def. Delta, 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-17)
- County Championship: Yorktown def. Wapahani, 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-8)
Contact Cade Hampton via email at [email protected] or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @CadeHamp10.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Yorktown volleyball wins 12th consecutive Delaware County title
Category: General Sports
