If the police sirens wailing down Third Street late Saturday afternoon weren’t enough to let you know, the Beaver Area Bobcat volleyball team are WPIAL champions!

Coach Pollins and the Ladycats ended their season with an undefeated record in matches.

The Bobcats headed into the playoffs following another big win for their final home match against Laurel October 17.

In a big not-so big surprise the Bobcats won 3-0 with final set scores of 25-13, 25-9, and 25-9.

Outside hitters senior Chloe List had 12 kills, 13 digs, and 2 aces while sophomore Jaedyn Brown had 10 kills, 6 digs, and 4 aces.

Sophomore middle hitter Kailyn Connelly had 9 kills and 2 blocks while junior setter Zoe Ringer had 34 assists and 8 digs. Aubrey Bumblis had 11 digs while senior Ella Birmingham added 3 digs and an ace.

Lastly, middle hitter sophomore Lanie Malobabich contributed 7 kills.

This win allowed all focus to turn towards the WPIAL playoffs for the Bobcats.

Beaver Area knew that they would either play against South Park or Yough once the two teams decided who would be the wildcard for the playoffs in a Monday night game October 23.

South Park crushed Yough and clinched their playoff spot, but only for a short while. The Bobcats played against the Eagles October 25 in the first round of the playoffs at home and dominated. The final set scores came out to 25-12, 25-19, and 25-8.

List recorded 12 kills, 11 digs, and 2 aces. Brown also had 10 kills, while Connelly had 9 kills and 3 blocks. Ringer also had 29 assists and 8 digs.

To continue their dominance the Bobcats competed at North Allegheny against Burrell in the quarter finals.

Once again the volleyball team won all three sets 25-17, 25-12, 25-19.

List dominated with 20 kills, 18 digs, and 2 aces. As usual, Brown had 6 kills, Connelly had 10 kills and 3 blocks, and Ringer had 35 assists and 8 digs. Finally, Bumblis ended the night with 14 digs, while sophomore Anna Vinopal had 14 digs and 2 aces.

Though the Bobcats kept “rowing the boat,” this was the first match out of the entire season that made the volleyball team realize the fight that it takes for a WPIAL medal. This was the first match in which the Bobcats consistently allowed another team to score in the double digits.

Nonetheless, a win is a win and the Bobcats kept rowing.

For the semifinals and a spot in the finals, the Cats traveled back to North A to play against Quaker Valley for a Halloween matchup October 31.

The Bobcats sadly dropped their first set of the season against the Quakers with a final score of 3-1 but still clinched their spot in the WPIAL volleyball championships.

The game was electric and proved to be a good matchup for the Bobcats’ seemingly impenetrable offense. Beaver volleyball won in an unusual sets 25-21, 20-25, 25-11, and 25-21.

List had 16 kills, a season-high 31 digs, and 2 aces. For reference, the average number of digs for a libero per set at the college level is 4–12 per game. List is not only not a libero but also not in college, so her performance was extremely impressive.

Brown had another season high with 12 kills, 5 digs, and 2 aces. Connelly had 8 kills, and Malobabich had 4 kills and a season-high 5 blocks. Ringer finished the night with 39 assists and 11 digs. Libero Bumblis had 31 digs, and Vinopal had 3 kills and 12 digs.

The challenging matchup proved good for the Bobcats and they were able to perform their best of the season with new season highs left and right and beautiful plays that only a top-level team can execute.

With the finals on their horizon and tensions high, the Bobcats were ready for their most important match yet.

At Peters Township High School, seed one Freeport squared off against seed two Beaver Area at the WPIAL volleyball championships November 4.

Despite their winning season, Beaver Area was the underdog for the match but still came into the game calm and collected. They have maintained all season that though the team is young they are there to prove something and to win.

The Bobcats wanted to win and knew they had the skill to prove everyone wrong.

Freeport was the reigning WPIAL champions in both 2022 and 2021 and were seeking a three-peat. Beaver Area was knocked out of the WPIAL championships last year fairly early by Avonworth because Ringer had sprained her ankle in the middle of the game and the team did not have a back-up setter.

The Bobcats went into the game seeking vengeance from last year’s heartbreaking loss.

The first two sets of the match looked like every other game in the season with the Bobcats dominating their opponent. The Bobcats won the first two sets with scores 25-22 and 25-19.

While Freeport was at the championship to compete they were still nowhere near the Ladycats’ level.

Despite being outgunned by the Bobcats, the Yellowjackets wanted the gold and came back in the third set with their first win 25-18.

The Yellowjackets’ turnaround seemed to rattle the Bobcats and they started slipping.

Freeport then came in the fourth set with a huge win of 25-18 against the Bobcats.

The Ladycats now had to prove how much they wanted the gold.

In a riveting fifth and final set (where instead of 25 points the teams raced to 15 points) the Bobcats won 15-13.

The victory made Beaver Area the WPIAL champions and cemented their undefeated season with a record of 20-0.

Connelly truly carried the Bobcats to their final fifth set win earning 10 out of the 15 Bobcats’ points. She had a record 19 kills and was the fire that the Bobcats needed to keep winning.

The Beaver Area Bobcats were given their medals and the coveted WPIAL trophy directly following the game and were given a police escort back into Beaver where friends and family lined Third Street waving and cheering.

With Beaver Area’s and Freeport’s long line of volleyball excellence they have met at the WPIAL finals twice before. In 2016 the Yellowjackets won, and in 2017 the Bobcats won their previous title.

The volleyball team can now bask in their glory and relish the huge win, but will quickly pivot to the PIAA state championships.

The Yellowjackets and Bobcats could meet yet again in the semifinal round of states, but first the Bobcats must play against the District 10 runners up in the first round of the competition at a yet undetermined time or place.

Check the next BASD ECHO for coverage of the final games of volleyball’s dominating season!