Mount Hebron's 2002 volleyball season had everything - except the Cinderella ending the Vikings so desired.
The Vikings' dream to follow up a 3-12 season a year ago with a state title fell one match short last night against a team that was simply too big, too deep and too good for the Vikings.
Instead, Patuxent High, out of Calvert County, was celebrating its first state title in the program's five-year history, after dispatching the fourth-ranked Vikings 15-12, 13-15, 15-7, 15-7, in the Class 3A final, the last of four volleyball championships decided yesterday at CCBC-Catonsville.
The Panthers (17-1), ranked No. 3 in The Washington Post, were led by 6-foot-2 middle hitter Charese Baldwin and 5-10 outside hitter Margo Sisler. Baldwin had 14 kills and five blocks, and Sisler contributed 12 kills. The two, along with 6-2 middle hitter Candi Claggett, stymied any side out and offensive game Mount Hebron tried to muster.
"I think we played right with them," said Vikings coach Michael Moynihan. "We put it all together; we just couldn't block Baldwin and Claggett."
The Vikings, bidding for the school's fifth state title, settled for a 16-4 season that included a regional title, five wins against teams ranked in top 10 in The Sun and a runner-up finish in competitive Howard County.
Underdogs coming in, the Vikings were all smiles leaving the court, feeling that even in the setback, they had put together one of their best efforts of the season.
"I knew Mount Hebron was solid defensively, and they showed that today," said Patuxent coach Matt Poteet. "It was very hard to get points on them."
Junior setter Stacey Carroll led the Vikings with 23 assists and seven kills to tie sophomore Connie Pikounis for team-high honors.
"We knew how good they were going to be," Carroll said. "But we think we're champions, too, because we played so good tonight."
After losing Game 1, Mount Hebron, which seemed to be battling nerves, fell behind 12-8 in Game 2 before making its move. A Carroll kill, two straight Panthers errors and a Kristin Schields spike tied it at 13.
The Vikings then took the game on a Carroll block and a Panthers error.
They rode that momentum to a 7-6 lead in Game 3, but from there it was all Patuxent. With the Vikings seemingly distracted because of a scoring error, Sara Redgate served out eight straight points, and then the Vikings were whistled for a setting violation on game point.
"It was all mental errors," Schields said. "We were there physically, we just weren't on par with them mentally."
Mount Hebron recovered temporarily to tie Game 4 at 6-6, but the Vikings were powerless to stop Patuxent's next run. An ace by Katy Zimmerman, who finished with 37 assists, followed by a Redgate kill made it 11-7. The Panthers eventually closed it out with an Amanda Robinson block and a Sisler kill.
"We were happy to be here," Carroll said. "Our whole season was just amazing. We have nothing to cry about tonight."
Added Moynihan: "Every match this season, we grew as a team, and tonight was the culmination of all that."