No. 4 River Hill loses out on 1st state title in 5th set

No. 4 River Hill took a two-set-to-one lead over North Hagerstown in the Class 3A volleyball championship before losing a five-set thriller to the Hubs, 25-19, 22-25, 14-25, 25-23, 15-11.

Amber Wiswell had 19 kills to lead the Hawks, while Cassidy Davis contributed 12.

The Hawks held a 20-19 lead in the fourth set, but North Hagerstown's Peyton Wallech (21 kills) and Autumn Fisher (21 kills) each had two kills down the stretch to help the Hubs squeak a 25-23 win.

In the fifth set, the Hawks took a 9-8 lead, but a series of River Hill errors and well-placed shots by Fisher gave the Hubs the win.

"It's frustrating," said River Hill coach Lynn Paynter said. "We won the first couple of points [in the fourth game set], and we didn't stay aggressive. We let them back in the game."

The loss was River Hill's third in the state title game, after falling in 1999 and 2009. The Hawks have never won a state title.