OREM – When the Rich volleyball players remind each other to “Play like Rich” they are honoring a commitment that goes far beyond the hard work invested by this year’s team.
“Really there is more for a championship for Rich than just a trophy,” said junior outside hitter Julia Hopkin after the Rebels won their first 1A title since 2008 with a 27-25, 25-19, 20-25, 25-19 win over defending champion Panguitch Saturday night at UVU’s UCCU Center. “It’s all the players before and everything they did. That’s what we wanted to do, that’s what we wanted to be.”
And the effort to honor the commitment that defines one of the state’s most storied volleyball programs begins long before the season. Months and years of dedication paid off Saturday night as the Rebels defeated the team that beat them in last year’s semifinals.
“It just feels great to be back,” said head coach Cindy Stuart, who has guided the school to 15 of its 17 volleyball championships. “I just can’t tell you. We’ve tried so hard. We’ve been practicing for three days a week since last March. We’ve been determined to get back to this match. They’re not real athletic, but they’ve got a lot of heart.”
Stuart was so overcome with emotion after the victory, that after some initial hugs with her players and handshakes with Panguitch, Stuart sat alone on the bench, sobs racking her body.
“I got used to winning so it’s been real hard not to be very good,” she said, smiling and wiping tears from her face. “I’m a competitive person, so that’s why all this emotion is here. We were just so determined. That’s all it was. And I’m an emotional person.”
Senior captain and setter Andee Cornia said Stuart instills that same competitive desire in them long before they reach high school. Most of the girls begin training with Stuart and her assistants when they participate in elementary programs.
“We compete against each other everyday, so when we play together, we really come together,” said Cornia, who finished with 40 assists. “It’s that competitive drive that coach has instilled in us since we were little.”
As for starting to work for an October goal in March, both she and Hopkin said they do it for each other, as well as the improvement they see in their skills.
“I’ve done it for four years,” she said. “You have to go every day and remember what you’re working towards. You get so much better. I do it for my teammates. It’s kind of a tradition. Never going has not been an option.”
Added Hopkin, “I loved every minute of it. We started so early; we have a head start.”
So what helped them transform desire to win into faith that they could win, especially against Panguitch, the team that modeled itself on Stuart’s program to build a perennial powerhouse of its own?
“I think our mentality changed,” said Hopkin, who led the team’s offense with 24 kills. “I had full confidence in my team this time around. Instead of playing not to lose, we were playing to win.”
The championship match was a thriller from the first serve with the teams trading blows in the nail-biter first set. The Rebels ended up winning it 27-25, and then they went on to win the second set more easily 25-19. The Bobcats came back in the third set, thanks to a diverse offense that featured some talented young hitters. Freshman outside (and lefty) Taylia Norris and Abbey Blevins, sophomore middle hitter, led the team with 13 kills each. Sophomore outside hitter McCall Tebbs and junior middle hitter Jordan Bennett added 10 kills a piece, with senior setter Shantae Miller running a potent offense.
Panguitch head coach Troy Norris said in his two decades of coaching, they’ve met Rich 18 of those seasons and it’s always a competitive matchup.
“I always get so nervous,” he said smiling. “(The Bobcats) did a fantastic job. The thing I like about these kids is that they always battle. …Our back row did a phenomenal job.”
Stuart said that while Rich may not have been a favorite in the tournament, they knew they could compete for a title.
“You can’t believe some of the people we beat,” she said. “We beat 4A and 5A teams from Wyoming. It was mind-boggling.”
Both teams return most of this year’s teams, which should continue to make the rivalry interesting. In addition to Hopkin and Cornia, the Rebels outside hitter Ashley Groll had a significant impact on the game with 16 kills, 15 points and four aces.
Cornia said the coaches always had game plans and faith that the players just had to put into action. It’s the reason they never doubted they could take that title trophy home to ride down Main Street on a fire truck during a “honk out.”
“Our coaches told us the whole time,” Cornia said. “(Stuart) said, ‘No one else might think it, but we do.’ We had to go into every game knowing we could win, so we did. We just said, ‘No doubts.’”
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