The University Heights Academy Lady Blazers had been the best volleyball team in the 2nd Region all season long and Thursday night the Lady Blazers capped off a record-setting season in decisive fashion. UHA claimed its first regional volleyball championship by sweeping past Crittenden County 25-18, 25-17, 25-17 in the regional title match at Caldwell County High School.
The regional title caps off an unbelievable run through 2nd Region competition this season. From the beginning of the season through the championship match, the Lady Blazers were an amazing 61-1 in sets played against regional foes, with Crittenden County, who was appearing in its first-ever regional final, being the only team from the 2nd Region to win a set against UHA during the season, a feat which they did not approach again Thursday night.
With a trip to the state tournament on the line, both teams opened the match appearing to be a bit nervous. With Carly Porter at the serve, the Lady Rockets opened with a pair of service aces to take a 2-0 lead. The Lady Blazers got settled in a bit and came back to take a 5-3 lead. For the first half of the opening set, UHA and Crittenden County went back and forth with neither really able to get control of the set.
It began to look as if the first set might come down to the wire. But, as they had been able to do all season long, when the Lady Blazers needed to buckle down and seal the deal, they did just that. With the score at 17-16 in favor of UHA, the Lady Blazers got plays from Julia Thomas, Olivia Oakley, and Claire Chewning to ignite a 6-0 run and suddenly the lead was 23-16 and set was under control as they went on to claim a 25-18 win to go up one set to none.
Olivia Oakley had two kills in the set and a big block during the deciding run. Julia Thomas had a pair of kills and Claire Chewning added two blocks of her own. The Lady Blazers overcame big efforts from Crittenden County’s Carly Porter and Katie Perryman in the first.
With the 1-0 lead, it became Julia Thomas time for University Heights. The senior, who is headed to Florida International, had two of her best sets of the season as the Lady Blazers were making their move toward school history.
Behind the play of Thomas at the net, UHA jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead in the second set. But give the Lady Rockets credit, as it looked as if they were about to get steamrolled, they fought back. With Carly Porter and Riley Smith leading the charge, Crittenden County got back within 11-10.
But once again, the Lady Blazers were up to the challenge of the moment. With Julia Thomas and Olivia Oakley providing the spark, UHA pulled back out to a 17-11 lead. Chayse Gilliland and Claire Chewning then cranked it up over the final points of the set as the Lady Blazers took the 25-17 win to go up two sets to none. Julia Thomas had seven kills in the set with Olivia Oakley added two. Sarah Peebles again showed why she has been the best setter in the region during the 2023 season, placing the ball just where it needed to be to allow her attackers to put the point away time after time.
As the third set got underway, a loud and energetic UHA cheering section started to feel what now appeared to be just a matter of time. Led by a hot start from Thomas and Gilliland, the Lady Blazers bolted out to a 7-1 lead to open the third set. Crittenden County would get no closer than four over the rest of the set, that coming at 10-6.
With UHA holding a 16-10 lead, the electricity and anticipation in the Community Activities Building began to swell, reaching the peak when, appropriately enough, the 2nd Region ‘Player of the Year’ Julia Thomas drove in the final nail with a kill that started the celebration. It was an emphatic end to a night that saw Thomas leave indentations in the floor as she helped ‘power’ the Lady Blazers to the title. Claire Chewning also had a strong finish for UHA.
Thomas finished with 15 kills for the match to lead UHA. Olivia Oakley added eight, while Chayse Gilliland had six.
Sarah Peebles was exceptional with 32 assists in just three sets. She also had eight digs. The Lady Blazers added 10 service aces for the match.
Katie Perryman led Crittenden County with 8 kills. Carly Porter added five. Riley Smith finished the night with 11 assists for the Lady Rockets.
Crittenden County wraps up their season with a record of 17-14. The Lady Rockets were 14-9 after Savanna Tays took over as head coach.
UHA improves to a school record 36-2 and advances on to the state tournament, which will get underway Monday night. The Lady Blazers will open tournament play at home as they take on McCracken County, who won the 1st Region championship over Graves County Thursday night three sets to one.
The two teams only meeting on the volleyball court came back in 2020 with the Lady Mustangs winning 25-8, 25-19.
