By Robert Wilson
Madison-Ridgeland Academy’s senior class = eight strong – accomplished more than any other class of volleyball players in school history.
Outside hitter Selah Sandridge, setter Kiera Hariel, middle hitter-opposite Alyssa Dampier, middle hitter Lily Sistrunk, middle hitter Reese Roundtree, and defense specialists Lyla Cromwell, Madeline Morlier and Sophia Villani.
Those eight along with some underclassmen won their second consecutive MAIS Division I state volleyball championship – the only two in school history – with a three-set sweep of Jackson Academy Tuesday night before an estimated 800 at Mississippi College’s A.E. Wood Coliseum in Clinton.
MRA finished 30-15 and defeated JA in a three-set sweep for the second straight state championship game. MRA had lost to JA in both regular season games.
JA – which had won nine of the last 10 state titles before MRA’s historic state title last season – finished 31-10. JA had won five straight state titles before MRA won last year.
MRA coach Ross Dorr lost Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year Fallon Humphries to graduation – she is a freshman at University of North Florida – but returned five of his seven starters from last year and also added a talented transfer to put together another state championship team.
“Winning back to back championships was our goal this season, but on any journey there are bumps in the road,” said Dorr, a former MRA, Southern Miss and Delta State basketball player who finished his xxth at MRA. “Our journey took us to the toughest tournaments in a three state area, playing tournaments in North Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. We played one of the strongest schedules in Mississippi and did not come away without some bruises. That combined with a regular season split with probably the best defensive team in the MAIS – Lamar – we were primed for a deep run in the playoffs. Having a very hard game on Monday against Lamar (winning in five sets in the semifinals), turned out to be an advantage for us. We played under the ultimate pressure of a fifth set in an elimination game. Coming out of that win we were very confident and it showed. My girls never lost their confidence and believed they could win under pressure because they had just done it. Contrast that with how we played JA during the regular season, we were not our best version of MRA basketball. We let leads slip away and even got reverse swept. We were playing a very frenetic style and it took us some time, games, and even a coaching modification to settle our girls down and get them playing at a championship level. The coaches (Elizabeth Sandridge and Meagan Sullivan and myself) took a hard look at what we could do to put our girls in a position to be successful. What we determined was the way we coached needed to change not the girls. We identified a need for a less aggressive standing coach (me) so Elizabeth, who has always been the team and my calming influence, was asked to stand and be our coaching voice. Meagan and myself would handle the analytics and send adjustments to her as the game progressed. The move settled our girls and we would not lose anotehr game after the change. In the end though, it was our senior leadership that made our second ring possible.”
“This season was particularly special because we had eight seniors, and a lot of us had been in the MRA program together for seven or eight years,” said Sandridge, who has verbally committed to Tennessee Tech. “We knew it would be a challenge to defend our first state title from last season, but we had faith in each other from the beginning that we could get a repeat this year. We played a lot of tournaments and games in September, losing twice to JA in the regular season matches, then went back to the drawing board on how we could improve before the playoffs. Every teammate gave 110 percent during playoffs and the championship and bought into the ‘fearless’ and ‘team’ mentality and I couldn’t have asked to end my MRA career on a better note. We knew if we played for each other and for God’s glory, we would be champions, and we are.”
“I thought our season got off to a rocky start since we had replace two of our key positions, outside and Libero,” said MRA junior Emerson Dorr, Ross Dorr’s daughter who replaced Humphries at the outside hitter position. “We were able to do that and start playing more consistently. Our team continued to work on areas that needed improvement and focus on what we need to do to get us to the championship. I think one thing that helped was our tough schedule at the beginning of the season. This was the hardest schedule MRA has ever seen. In my opinion, it gave us the opportunity to get better and get the reps we need to perform at our full potential. I am so proud of the way we played last night. Everyone had a job to do, and they did it. Our senior leadership was outstanding and I am going to miss them.”
“MRA welcomed me with open arms and I am so grateful for that,” said Hariel, a Jones County Junior College commitment who transferred this year from JA. “They made me feel like family and now my teammates are some of my closest friends. This season has been very special to me and I wouldn’t change it for the world. I loved how my team’s desire to win never changed and because of that we were able to win.”
For the second straight season, JA finished state runner-up instead of the state champion. The Lady Raiders returned five starters, including 6-foot-2 junior outside hitter and Loyola Marymount University commitment Carson Caraway, who was named the MaxPreps Preseason Mississippi Player of the Year and Preseason All-American earlier this season.
“We had a great season,” said JA coach Melissa Denson, who has won five state titles in her eighth season at JA and has a 283-67 record (an 80.9 percent winning percentage) at JA and a 322-94 record (a 77.4 percent winning percentage) in 10 career seasons, the first two at Clinton High. “There’s not another group of girls I’d rather coach. MRA played a great game and we didn’t show up. Our youth showed, but I’m proud of them for making it this far. The support from our school, students and administration meant the world to our girls and to me. I’m thankful for this team, this program and JA.”
