Spartans overcome odds to reach semifinals

Not many expected the Mountain Brook High School volleyball team to be in a position to defend its Class 7A state championship for the fourth straight time.

The Spartans entered the year with a new coach and nearly an entirely new, inexperienced team.

Vickie Nichols didn’t know how far the new-look Spartans would make it and she emphasized the process of gradually improving. The budding talent was apparent. It was just a matter of gaining experience and molding together as a team.

 “It’s been really enjoyable. I’ve loved the girls,” Nichols said. “They’re a great group to work with. I’ve just enjoyed being with them, they’ve been that much fun, and I look forward to next year. We’re going to be older, and we’re going to be better at that point.”

Mountain Brook (30-18) capped off the season with a return trip to the state tournament, but fell to top-ranked McGill-Toolen, 3-0 (16-25, 10-25, 20-25), in the 7A state semifinal at the Birmingham CrossPlex on Nov. 1.

“Today, McGill was the better team,” Nichols said. “I mean, they were clicking on all cylinders. I hadn’t seen them play that well all year. It wasn’t anything we weren’t doing.”

Mountain Brook traded punches with McGill-Toolen through the first half of the opening set. The teams were tied at 5-5 and 10-10 before the Dirty Dozen went on a roll. They utilized their power and size as they closed the frame on a 13-4 run.

McGill-Toolen parlayed its momentum into the second set, jumping out to a 10-1 lead. Mountain Brook’s Sarah Catherine Cooper recorded back-to-back kills to help her team turn it around. But it was too late to catch up.

The Spartans dug a similar hole in the third set, as they fell behind 9-2. The team could have tossed in the towel at that point. Instead, it chose to make a stand.

Ellen Dulin and Mary Katherine Fowlkes assisted on a block; Grace Carr fired a kill, and Cooper did the same. An ace from Dulin gave the Spartans a 12-11 edge.

Mountain Brook extended its lead to 15-12 before McGill-Toolen flipped a switch. It tied it at 18-18 then won seven of the final nine points.

“I’m really proud of them. They didn’t give up,” Nichols said. “They kept fighting, just clawing and trying to get back in it, and that’s all we can do.”

Cooper led the team with six kills and contributed eight digs, while Carr recorded three kills and eight digs. Ann Vandevelde had a team-high 10 digs, including a couple that required her to sprawl full extension onto the floor. Libby Grace Gann, the team’s lone senior, posted 16 assists. Ellie Dayhuff led the way with four blocks.

Mountain Brook, with a roster composed of 10 sophomores, will return 11 of its 12 players next season. Dulin is the only junior.

“They have come so far and made huge strides this entire season,” Nichols said. “Nobody thought we’d get this far, so this is a great thing. They’ve just got to remember what this feels like and take it into next season because we’ll be older.”

The Spartans’ youthfulness didn’t seem to matter in the quarterfinals, as they swept Baker, 3-0 (25-6, 25-15, 25-16).

Mountain Brook navigated a tough 7A, Area 6 tournament to simply advance to the North Super Regional Oct. 27-28. There, the Spartans took down Huntsville and Hoover to reach the regional final and secure its berth at the state tournament. In the final, the Spartans won the first two sets against eventual state finalist Bob Jones before losing the match in five sets.

With Gann the lone senior and options such as Ann Vandevelde to take over the setter role next fall, the Spartans have reason to be optimistic.

“That’s what they have to look forward to. They can’t hang their heads. They played really well to get to where we got. Nobody thought we’d get this far. They counted us out the entire season, so I’m really proud of what they’ve done. We finished in the semifinals, and that’s huge,” Nichols said.