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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter celebrates a Mountain Brook pointMt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr tries to block a spike from Enterprise's Shaelyn Prickett . Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Libby Grace Gann serves in the final game beating Enterprise. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr celebrates after a Mountain Brook point. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter tries to block a ball. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Payton Selman goes for a kill. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Caroline Davies tries to block Enterprise's Imani Carter in the second game. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Payton Selman goes for a kill. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Caroline Davies tries to hit over the block of Enterprise's Morgan Kyles and Enterprise's Imani Carter. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter looks for the ball. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Chandler Mitchell and Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter block a ball. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Chandler Mitchell sets in the final game. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter tries to hit though Enterprise blockers. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr returns the ball to mid court. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Caroline Davies and Mountain Brook's Sara Carr watch a hit travel down the net. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr pushes a ball past Enterprise's Shaelyn Prickett. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr blocks a ball from Enterprise's Shaelyn Prickett. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr watches a spike go past the block of Enterprise's Mae Lewis. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr spikes the ball in the 2nd game. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Payton Selman digs a ball. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Emmy Kilgore hits the ball back over the net. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter spikes over the block of Enterprise's Shaelyn Prickett. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter pushes the ball over the net. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter tries to block. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Emmy Kilgore returns the ball for a point. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Carr spikes the ball between Enterprise's Imani Carter and Enterprise's Shaelyn Prickett Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Chandler Mitchell sets in the final game. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Ellie Ritter returns a serve. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch
Mountain Brook's Sara Chandler Mitchell sets in the final game. Mt Brook vs. Enterprise in the 7A quarterfinal match. Alabama High School Volleyball Championships held at the Crossplex in Birmingham, Alabama Wednesday October 28, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
In the days leading up to the Class 7A State Volleyball Championships, Mountain Brook coach Haven O’Quinn repeatedly emphasized the same message to her Spartan team.
“The last five days I think I’ve delivered the same message consistently, and I don’t think they’ve heard it enough still,” O’Quinn said, “but I think that they have got to understand that they play their best when they play loose and whenever they play like they’ve got nothing to lose.”
In Wednesday afternoon’s state quarterfinal match against Enterprise High School, O’Quinn’s squad executed that strategy to near perfection, trailing for only one point throughout the entire contest and rolling to a dominant 3-0 victory 25-16, 25-20, 25-11.
“We’ve talked a lot about it’s not really about the opponent,” O’Quinn said. “I know physically and skill wise what my team can do, and I think that it doesn’t matter who we’re playing, it’s really Mountain Brook is playing Mountain Brook.”
Key to the Spartans’ success was their ability to jump out, and hold on to, an early lead. Mountain Brook won the first point of all three sets, building a six-point advantage within each frame’s first 12 points.
In the first, second and third set, Mountain Brook established an early 9-3 margin.
“The fast start is something that we always talk about and focus on. We want to be the first to five out of the gate,” O’Quinn said.
The only time the Spartans trailed in the high-stakes match was at the beginning of the second set when Enterprise earned a 2-1 lead. After that, Mountain Brook went on an eight- point run.
“We know that we can be a slow-starting team and dig a hole quickly,” O’Quinn said. “It can happen in runs just so fast, so that’s been something in practice that’s been a focus.”
Outside hitter Sara Carr totaled 14 kills and setter Sarah Chandler Mitchell tallied 32 assists in the triumph.
The Spartans will return to action this evening when they face Huntsville in the state semifinals..
Mountain Brook will be on a quest for redemption in the critical match, as Huntsville handed it a four-set defeat in the semifinals of the North Super Regional just a week ago.
