BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Arabian Knights were back under the lights inside Bill Harris Arena Wednesday morning, seeking their first ever state title against the defending champion Westminster Christian Wildcats. After Westminster took the first two sets by a combined four points (25-23, 26-24), the Wildcats pulled away to take the third and final set over Arab 25-13.
Head Coach Amy Hudson is proud of the stellar season her team put together this fall and credits their success to how close the Knights are on and off the court.
“First of all, I just want to say how proud I am of this group of girls. They’re a special group for sure. They love each other unconditionally; they are best friends on and off the court and I couldn’t ask for a better group. That’s why we made it so far. It goes beyond skill and all the volleyball things that happen on the court. They’re just close knit and it shows when they play.”
Arab senior Anna McFerrin talked about the run she and her teammates have been on this season and is proud that her final season with the Knights was spent playing with this team.
“It was amazing, I wouldn’t have wanted to go out any other way, win or lose,” McFerrin said. “I was just so proud of this team, and we have an amazing coach who led us so well. I just couldn’t be prouder of us.”
Both McFerrin and junior Laney Kelley earned All-State Tournament honors.
Westminster Christian 3 – Arab 0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-13)
The Wildcats led most of the opening set, pulling ahead of Arab 7-4 early on. Westminster maintained a 15-11 lead midway through the set but that’s when the Knight began to chip away. Arab trimmed lead to 17-15 and managed to pull ahead 18-17 to take its first lead of the set. The Arabian Knights stayed in front 20-19 and after the Wildcats moved back in front 23-20, Arab battled back to tie the set at 23. Unfortunately, the next two points came from Westminster and gave the Wildcats a 25-23 win in the first set and a 1-0 lead in the match.
Westminster Christian got off to a hot start in the second set, taking a 5-0 lead right out of the gate. The Wildcats held onto a 10-5 lead as the set went on and Arab trailed 18-9 at one point before rallying to erase the deficit. The Knights cut the lead down to 19-12 and then 21-16 later in the set. After trimming the lead to 2, Arab was able to tie the set at 22 and the score remained locked at 24. However, Westminster was able to score the final two points of the set once again and edged the Arabian Knights in a thrilling second set 26-24.
Arab trailed just 4-3 early in the third set but the Wildcats began to create separation and moved ahead to take a 12-7 lead midway through the set. Westminster jumped ahead 15-8 and led the Knights 19-9 at one point before pulling away to take the set 25-13 and completing the sweep over Arab.
Kelley led the Knights with 16 kills in the match, followed by Bennett Elrod and Karli Walker with eight. McFerrin racked up 37 assists and Sami Kate Hudson led Arab with 13 digs in the loss.
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