BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Four local squads were on the floor at the Birmingham Crossplex Tuesday and two of them will be back in action with state titles on the line tomorrow. Addison swept past Horseshoe Bend in the elite eight and Spring Garden in the final four round to punch its ticket back to the state finals. The Lady Bulldogs will be making their 13th consecutive appearance in the state championship match and they’ll be joined by the West Point Lady Warriors, who are making their first ever appearance in the 5A state finals. West Point swept Elberta in the elite eight before knocking off Alexandria in the final four to secure its spot at Bill Harris Arena Wednesday night.
The Fairview Lady Aggies drew a rematch with Providence Christian in the elite eight Tuesday and despite giving the Lady Eagles all they could handle, it wasn’t enough and Fairview’s postseason run came to an end in the elite eight. Meek fell in its first match of the day as well, falling to Pleasant Home in five sets, bringing their state tournament run to an end.
West Point 3 – Alexandria 1 (25-16, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19) Final Four
The Lady Warriors got off to a good start in the opening set. Both teams were tied at 4 early but after West Point pulled ahead 11-8, the lead never changed hands. The Lady Warriors stretched the lead to 19-11 at one point and held on to take the first set by a score of 25-16, giving them a 1-0 lead in the match.
The second set was knotted at 5 early but West Point was able to recapture the momentum from the end of the first set and build an 11-8 lead. The Lady Warriors extended the lead to 19-14 as the set went on but Alexandria was able to come from behind to tie the set at 19. Alexandria moved in front 22-19 late but West Point battled back to tie the set at 22. However, the Lady Warriors couldn’t keep the run going and they fell in the second set 25-22.
In the third set, it was West Point’s turn to mount a comeback. After trailing most of the set, the Lady Warriors were able to rally and take a 17-16 lead in the latter part of the set. They added to their lead, pulling ahead 20-17 before pulling away to win the third set 25-18 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Lady Warriors continued riding the momentum they created at the end of the third set early into the fourth, building an early 10-6 lead. West Point maintained a 14-10 advantage midway through the set and the lead grew to 19-14 as the set progressed. The Lady Warriors led the way 21-16 late with a state finals appearance in sight and they seized the opportunity, pulling away from Alexandria to win it and earn their first ever trip to the 5A State Championship Match Wednesday.
The Lady Warriors will face off against Bayside Academy for the 5A State Championship Wednesday at 6 p.m. in Bill Harris Arena.
Addison 3 – Spring Garden 0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-19) Final Four
After making quick work of Horseshoe Bend in the elite eight, Addison lined up to face Spring Garden in the final four. The result was similar. The Lady Bulldogs built a 15-10 lead over Spring Garden midway through the first set and went on a 6-3 scoring run to make it 21-13. Addison held on to take the opening set 25-16.
The Lady Bulldogs were tied at 7 with the Lady Panthers early in the second set but Addison quickly took control and pulled ahead 13-8. The Lady Bulldogs continued adding to their lead and eventually pulled away to win the second set 25-17 and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Spring Garden was on top early in the next set, leading the way 12-8 at one point but Addison found a big wave of momentum and rode it to another win in the third set. The Lady Bulldogs fought back to tie the set at 14 before outscoring the Lady Panthers 11-5 the rest of the way to complete the sweep and advance to the state finals for the 13th consecutive season.
Addison will face G.W. Long Wednesday at noon at Bill Harris Arena in a rematch of last year’s 2A State title match.
West Point 3 – Elberta 0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-16) Elite Eight
The Lady Warriors got their day started on the right foot with a swift victory over Elberta. West Point jumped out to a 9-4 lead in the first set that grew to 14-6. West Point stretched its lead to 17-7 before pulling away to win the opening set 25-15.
The next set was a little tighter early. Both teams were tied at 5 and stayed knotted at 10 as the set progressed. That’s when the Lady Warriors took over the momentum and used a 10-3 scoring run to pull ahead 20-13. West Point held on to take the second set 25-17 and move ahead 2-0 in the match.
West Point continued to dominate in the third set, building an early 7-3 lead that quickly grew to 13-6 midway through the set. The Lady Warriors extended their lead to 21-14 and put Elberta away 25-16 to complete the sweep and advance to the final four.
Providence Christian 3 – Fairview 1 (25-14, 23-25, 21-25, 23-25) Elite Eight
Both teams were knotted at 4 early in the opening set but the Lady Aggies managed to pull ahead 11-9 later in the set. Fairview held a 15-13 lead midway through the set and tore off a 5-0 run to stretch its lead to 21-13. That put things out of reach for Providence Christian and the Lady Aggies took the first set 25-14.
The second set was much tighter. The score was tied at 9 early, then again at 12 and again at 17 before the Lady Eagles were able to take a 21-18 lead. Fairview rallied to tie things back up at 23 but Providence Christian was able to come up with the last two points and edged out the second set 25-23.
Fairview led the way 6-3 early in the third set but the Lady Eagles fought back to tie things at 10. Providence Christian pulled ahead to take a 14-10 lead midway through the set, but the Lady Aggies managed to climb back and tie it up at 19. However, the Lady Eagles finished strong and pulled away to take the third set 25-21. The Lady Aggies had their backs against the walls in the fourth set and with their season on the line, they gave Providence Christian another heated set. Fairview built a 12-7 lead early, but the Lady Eagles bounced back to tie the set at 12. The set was tied at 18 late and Providence Christian took a 23-20 lead at one point, but the Lady Aggies cut the deficit to 24-23. Unfortunately, the next point went to the Lady Eagles and they took the set 25-23, ending Fairview’s postseason run in the elite eight.
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