BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Addison and Meek clashed in a Winston County themed 1A State Championship Match at Bill Harris Arena in Birmingham on Wednesday and the Bulldogs are adding some more hardware to an already packed trophy case. Addison defeated their county rivals 3-0 (25-14, 25-15, 28-26) to secure its 15th state championship and its first since 2022. Wednesday’s appearance in the state finals was the first for Meek since 2017.
Bulldogs Head Coach Sadie Hall was thrilled to deliver the blue map to her team after the match and thanked everyone in the Addison community that supported the team on their way to another title run.
“I’m just so grateful for these kids and their parents, our faculty and staff, our administration, everybody. This community is just incredible and without them I don’t think we could accomplish all we’ve accomplished,” Hall said. “They’ve believed in us since day one. Since the beginning of summer back in June the girls have worked hard, and we had some rough days in the beginning, but it all paid off in the end. I’m just so thankful for the opportunity and I’m glad God placed us here and we give him all the glory for it.”
The standards and expectations for Addison Volleyball have been as high as they can be for over 20 years now and Hall was proud to see her team embrace those expectations and deliver on the biggest stage.
“It’s hard. I graduated here in 2011, and Coach (Pam) Wilkins built the standard of the program and when you get a taste of winning, you don’t want to be the team that doesn’t win,” Hall said. “So, there’s pressure from that and everyone is always on their A game when they play Addison because it means something to beat us, so we always have to be prepared. We practice hard and we get after them and push them because we know that what’s on your chest means something.”
Addison standout Annabeth Powell noticed a difference in this year’s team, saying they played for each other and was proud to see it pay off in the long run
“The most important is that we all did it for each other.,” Powell said. “I think in years that we’ve lost we’ve all been thinking about ourselves and this year we all did it as a group for each other.”
Addison 3 – Meek 0 (25-14, 25-15, 28-26)
Addison jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the first set, but Meek battled back to cut it to 9-5. However, a 7-2 run by the Bulldogs extended the lead to 16-7 midway through the set and the Tigers were unable to recover the momentum, allowing Addison to pull away with a 25-14 win in the first set. Ava Bartlett recorded six kills in the opening set and Allie Ruth Powell added five. Callie Garrison (two aces) and Annabeth Powell each added four digs in the set as well. Addie Cate Henderson posted six digs for Meek on the other side of the net.
The Bulldogs built another early lead in the second set, getting off to a 6-1 start but the Tigers rallied once again, clawing back to tie things up at 11 later in the set. Addison answered with a 7-2 run, giving the Bulldogs an 18-13 lead and they rode that momentum to a 25-15 win in the second set, building the lead up to 2-0. Bartlett racked up 10 kills in the second set and Powell added another six. Garrison posted three aces and a team-high 10 digs for Addison. On the other side of the net, Henderson recorded 15 digs, and Zarah Harden added four kills.
The third set was a tight one. The score was tied at 3 early, stayed knotted at 12 as the set went on and both teams were still tied at 15 midway through the set. Neither team could create separation as play continued. The score remained tied at 20, then 22 and then 24 until finally, the Bulldogs were able to edge out a 28-26 win, completing the sweep of the Tigers and securing the 15th blue map in program history.
Bartlett earned State Tournament MVP honors after recording 18 kills and five digs in the win over Meek. Annabeth Powell (30 assists, nine digs, three kills), Kendall Wyatt (13 digs, three assists) and Allie Ruth Powell (13 kills, 11 digs) earned All-Tournament honors as well.
Meek’s Addie Cate Henderson (22 digs, 10 kills), Khloie Cook (five kills, two digs) and Zarah Harden (six kills) were also selected to the All-Tournament team.
Tigers Head Coach Callie Brewer was proud of the way her team battled back after a slow start. Brewer could feel a different energy around the team this season and believes this year’s postseason run has laid a foundation for a bright future on the court in Arley.
“We just came out super nervous in the first two sets and when you get down two sets to none to a team like that it’s hard to come back,” Brewer said. “I think the biggest difference for sure is the community has started talking about playing for state championships and winning and it’s taken a long time for us to get back to that. Eight years ago, Meek was playing in this game, and it’s taken that long for us to get that belief back in the community. Hopefully this group has laid a foundation for years to come.”
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