HOT SPRINGS — One year after falling 3-2 to Fayetteville in the Class 6A state finals in which the final set was decided 16-14, the Conway Lady Wampus Cats (27-9) did not let this state championship trophy slip away.
The Lady Wampus Cats defeated Bentonville 19-25, 25-19, 25-18, 25-12 for their first state title since 2018 at Bank OZK Arena. Bentonville, which had won 17-of-18 matches coming into Saturday’s contest, finished the season 24-9.
“I’m really proud,” said Conway Coach Laura Crow. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like when we go in the locker room. This is what we talked about since we lost last year. Coming back here and figuring out a way to get it done. This has been their dream.”
The Lady Wampus Cats were led by state tournament MVP Madison Derden, who had 14 kills while hitting .355 with 4 aces and 14 digs. Wren Jones had 21 kills while hitting .312. Bishop Floyd had 19 digs. Madden Cabantac had 26 assists and 7 digs, while London Cabantac had 16 assists and 5 digs.
Served by Arkansas Select Volleyball.
Bentonville was led by Victoria Otter, who had 13 kills. Madison Hooper had 13 kills. Elizabeth Dorey had 17 assists and Kylah Manthe had 14 assists. Ady Bollinger had 13 digs.
“It wasn’t our day. I think a little of the nerves got to us. It’s been five years since we’ve been here. Conway was here last year and it showed,” said Bentonville Coach Hannah Berry.
“It would have been fun if we showed up like we had, I’m still proud of this group.”
After losing the first set 25-19, Conway took control of the second set, rolling off six unanswered points after Bentonville took a brief 1-0 lead. After a timeout, Bentonville rolled off three points to close it to 6-4, which was the closest margin in the second set.
Crow said her team was nervous at the beginning, but ultimately, settled down and played their game.
“I told them to settle in,” said Crow. “Our kids did a good job of serving after the first set. We moved our middles in. It worked and we were watching their defense and switched on their blockers and that was helpful.”
Berry said her team, for whatever reason, struggled to come back after Conway won the second set.
“When we lost the second set, I felt like we couldn’t get it back and we did a good job bouncing back,” said Berry.
Conway jumped out to a 6-3 lead in the third set before Bentonville called timeout. The three-point deficit was the closest of the set as Conway never trailed during the entire set.
Conway jumped out to a a 5-1 lead in the fourth set before Bentonville called timeout. The Lady Wampus Cats extended it to 7-1 and led 23-9 before a block by Evelyn Venters, an error by Conway and an ace by Dorey closed it to 23-12 before Crow called timeout. Jones had a kill and Venters’ attack into the net finished the match.
Bentonville defeated Conway 2-1 on Aug. 31 at the Bentonville Early Bird Invitational. Crow said she watched that film and Bentonville’s 3-2 win over Fort Smith Southside to make adjustments and find an edge.
“We knew we had to go up against a good Bentonville team,” said Crow. “We picked apart the game film and figured out anything we could do. They’re an awesome team with great athletes.”
The title, which is the second of Crow’s career, is one she said she is going to cherish, given how close the Lady Wampus Cats came a year ago.
“The first one is always awesome,” said Crow. “I thought I was going to retire and not get one, but I checked that off my bucket list. Any state championship is great. It’s very hard to get here. I just appreciate the fact our kids did so well to get us here. I told them you don’t know how special it is to drive to Hot Springs. I told them to soak it in.”
Berry said she didn’t think her team had a letdown after the five-set semifinal victory over Fort Smith Southside. She was proud of the way her team closed the season on a tear, despite the loss in the championship match.
“I don’t think there was a letdown,” said Berry. “That was huge win. Honestly, I think it was being in a different venue and having so much pressure. I’m really proud of how hard we work in practice and have the hunger to get better. They bought in.”
Cover photo by Joshua Gao
