Community Christian takes home first 4A volleyball title with four-set victory
YUKON, OKLAHOMA - With a resounding sweep in sight, Victoria Gray had one slip away.
Already up two sets to none, the Community Christian senior outside hitter took a big swing in hopes of keeping her team alive in the third for what she hoped would lead to a celebration. But the kill attempt went wide, and Bethany suddenly had life and momentum heading to a fourth set.
“It hurt,” Gray said. “It was hard to see, because I knew I had it. I did not want that to happen, but coming back on the court in the fourth set, I just had a complete mindset and was like, ‘I want to win for this team and I just want to do everything I can for this team because I love them all.’”
And win she did.
Gray posted three of her 15 kills – including the clincher – during an 11-3 closing burst in the fourth set as Community Christian ousted Bethany, 25-22, 25-12, 27-29, 25-16, and won the Class 4A volleyball state championship Saturday at Yukon High School.
Community Christian senior outside hitter Victoria Gray readies a kill attempt in the Class 4A volleyball state championship match Saturday in Yukon.
“I was very happy with that,” Gray said of the clinching kill. “I was just like, ‘I am going to swing as hard as I can and hopefully it goes in.’”
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The state championship is the fifth in school history for CCS (41-2) and its first as a 4A school. After winning 3A crowns as freshmen and sophomores, Gray, outside hitter Landry Braziel and setter Stella Gorton finished their prep volleyball careers with an astounding three state titles in four years.
“We all just get along so great and we have been together since sixth grade playing together,” Braziel said. “So, we have known each other and know how we play volleyball together.
"I love these girls so much and I am so glad I got to spend my last game with them.”
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Braziel was spectacularly dominant in her final high school match. The Texas-El Paso commit pounded the court with 19 kills and pushed her season total to 427, the third year in a row that she eclipsed the 400 mark.
Community Christian senior outside hitter Landry Braziel leaps and swings for a kill in the Class 4A volleyball state championship match Saturday in Yukon.
“Very special,” Gray said of Braziel. “We are best friends. I love her so much. Winning together just makes it such a better experience. It makes me so happy.
"As soon as we won that last set, we got to celebrate together, so it was so fun.”
In the first set, a Braziel kill helped CCS finish with three of four points. Set 2 was a rout as CCS scored 16 of the final 21 points. The final kill was delivered by, you guessed it, Braziel.
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“It’s just a proof of their ability to push through adversity and come out on the other side successful,” third-year CCS Coach Christina Maynes said. “They really came out and battled against a team that was not going down very easily.
"We just had to keep coming and then try something else and keep coming. And they were up to the challenge.”
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After not qualifying for the state tournament last season, Bethany ends this year as the 4A state runner-up with a 33-7 record.
Last season was the first for CCS in 4A and it ended one match shy of a third-consecutive state title. This time, the Royals finished.
“It’s really just an example to everyone else,” Gorton said. “When people think of CCS volleyball, me, Landry and Victoria have been here since freshman year. I just want to be an example.”
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Despite the loss of so many accomplished seniors, the future remains bright for CCS volleyball. And the future is now for sophomore Emery Williams and freshman Stella Wishon.
The right-side hitters each registered seven kills and will be counted on – along with others like libero Presley Schrader, setter Pierson Smith and middle hitters Ava Bell and Annie Willeford – to build off the example of the departing three-time state champions like Braziel, Gorton and Gray.
“It is what they mean to the program,” Maynes said. “They mean so much to me because I have gotten to coach them three years. They were state champs when I came in. They are a phenomenal bunch of girls in their own right, but the way that they were able to lead the team and leave a legacy for this CCS volleyball program can never be taken away from them.
"They have set the standard very high for work ethic, for execution and just for success in general. It just brings a lot of excitement to volleyball.”
Community Christian celebrates the winning point in the fourth set that clinched the Royals' third state championship in four years Saturday in Yukon.
Photos by Jim Ward
-- Douglas Miles | @SBLiveOK
