BE girls volleyball captures 29th state title

Bishop England High School girls’ volleyball coach Cindy Baggott didn’t motivate her team with talk about the program’s incredible success heading into the Nov. 4 Class AA state championship against Landrum.

 

Instead, she knew the girls would find inner motivation that was provided by two nail-biting and heart-breaking playoff losses that ended the past two seasons.

 

“These girls have come so close the last couple of years,” said Baggott, whose team beat Landrum 3-0 to claim its 29th state championship. “They lost two five-set matches that came down to two points. The pain of being so close was motivation enough.”

 

The state championship places BE one title behind Bayside (Ala.) Academy in all-time state championships, according to the National Federation of High Schools Record Book. Bayside has 30 state championships.

 

Baggott, who was named coach in 2007, has accounted for 11 of the Bishops’ state titles.

 

The victory over the Cardinals gave the Bishops a 33-9-4 record and its first state title since 2017 when the Bishops owned the South Carolina volleyball world. The Bishops won 18 straight state titles from 2000-17.

 

“It’s been a long time coming,” Baggott said. “It seemed like a blur to me. These girls were ready and they wanted to win. I’m proud of them. I knew from day one that if anyone was going to win a state championship, it would be this group.

 

“I’m happy for the seniors,” Baggott added. “They worked and worked to get better and they deserve this reward. None of them were in the program when we won in 2017.”

 

The Bishops lose some key players to graduation, including all-state selections Olivia DeMarco and Kristina Kakalev. They are two of the seven seniors on the roster.

 

Key returners for next year include Sullivan Leonard, Langdon Blackstock, Payton Moorman and Claire Womble.

 

PSHS girls team falls in Lower State 

 

Meanwhile, Philip Simmons breezed through the first three rounds of the Class AAA tournament, sweeping Loris, Orangeburg-Wilkinson and Waccamaw by 3-0 scores before falling to Camden, 3-2, in the Lower State championship.

 

It marked the second straight year coach Jay Waterworth’s squad reached the Lower State championship. The Iron Horses are 75-13-5 the past two seasons.