Volleyball captures 1st ever sectional championship

Coach Pat Cawley and the CHS volleyball team celebrate their history-making win in the central sectionals. (Mike Barucci photo)

Update: The Division 2 central champion CHS volleyball team fell to north champion Melrose 3-0 in the state semifinals in Billerica Tuesday night, ending an otherwise magical season for the Bulldogs, who finished a program-best 22-1 overall.

After years of living in the shadows of the region’s powerhouse programs and falling just short of their postseason aspirations, the Canton High volleyball team decided that it was their time to shine — and shine they did, overcoming a 2-0 deficit against longtime foe Medfield to win the Division 2 central sectional title for the first time in school history.

Saturday’s thrilling comeback victory over the Warriors at Hudson High School was truly one for the ages as the Bulldogs twice faced match point in set three before seizing the momentum and storming back to take the final three sets (28-26, 25-22, 15-9). The fact that the victory came against Medfield made it all the more sweet — particularly for head coach Pat Cawley, who has watched the Warriors rack up five state titles since 2005, including three in a row from 2008-2010.

“The Canton volleyball program has never been able to find a solution to beat Medfield,” noted Cawley. “They have excellent athletes and play at a high level at all times.”

But with 21 straight wins to their credit and the tournament’s top overall seed, Cawley and her players “knew they belonged” this year, and they embraced the chance to prove it against their toughest competitor to date.

At the same time, Medfield was just as determined to take back control of the central after last year’s surprising exit in the quarterfinals, and it showed in the early going as the Warriors jumped out to a commanding two sets to none lead (25-18, 25-22).

Cawley said the Bulldogs “never really got going” in the first set despite an impressive individual performance by their star outside hitter, senior Julia Murphy. The second set also belonged to Medfield, although Canton showed improvement and was able to close the deficit to within a few points late in the set.

The third set was a nail-biter from start to finish as both squads played well in all phases — serving, hitting, and defense. Medfield had two chances to end Canton’s season down the stretch, but a “huge block and a couple of key defensive plays” allowed Canton to escape with a two-point win.

“Winning this set gave us the confidence and the momentum we would need going forward,” Cawley said afterwards.

With new life, the Bulldogs took control of the match over the final two sets, fueled by the blocking and hitting of Murphy (25 kills, 9 blocks) and junior Avery Devoe (10 kills, 7 blocks), the defense of senior libero Mellyn Costello (27 digs), and the pinpoint setting of senior Kaitlin Phillips (42 assists). Other key contributors included senior Jackie Bornemann, whose seven straight service points in set five helped Canton race to a 9-1 lead; seniors Lindsey Arthur and Alex Walsh, and sophomore Chidera Nwankwo.

“This was truly a team effort and I am so proud of the way the girls remained poised and confident throughout this match,” said Cawley. “Being down two sets to none and facing two match points by Medfield, they pushed that boulder up the hill together and got to the top.”

In addition to winning their first-ever sectional trophy, the Bulldogs (22-0) also earned the right to face north champion Melrose (24-1) in the Division 2 state semifinals, scheduled for last night in Billerica. The winner would then move on to face either south champion Fairhaven (20-1) or west champion Longmeadow (18-3) in the state championship game on Saturday at Algonquin Regional in Northboro.

Earlier in the week, Canton defeated No. 8 Foxboro and No. 4 Westboro — both at home — in the first two rounds of the sectional tournament.

In the Foxboro match last Monday, the Bulldogs made quick work of their leaguemates in set one en route to a straight-set victory (25-12, 25-20, 25-20). Murphy and Bornemann led the way with several strong kills and a combined 15 aces, while Devoe chipped in with seven kills and a pair of blocks.

Thursday’s match against Westboro proved to be a much tougher test as the Rangers dominated the opening set (25-16) and held an 11-5 lead in set two before Canton settled down and eventually found its way. Cawley attributed the turnaround partly to the play of Nwankwo, a recent JV call-up who helped fill a void at middle blocker.

The other major factor was the brilliance of Murphy, who finished with 28 kills, five blocks and four aces in one of her finest performances of the season. Bornemann, Devoe, and Arthur also contributed offensively, while Phillips had another strong match with 39 assists. The defense was equally impressive, led by Costello (23 digs), Lizzy Doherty, and Erin Proctor.

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