Bishop Canevin overwhelms Carmichaels in WPIAL volleyball final
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
A dejected Meighan Spishock reacts Saturday after Carmichaels fell to Bishop Canevin in the WPIAL Class A girls’ volleyball championship match.
Meighan Spishock wipes away a tear as her teammate, Micaela Ricco, looks on dejected during the troph ceremony after Carmichaels dropped a 3-0 decision to Bishop Canevin in the WPIAL Class A girls' volleyball championship match
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Carmichaels’ Taylor Christopher dinks the ball over the net during a WPIAL Class A girls volleyball match last season.
Emma Hyatt (No. 11) of Carmichaels battles Gillian Golupski (No. 8) of Bishop Canevin for the ball at the net during WPIAL Class A championship volleyball action.
Carmichaels fans display an array of emotions during the WPIAL Class A girls' volleyball championship match. The Mikes lost to Bishop Canevin, 25-11, 25-11, 25-9.
Carmichaels hitters Grace Kerr (No. 4) and Taylor Christopher (No. 3) go up to block a shot by Bishop Canevin during WPIAL Class A girls' volleyball action
FOX CHAPEL – Carmichaels met every challenge during what has been the best girls volleyball season in school history until Saturday afternoon.
Bishop Canevin provided an obstacle too talented for the Mikes to overcome in the WPIAL Class A championship match at Fox Chapel High School.
Alexa Malloy had nine kills, seven digs and three aces as the top-seeded Crusaders cruised to a 3-0 victory in a battle of unbeaten squads, winning by scores of 25-11, 25-11 and 25-9.
The second-seeded Mikes (17-1) were making their first appearance in a WPIAL final after winning their first section title and completing their first perfect regular season.
Carmichaels 10th-year coach Ashley Shoemaker felt her girls were affected by being in the spotlight against an experienced playoff team like Canevin, which has now won four titles in six years and two in a row.
“I don’t think we were used to that kind of stage,” Shoemaker said. “We got into our routine late in each set and it’s hard to come back from that kind of deficit against a team like that.
“But to get to this point is a huge accomplishment for our program. I’m just glad that the girls got to experience this.”
Their season isn’t over yet as the Mikes have qualified for the PIAA playoffs that begin Tuesday. Carmichaels will play the District 6 champion Bishop Carroll in the first round. The site and time will be determined Sunday.
“We want to learn from what happened here, the mindset coming in and the (lack of) confidence and turning that around as we get into the states,” Shoemaker said.
Canevin (16-0) took the first three points of the opening game and never trailed. Carmichaels cut it to 3-2 on consecutive kills by Taylor Christopher and was within 6-4 when the Crusaders went on an 11-1 run to take a commanding 17-5 lead in going up 1-0.
The score was tied 1-1, 2-2 and 4-4 early in the second game as Emma Hyatt and Meighan Spishock had kills for the the Mikes, but again Canevin gradually pulled away with its superior firepower.
Smelling blood, the Crusaders exploded out to a 15-0 advantage in the third game and went on to complete the sweep.
Shoemaker felt her team was closer to Canevin than the scores indicated.
“I think we definitely played teams that were comparable to them,” Shoemaker said, “but I don’t think we came in with the same mindset tonight that we did against other teams.”
Christopher led the Mikes with seven kills. Grace Kerr totaled eight assists and four digs, and Alexandra McGee added five assists and two service points. Carmichaels also got four digs from Micaela Ricco, three kills from Hyatt and three service points from Abigail Fordyce.