No. 5 served it.

No. 11 set it.

And No. 6 put it away.

That was a recurring theme from the second game on in the 1A Conference volleyball championship match Saturday at Coronado High. So guess whose handprints were all over championship point?

No. 5 Brylee Murray, No. 11 Goldi Merrill and No. 6 Kayla Judd. The ending was fitting for the high school careers of those three seniors.

No. 5, No. 11 and No. 6 also helped St. David land No. 9 after Judd added the final touch to her team’s 24-26, 25-20, 25-16, 25-21 victory over first time finalist Anthem Prep. After Saturday’s win, St. David hoisted its 1A best 9th championship trophy.

It also repeated as champ for the first time since the 1982-83 seasons.

“That’s been our goal since Day 1, back-to-back,” said St. David’s 19-year coach Tylene Miller while holding back tears. “Those are very hard and few to come between. The girls have worked hard this year. It’s been a crazy year with COVID. Our gym’s floor got completely ripped out, so we’ve been in the cafeteria practicing and playing ball. They have overcome a ton of obstacles.”

The pandemic interrupted Miller’s plan to also solidify the roles of her six seniors, including Sydney Klump, Gennie Morrison, and Jaelyn Goodman, two sophomores and three freshmen early in the year.

But they sure found their way.

Game highlights

Game 1

Anthem Prep picked up where it left off after snapping Mogollon’s 4-year streak to the 1A final in Saturday’s semifinals.

Anthem Prep did so with Dayton Busch leading the way. Against St. David, it opened with two aces from Natalia Beccarelli and two put aways from Busch in the middle to build a 7-1 lead.

But this was a game of streaks. After settling down, St. David tied the game at 12-12 and then went up by two before Anthem Prep went on a 8-0 run.

But St. David rallied, tying it twice (23-23 and 24-24).

Anthem Prep (15-3) wound up scoring the final two points to clinch the game, though.

https://twitter.com/AZPreps365Jose/status/1327738470219927553

Game 2

Unlike Game 1, St. David (18-1) kept pace with Anthem Prep early.

By the middle of the game it became clear that whichever team controlled the middle held the advantage. For a bit, it was Busch vs. Judd.

But St. David’s serve game (nine total aces) also played a role in the victory. During two runs in the game in which Murray and Merrill were serving and Judd tallied six kills and Murray had three aces, St. David began to take command.

A Klump kill on the left side and Goodman block down the stretch also helped put the game away.

https://twitter.com/AZPreps365Jose/status/1327745074944376833

Game 3

With Murray, a 4-year starter at libero, and Merrill serving and Judd in a groove, St. David once again gained control in the middle of another game.

Judd had six kills while helping build her team’s lead from 13-10 to 21-13.

Klump and Goodman once again stepped up in the end to put away some of Merrill’s sets.

https://twitter.com/AZPreps365Jose/status/1327750993916751873

Game 4

Trailing 9-3, Anthem Prep finally started to consistently side out with the help of Autumn Wells' kills off of blocks.

But as the game wore on, the team’s hitting errors cut off its momentum-building point spurts.

“They played great,” Anthem Prep coach Raymond Wrublik said. “The team was just a hair better.

“Our girls played their hearts out. That’s all you can ask for.”

(Anthem Prep)

In the final stretch, St. David’s freshmen stepped up.

First, Anissa Jacquez’s kill over two blockers put her team up 18-16 and her second kill pushed St. David’s advantage to 21-17 after a fabulous, face saving dig from Mayla Trejo. Trejo put her hands up just in time before getting tattooed in the face by a kill attempt.

Judd, Merrill and Murray then went on to put their stamp on the match to close it out.

https://twitter.com/AZPreps365Jose/status/1327762532707176450

“After that first game, we finally came together,” Judd said. “We took a deep breath and said, ‘We can take this.’ And we played our game.”

(St. David)

First a wedding then volleyball

St. David assistant coach Breana Tillett missed her team’s Saturday morning state semifinal match for a good reason.

She attended her sister’s wedding.

“I told them, ‘You can’t end the season while I’m not there.’ And I would’ve felt terrible if I wasn’t with the team,” Tillett said. “But I’m grateful I was able to be there (for sister’s wedding) and be here for this.”

After her Temple Marriage, Kayla Harguess, Tillett’s sister, joined her sister for the 3 p.m. 1A Conference volleyball final.

“It was a great experience,” said Harguess about her wedding and being present for her sister’s big day as well.

(St. David assistant Breana Tillett (left) and her sister Kayla Harguess.)