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By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Last season ended in shocking fashion for Myah Hough and her Lebanon teammates.
Lebanon, the top seed in its district tournament, lost 3-0 in the championship game against a Central program that hadn’t won districts in 42 years.
On Tuesday night, Lebanon ended its own championship drought to finish on the better side of history.
Lebanon defeated top seed Central 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 26-24) in the Class 5 District 10 Tournament championship game at Glendale High School.
“It was a big turnaround from last year,” said Hough, a senior and co-captain. “From making it (to the finals) and thinking we had it and it not going our way. This year was a lot better.”
With the win, Lebanon earns its first district volleyball title since 2005.
“I didn’t know it had been that long until tonight,” said Lebanon senior and co-captain Chloe Shivers. “But it feels good. Really good.”
The difference this year? Confidence and trust.
“Going in mentally ready and having the mindset that, ‘We have this, we can win this,’” Hough said. “And then not giving up on each other and staying confident.”
Lebanon plays at Rock Bridge on Thursday night in a Class 5 sectional matchup.
The Yellowjackets would need to beat Rock Bridge then Joplin or Nixa to reach their first final four since 2001.
“It’s not set in yet,” Lebanon coach Jenny Collins said about winning districts. “Everything comes so fast. We’ve worked so hard just to get to this moment. I’m sure it’ll set in soon. It’s exciting for sure.”
Lebanon (26-6-3 overall) led from start to finish in the first two sets on Tuesday night.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
The Yellowjackets recorded four aces in the first set against a sluggish Central team.
“Our goal was to keep Central out of system because they’re very dangerous in their system,” Collins said.
Central came to life in a back-and-forth third set.
The Bulldogs turned an 11-6 deficit into a 19-16 lead. Tied 22-all, Lebanon took the lead for good on Addy Rebmann’s kill.
Rebmann, a 6-foot freshman, led Lebanon freshman with 12 kills.
Shivers had 15 digs, 11 assists and a team-high four aces.
After losing 3-1 at Central in the regular season, Lebanon cut down on its miscues the second time around.
“The last time we played (Central), we had missed serves in key opportunities, missed service passes and hit several balls out in key moments,” Collins said. “We focused on the little things and worked to be better defenders on the front row, which I thought our blockers had some really nice blocks that helped our momentum swings.”
Collins said Lebanon, which also finished as a district runner-up in 2018, had redemption on its mind this offseason.
“From the very beginning, we had this as a goal for our season. We took our season one match at a time, but the ultimate goal was winning tonight,” Collins said. “It just wasn’t our night last year. Tonight, it felt like it was.”
“I’m so happy for this group of kids because they’ve put so much time into our program and they’ve committed to each other and to our program goals. It’s nice to see that pay off.”
And to do it against Central? Extra sweet.
“Oh yes, of course,” Shivers said.
Central finishes 20-8-3 overall, marking its best winning percentage in eight years. The Bulldogs will graduate seven seniors.
Lebanon stat leaders
Kills: Addy Rebmann 12, Myah Hough 9
Assists: Jaidyn Collins 17, Chloe Shivers 11
Digs: Shivers 15, Jocee Pettyjohn 12,
Blocks: Karagan Bean 2, Rebmann 2
Aces: Shivers 4, Pettyjohn 3
