BETHANY – Before the final set of Bethany’s regional final against Verdigris Thursday (Oct. 10), Lady Broncho coach Kerri Cagle reminded her team that they were 25 points away from another trip to the state tournament.

At that point, second-ranked Bethany had a 2-0 lead in the match, but had struggled in the second set, falling behind to No. 15 Verdigris before winning 25-22.

“I told them, ‘Let’s not drag it out anymore.’ ” Cagle said. ” ‘Let’s go get your 25 points to state.’ “

The road to that point in time started off relatively easy for the Lady Bronchos.

In the opening set against Verdigris, Bethany trailed early but took a 9-6 lead and never looked back.

The second set featured five lead changes during the first 10 points for each squad.

Bethany took a 17-12 lead in the second set but Verdigris stormed back to tie for a 20-20 tie. Bethany pulled ahead by one points but Verdigris tied it again 21-21.

The Cardinals scored one more point, but by that point Bethany led 24-22.

“We just got really comfortable and relaxed and kind of got a little goofy a little bit,” Cagle said of her team in the second set. “They just refocused and they came back in that third set and took charge.”

Junior Skylar Brady said the team’s mindset a key to the turnaround.

“We didn’t get down on ourselves or each other, so I think that really helped us be able to just, like, push through,” Brady said.

After Cagle’s “25 points left” pep talk, senior Jaidyn Reid could tell a difference.

“I feel like our whole demeanor changed our energy,” Reid said. “We went into that set like really trying to just fight and push.”

Bethany never trailed in the final set after a 1-1 tie, pulling away for the win.

Reid finished with 15 kills and four aces against Verdigris. Brady added 19 kills and four aces.

BETHANY 3, DOUGLASS 0

In the semifinal contest, Bethany breezed past Douglass in three sets, 25-6, 25-5, 25-8.

Brady had 12 kills and three aces. Reid added 7 kills and four aces. Junior Bella Huckaby had seven kills and fellow junior Maya McPhaul had three aces.

UP NEXT

The Lady Bronchos (27-2) head up the Turner Turnpike to Sapulpa with some unfinished business. Bethany fell to Community Christian last season in the state final. The tournament runs Oct. 17-19.

“We talked about at practice yesterday that we didn’t want it to be our last practice,” Cagle said. “We wanted to be able to come back next week and have three more practices together.”

Photographs courtesy of Kristie Escoe of Life in Action Photography.

CLASS 4A REGIONAL 2 (AT BETHANY)
THURSDAY, October 10, 2024
GAME 1: Bethany 3, Douglass 0 (25-6, 25-5, 25-8)
GAME 2: Verdigris 3, Clinton 0
GAME 3: Bethany 3, Verdigris 0 (25-12, 25-22, 25-14)
Regional Champion advances to state