Bob Jones sends title clash to fifth set, ends amazing season as state runner-up
The Lady Patriots scored a season full of great accomplishments
BIRMINGHAM – In what has become an all too familiar script for Bob Jones, the school’s volleyball team fell to McGill-Toolen in a dramatic five-set match in the Class 7A state high school championship at Bill Harris Arena.
The Lady Patriots have finished as runner-up to the Dirty Dozen at the Elite Eight for the three straight seasons.
Bob Jones didn’t go down easily, rallying from a 2-0 deficit to send the title clash into a fifth set. Heartache awaited the team there, falling 15-13 as McGill-Toolen once again denied the Lady Patriots their first state championship since 2016 and second overall.
The Dirty Dozen won the first two sets 25-17, 25-22. Bob Jones roared back to take the next two games 25-18, 26-24, before falling just short in the deciding frame.
Statistical leaders for Bob Jones: Senior OH Kennedy Vaughn 25 kills; junior OPP/OH Kendall Buckley 8 kills; senior OH Annabelle Arnold 5 blocks and 5 kills; senior S Riley Lovell 32 assists and 13 digs; senior DS/L Kali Beigh 25 digs, 2 aces and 5 assists; junior MH/S Mya Lacey 4 assists and 4 blocks; senior OH/DS Tru Pitts 2 aces; senior DS Ashley Fitzgibbons 9 digs and 1 ace; and senior RS/OH Taryn Blume 4 blocks.
For McGill-Toolen, Paris McQuirter, named the 7A Player of the Year for 2023 as a junior by the Alabama Sports Writers Association (ASWA), led the way with 26 kills and 16 digs. Alice Wood had 53 assists as the Dirty Dozen won their 24th state championship, second in the state only to Bayside Academy’s 31.
While the Lady Patriots fell just shy of their ultimate goal, the season was nothing short of a success. Among the 2024 highlights were:
- A 52-10 record
- A third straight regional championship
- Winning the GCVA Tournament in Atlanta, ending host Pace Academy’s 31-game home winning streak in the championship match
- Going 4-2 in the star-studded Nike Southeast Tournament of Champions in Gainesville, Fla.
- Winning the Tournament of Champions in Guntersville
- Finished ranked No.2 behind McGill-Toolen in both the Maxpreps.com and ASWA rankings after spending time at No. 1.
With the season over, individual awards will no doubt follow for the likes of Vaughn, the reigning Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year, and Lovell, one of the nation’s top setters with over 4,000 career assists, among other players. Vaughn was named to the ASWA 7A All-State team as a junior.
