Southside Christian volleyball tops Bamberg-Ehrhardt again to win state championship
COLUMBIA — When Southside Christian volleyball dropped the first set to open the Class A state championship in Columbia, sophomore Katie Brookins knew something had to change.
She wasn't going to let this one go.
The outside hitter decided to take over – Brookins finished with 22 kills and Southside Christian defeated Bamberg-Ehrhardt in four sets to win the Class A state championship for the second straight year.
And then the tears started to fall down her face.
"Those girls are my best friends and those seniors I've been with since day one," Brookins said, pointing towards her team after the match. "I've never not played a school season with them, I was a little 7th grader when I moved up to junior varsity and they were there for me from the start.
"They always showed me respect (the upperclassmen). They became my best friends and this was always such a big dream for us ... today our dream came true."
Brookins said that she played for the four seniors that accepted her years ago on Thursday night – which was a rematch of the 2020 Class A state title match that saw the Sabres win their first since 2010.
"It's very indescribable to be here once again," Southside Christian coach Priscilla LeGrand said. "I knew we would win. I just knew it would be a hard fought game again this year and because it was so hard fought it makes it so much sweeter.
"The girls have just put in the grit and the grind to get to this point. It's just special."
The Sabres dropped the first set 25-22, but then won the final three, 25-22, 25-18 and 25-22.
"I'm so proud of everyone," Southside Christian senior Brianna Johnson, who didn't play on last years state title team, said. "I'm just glad I was a part of it."
Johnson and fellow seniors Julia Muller, Autumn Harms and McKayla Smith as state champions in their final match of high school.
"I've been playing with some of them ever since I started playing volleyball ... this is such a big thing for us," Johnson said.
Southside Christian's sophomore star locked in
It was Brookins: who gathered her team in the fourth set, facing a 14-9 deficit and told them what needed to happen during a timeout that shifted the match back toward Southside Christian.
It was Brookins: who sent spike after spike after spike into the heart of Bamberg-Ehrhardt's defense on the way to a career night. The sophomore sent a missile into the back row of her opponents to give the Sabres a 21-20 lead in the fourth set that would the matches last. Her play in the final three sets was major in Southside Christians win Thursday night.
For LeGrand, Brookins is the type of player that helps make runs like the past two seasons for Southside Christian possible.
"She is such a student of the game," LeGrand said. "She's the one that talks to these girls on the court … she knows exactly what I am going to say. The best thing is? They accept it ... she makes it about this team and that makes it a total game changer."
With each kill that Brookins totaled – she pounded her feet and carried her team.
"I really don't think we'd be a team without her ... just from the energy that she brings," LeGrand said.
For Brookins, the win meant everything – she's competitive in every aspect of her life, she said. She channeled that Thursday night.
"To be able to just have this experience ... not many people can say that. Just to say that we were able to do this," Brookins said. "I'm always going to be proud to say it."
You can contact Joe Dandron at jdandron@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Katie Brookins leads Southside Christian to a Class A volleyball title
