'Still our goal': Jackson volleyball team wraps up another outright Federal League title

JACKSON TWP. — The Jackson volleyball team keeps reloading and keeps adding years to its Federal League championship banner.

With the Polar Bears securing a 19th title this season, a bigger banner may be needed soon.

Jackson's players will savor the 2023 championship for awhile. Graduation hit the team hard after the Polar Bears reached the Division I regional final a year ago.

Look at where they're at now. The Polar Bears are 16-4 and are one win away from a perfect league season.

"I think this is a direct reflection of the players we have this year," head coach Mary Kate Agona said. "They have stepped up. A lot of them have stepped into different roles and they push each other to get better every single day.

"It's a reflection of who they are as players and people."

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Jackson swept Perry 25-17, 25-18, 25-22 on Tuesday to win the outright league title. The Polar Bears took the first step toward defending their title in August when they beat the Panthers in three sets. They wrapped it up against Perry, the only team who had a shot to catch them going into the final week.

"It means a lot to all of us," senior McKenna Weber said. "We knew coming into the season that we wanted to win the Fed. That was still our goal and we worked really hard."

The Polar Bears honored Weber and senior teammates Camden Dolan and Olivia Hayes before their final regular-season home match. The leadership from the three captains of an inexperienced team cannot be understated.

Weber poses a big presence up front. She had a match-best 14 kills against Perry. Hayes is an aggressive scorer and blocker from the right side. Dolan is a steady server who had four aces among her eight points Tuesday.

"They're the catalyst behind this," Agona said of her three seniors. "The three of them are probably every coach's dream. You couldn't ask for three greater kids who are awesome teammates, awesome players and awesome humans."

Junior Abbey Debevec has emerged from a libero to a six-rotation player this season. Weber is also making an impact in the front and back rows.

"It's definitely a lot more responsibility," Weber said. "I appreciate my teammates for trusting me and I trust them. I hope I can help them as well."

Tournament time is always a fun time at Jackson. The Polar Bears are the No. 1 seed in their sectional-district tournament. They will host Youngstown Chaney in their postseason opener next Tuesday.

Is the sky the limit for this year's Jackson team?

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"I would like to believe so," Agona said. "We still have a lot of things we need to fix and address. They are willing to work at it and get after it in practice, which I appreciate. We need to solidify some things in order to compete with some of those big teams."

Prior to the tournament, the Polar Bears hope to finish the league season unbeaten. Their final game is Thursday at GlenOak.

"The job's not finished," Weber said. "We still have another game Thursday."

Reach Mike at mike.popovich@cantonrep.com

On X: @mpopovichREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Jackson volleyball team still reigns as Federal League champions