Decatur players rush the floor after defeating Bellville in the 4A Divisoin I state championship on Friday. The Lady Eagles beat the Brahmanettes in four sets, 25-22, 25-21, 24-26, 25-23. MICAH MCCARTNEY | WCMESSENGER
For the sixth time in program history, the Decatur Lady Eagles are the last team standing at the end of the season.
Decatur (32-13) capped off its 2024 season with a 3-1 win over Bellville (44-6) in the 4A Division I state championship on Friday, staying a perfect 6-0 in title matches since the Lady Eagles’ first over the Brahmanettes in 2013.
They also did it under a new head coach, Stormi Snider, who had never experienced a championship as a player or coach.
“It’s just amazing. It speaks to the work and the grit that these girls have and the work they’ve put in literally since August 5,” Snider said in the postgame press conference. “All year it’s been ‘state or die,’ and I think we believed we could do it, and sometimes I think other people didn’t, but it’s an amazing feeling to get the job done…”
Decatur got off to a hot start in the opening set, but surrendered an early lead and knotted up with Bellville several times throughout the thick of Set 1. But Peyton Dickson and Lara Hornsby’s back-to-back kills late put the Lady Eagles back in the driver’s seat up 22-19, and ultimately led to the first set win on a three point advantage
Dickson finished with a triple-double – 13 kills, 19 assists and 12 digs. She also had two aces.
“I just know that Grace [Fortune] is gonna give me the ball, and if she gives me the ball I want to do right by her and put it down…” Dickson said about the connection with her setter. “And I also fully believe in my hitters. Any hitter on the set, they can put the ball down and win the game for us.”
The two teams went toe-to-toe in Set 2 through 14 points, but Bellville started to run away with an 11-7 lead before Snider elected for a timeout. It proved successful, as the Lady Eagles blazed ahead for a 7-0 run — led by seniors Dickson, Hornsby and Gracie Trulson – that forced Bellville into its own timeout.
Trulson finished with seven kills, four digs and three block assists. Trulson, a part of Decatur’s 2021 state championship team, said winning out as a senior was even better than her first gold medal.
“Obviously it’s a great feeling, being able to finish it with these nine (senior) girls was amazing,” she said. “Honestly, this was even better than freshman year, even though we had the best group of girls then.”
The Brahmanettes challenged the Decatur lead, but the Lady Eagles never surrendered during crunch time, winning Set 2 for the 2-0 advantage.
The potential closeout third set was a rocky start for Decatur, falling into an early hole but then battling back for a 17-17 tie. Lilly Lowery and Harper Smith gave the Lady Eagles some momentum late, but Bellville avoided the sweep by notching its only set win on a Decatur attacking error.
The Lady Eagles fired off another quick run in the fourth frame to build a healthy lead early, but once again, it was chipped away at late.
Decatur’s offense was shut down by Bellville’s net presence and the Lady Eagles’ own misfires, culminating in a tie of 21.
But this time when the match was on the line, Decatur pulled through, and Hornsby — the state tournament MVP — was the one responsible for sending Bellville home with silver medals.
For the sixth time in school history, the Decatur Lady Eagles are STATE CHAMPIONS.
Decatur wins the 4A D1 state title 3-1 over Bellville, 25-22, 25-21, 24-26, 25-23.#AF1 pic.twitter.com/q8G20Io8y2 — Brendan Marchand (@BrendanMarchand) November 23, 2024
“…We didn’t want to end with silver. We wanted to end with a gold bang,” Hornsby said. “We’ve been together since we were young, we’ve always hung out together, so this is the best experience we could have that ‘little us’ probably would’ve never even thought about.”
Hornsby finished with 16 kills and 16 digs, often showing off her natural ability to come through in the clutch when it mattered most for the Lady Eagles.
Fortune finishes second behind Dickson in assists with 18. Senior libero Aubrie Duncan led the team in digs with 17.
Duncan said the team’s ability to close in back-and-forth situations came from turning their emotions into big plays.
“We were picking up some stuff that we usually don’t, and I think it was because of our adrenaline and emotions. I feel like we play really well with our emotions,” she said. “On the other side, we were kind of shocked that they were picking up some of our stuff, but it was just kind of like ‘OK, we’ve got to get to work.'”
Decatur is losing nine seniors: Trulson, Raven Noble, Everett Swift, Ellay Seay, Lowery, Duncan, Averi Walsh, Dickson and Hornsby. Despite the departure of so many key pieces, Snider said the buy-in from the younger players is already evident.
“These seniors have done a great job of setting the standard, and that’s what I told them from the beginning, that I’m not here to change things … because Decatur volleyball has a standard,” Snider said. “That standard will not faulter, will not fail, as long as we have full buy-in. And I 100 percent feel that the younger girls have that…”
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