HEBRON ESTATES – It was an incredible way to possibly end a dynasty.
The Rolling Hills Christian Academy team recently won its 10th Kentucky Christian School Athletic Association volleyball title.
The victory was a little bittersweet as the school has announced it was closing at the end of the current academic year.
After winning nine straight titles, Coach Danielle Merrick’s team finished as the runner-up in 2022 and lost in the semifinals the following year.
With five seniors returning, Merrick said the message was pretty simple – finish.
“The girls decided they were going to win it,” Merrick said of this year’s team. “We had a lot of experience and determination. They were hungry.”
The title win in Elizabethtown came at the end of a long season. The team played the fall season, in which the Tornadoes finished 20-6 in very tough competition.
Merrick took her team to various tournaments to prepare them for the state tournament. During the winter season, Rolling Hills went 16-1 in league play.
“It really helps to have so many seniors,” said Merrick, who will continue her club ball team but will step away from coaching next season and spend time watching her daughter, who will be a senior. “They were very strong mentally.”
Another plus this season was that the team faced no major injuries, said the coach with 23 years of experience.
It was in the 2022 season that the team went undefeated until an injury to Emily Adams derailed the squad. After Adams sat out last year rehabbing, Merrick said her return this season resulted in “us being a unit again.”
Having the five seniors was a first-time experience in the program. Besides the hard work of the players, she said the parents were also very supportive.
“I couldn’t ask for a better way to go out,” said Merrick.
Having Esther Woodward as one of the four team captains was a plus. Merrick said her Indiana University Southeast signee was the leader with 15 kills and 12 assists per game.
She would be named the MVP for the state tournament.
Having Adams back was the final piece of the winning puzzle. She averaged over 10 kills per game.
Chloe Hepner has been at Rolling Hills during Merrick’s tenure. As the setter, the senior average 15 assists per game.
Sarah Wheatley played five years at Rolling Hills and commanded the libero role. Merrick said that Wheatley ran the defense. After losing the first set of the state semifinal game, the coach said it was Wheatley who picked up the team and the defense took over.
And Makena Taylor spent her final two years at the private school and made an impact all over the court. She was a key blocker at the net and averaged six kills per game.
She wasn’t sure the future of the six underclassmen next season and there is always hope that when staffing is available that the church might be able to restart the school.
“It was a special season,” said Merrick, whose first state title came in 2013.
Besides the seniors, the championship roster also included: juniors Hope Keck, Carley Vinson, Taylor Mayhew, Zaria Walker and Annalea Dean; sophomore Brianna Collins; and seventh grader Avalon Taylor.