November 7, 2013
State Finals Preview: Two Top-Ranked Volleyball Teams Highlight Field
Saturday’s IHSAA Volleyball State Finals will feature of a pair of top-ranked teams in their respective classes including a rematch of last year’s thrilling 4A final.
The four state championship matches begin at 11 am ET at Ball State University’s Worthen Arena in Muncie. All four matches will be televised live by Fox Sports Indiana Plus (FSI) and available as a live stream to those outside of the FSI coverage area at IHSAAtv.org. The IHSAA will also be tweeting during the day at @IHSAA1.
The 4A state championship between top-ranked Carmel (37-1) and No. 2 Avon (36-3) is a rematch of last year’s finalists won by Avon in a five games. It’s been more than two months since the two squads last crossed paths as the Greyhounds swept the Orioles on the road in the second week of the regular season.
Carmel enters the weekend with a 34-match winning streak and has swept all but one opponent this season. Their only setback of the season was a five-gamer to Kentucky power Sacred Heart of Louisville three days before the Avon match. The Greyhounds are also ranked 10th nationally in the latest MaxPreps Xcellent Top 25 poll.
Defending champion Avon comes in as the winner of 25 matches in a row and turned away four top 20 foes during the state tournament to make the championship match for the third consecutive year. The Orioles lost a game in their sectional opener but haven’t dropped another since.
Class 2A Providence (35-4) is the other top-ranked team in Muncie and will face unranked Hammond Bishop Noll (30-9).
The Pioneers have won 16 consecutive matches and have not given up a game during that string to return to the final match after falling in four games a year ago. Their stiffest test of the tournament so far was a 3-0 sweep of No. 3 Speedway in last Saturday’s semi-state round.
They’ll face the only newcomer in this year’s field in Hammond Bishop Noll. The Warriors lost three straight matches to 4A squads to end the regular season but have rolled through the 2A tournament including a sweep of No. 6 Madison-Grant last Saturday. After enjoying several years of success in the 1980s and 90s, Noll ended its regional championship drought this year for the first time since 1990.
No. 2 Barr-Reeve (37-2) and sixth-ranked Lafayette Central Catholic (28-10) will begin the day to settle the Class A crown.
Barr-Reeve has turned away three top five opponents in four contests and hopes to become the first Vikings team to earn a state championship in any sport. The volleyball team has settled for the runner-up trophy three times before.
Central Catholic won the 2010 state title and this year’s senior class would like to bookend that one with another championship. The Knights defeated top-ranked Wes-Del in last Saturday’s semi-state final avenging a regular season loss.
The 3A championship features No. 7 Fort Wayne Concordia (29-7) and No. 9 Brebeuf Jesuit (19-12), two teams that met in this match 10 years ago.
Concordia has dispatched three consecutive top six foes including a 3-0 sweep of top-ranked Mishawaka Marian in its last match.
Brebeuf swept its way through the semi-state to make its fifth trip to state in seven years and would set a record of sorts should they win Saturday. No school has won a state championship with more than 10 losses during the season. The Braves have 12.
Also of note is that for the first time since 1996 when the finals were played at Market Square Arena, no team from the volleyball hotbed of Delaware County team will be competing in the state finals.
The 42nd Annual IHSAA Volleyball State Finals
Date: Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013.
Site: Worthen Arena, Ball State University, 1699 W. Bethel Avenue, Muncie.
Admission: $10 per person. | Tickets will be available at participating schools the week of the state finals. Contact those schools for distribution hours. Please note, tickets will not be available for purchase at Worthen Arena until the day of the event (Saturday, Nov. 9).
Home Team: The winner of the southern semi-state will be the designated home team in each match.
Television: Fox Sports Indiana Plus. Channel Listings
Webstream: For viewers outside of the Fox Sports Indiana coverage area, a live stream will be available at IHSAAtv.org. For those within the FSI coverage area, the stream will be available only on delayed basis.
Meet the Teams | Official Program | Order Photos
Class 4A Bracket | Class 3A Bracket | Class 2A Bracket | Class A Bracket
Class A | Lafayette Central Catholic (28-10) vs. Barr-Reeve (37-2) | 11 am
Class 2A | Hammond Bishop Noll (30-9) vs. Providence (35-4) | 1 pm
Class 3A | Fort Wayne Concordia (29-7) vs. Brebeuf Jesuit (19-12) | 3 pm
Class 4A | Carmel (37-1) vs. Avon (36-3) | 5 pm
Notables
Defending State Champions in the Field (1): Avon (4).
2012 State Runners-Up in the Field (2): Carmel (4A), Providence (2A).
Returning State Finalists (4): Avon (4A), Carmel (4A), Providence (2A).
Former State Champions in the Field (3): Avon (4A), Brebeuf Jesuit (3A), Lafayette Central Catholic (A).
Looking for First State Championship: Barr-Reeve (A), Carmel (4A), Fort Wayne Concordia (2A), Hammond Bishop Noll (2A), Providence (2A).
First Time Participants: Hammond Bishop Noll (2A).
Consecutive State Finals Appearances
3: Avon (4A).
2: Carmel (4A), Providence (2A).
Consecutive Victories
34: Carmel.
29: Barr-Reeve.
25: Avon.
16: Providence.
11: Lafayette Central Catholic.
8: Fort Wayne Concordia.
6: Brebeuf Jesuit, Hammond Bishop Noll.
Consecutive State Tournament Victories
13: Avon.
6: Barr-Reeve, Brebeuf Jesuit, Carmel, Fort Wayne Concordia, Hammond Bishop Noll, Lafayette Central Catholic, Providence.
Media Information
Media Parking: There is no designated parking area for media at the venue. Please be aware that Ball State University does charge a $5 all-day parking fee in the Worthen Arena lots.
State Finals Media Credentials: Deadline is Thursday, Nov. 7, 4 pm ET. The 2013-14 IHSAA State Finals Media Credential issued previously this fall is good for admission. For those outlets without credentials and planning to cover the volleyball state finals, please apply by e-mailing your request (with name of individual applying) to IHSAA Sports Information Director Jason Wille at jwille@ihsaa.org. E-mail requests MUST originate from a recognized business account; e-mails from personal accounts (ie: yahoo.com, aol.com, etc.) will not be accepted. Approved requests will be available for pickup on Saturday at the ticket windows at Lower Level, Gate 1 of Worthen Arena.
Media Services: Members of the IHSAA staff will be on hand to assist in your coverage. Official programs will be available along with computer-generated box scores. Interviews may be conducted with coaches and players following their matches though we request your cooperation in holding your interviews until after the award ceremonies have concluded. The facility also is equipped for free wireless internet access. The IHSAA.org website will be updated during the course of the day with final box scores and a recap of each of the four matches as will the IHSAA Twitter feed at @IHSAA1.
Worthen Arena Media Work Room: Worthen Arena’s Media Work Room is located at Room 203 on the Main Level. Electrical power and phone lines will be available for use.
Media Seating: Except where seating is marked for specific media outlets with reserved phone lines, an open seating policy will be used along press row on Saturday.
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Montgomery Volleyball Official to be Honored Saturday
David Kavanaugh of Montgomery is the recipient of the 2013 Interscholastic Athletic Officials Association Award for excellence in the sport of volleyball. Kavanaugh will be honored in a special ceremony at today’s state finals.
Each year, the Indiana High School Athletic Association, in cooperation with the National Federation of Interscholastic Officials Association, recognizes and honors an outstanding official in each of 11 sports during the school year.
During his career, David has officiated 23 sectionals, 16 regionals, seven semi-states, and five state finals.
David was selected for this honor by a committee representing the officials associations. In Indiana there are 24 associations made up of men and women who assist in providing wholesome, worthwhile, and healthy activities for the student athletes in our state. Statewide, there are more than 8,000 officials licensed by the IHSAA in 11 sports.
A licensed referee for 29 years, Kavanaugh is a member of the Southwestern Indiana Officials Association, for whom he has served as a clinician. David has also served as an IHSAA clinician in ’93, ’99, ’02, ’05, and ’07.
David is a 1966 graduate of Barr-Reeve High School. He earned a degree in math and physics from Vincennes University, before acquiring his masters in education from Indiana State University in 1974. David and his wife Cleta have four children: David (41), Kara (34), Kristi (33) and Kayla (27).
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About the Indiana High School Athletic Association, Inc. (IHSAA)
Founded in 1903, the purpose of the Indiana High School Athletic Association, Inc. (IHSAA) is to encourage, regulate and give direction to wholesome amateur interschool athletic competition between its 412 member schools. The Association provides state championship tournament series in 20 sports, 10 for girls and 10 for boys. Approximately 160,000 student athletes participate in IHSAA sports on an annual basis.
IHSAA 13-14/14