High School

UIL Texas girls volleyball high school championships: No. 1-ranked Byron Nelson wins crown; Grand Oaks wins 6A DI

New playoff format this year resulted in 11 champions, 5 more than in 2023

Cody Thorn

The Wakeland Wolverines played Cedar Park in the 5A Division II state championship match Saturday.
The Wakeland Wolverines played Cedar Park in the 5A Division II state championship match Saturday. / Michael Horbovetz

By Saturday night, Texas UIL has awarded its largest number of state champions in volleyball history.

Prior to the start of the 2024 season, UIL expanded the postseason in five of the six classes. The only class that wasn’t split into two divisions was Class 1A, the smallest.

Class 2-6A each had two champions—similar to the format of how championships are awarded in Texas high school football.

The change meant semifinal games were held at neutral sites instead of being at Curtis Culwell Center in Garland in past years.

The field that made it to Garland, in the southern part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex were some of the best not only in the state but the nation.

Five of the teams in the finals are ranked in the top 25 in the country in the MaxPreps national rankings that came out on Nov. 20.

CLASS 6A DIVISION II: Trophy Club Byron Nelson d. Houston Stratford, 3-0

Byron Nelson, ranked No. 1 in the country, closed the year on a 36-game winning streak.

“This group is so special and I know every coach says that, but I really mean it,” said Byron Nelson coach Brianne Groth. “I think this has to be like my favorite group, not only because they're extremely talented and skilled, but because they're just great humans, and they're great teammates, and they put others first and they serve.

“It’s been a wild ride, we've gone through ups and downs but these kids find ways to win when they're not playing well. And then when we are playing well, it’s very hard to beat us.”

Nelson, part of Northwest ISD, swept Houston Stratford, 25-20, 25-13 and 25-14 on Saturday night.

Stratford (42-3) was ranked No. 14 in the country heading into the championship game. Byron Nelson didn’t lose to a Class 6A school all year and the only loss was on Aug. 16 against Class 5A Highland Park.

The Bobcats are the first Dallas-Fort Worth team to win a 6A title since Byron Nelson did it in 2019.

Junior Kylie Kleckner, a Washington pledge had 23 kills, 9 digs and 2 blocks to earn championship game MVP honors.

Rice pledge Ashlyn Seay, a junior, added 20 kills for Byron Nelson. Sophomore Sophee Peterson added 42 assists in the win. 

Stratford’s Sarah Hickman, a 6-foot-5 AVCA All-American right side/outside hitter, shared a team-high with 8 kills with Gwen Koss, a junior who is committed to Providence.

A big difference was the success of attacks with Byron Nelson hitting .485 on kill attempts and Stratford hitting .163.

CLASS 6A DIVISION I: Spring Grand Oaks d. Lamar Fulshear, 3-1

No. 18-ranked Grand Oaks earned back-to-back championships, albeit with a division attached this year.

Grand Oaks won the first two sets, 25-24 and 25-18, before the No. 19-ranked Chargers won 25-12 in the third set. The Grizzlies closed it out with a 25-20 win in set four.

The Grizzlies become the first Texas team to win back-to-back titles in consecutive years in the state’s largest classification since Lewisville Hebron three-peated from 2015-17.

Wisconsin pledge Halle Tompson had a double-double with 25 kills and 10 digs for the Grizzlies (42-7) and was named the MVP of the championship game. Pittsburgh signee Samara Coleman, an All-American, added 21 kills and 14 digs for the Grizzlies. 

Bailey Warren, a Wake Forest signee, had 29 kills and 20 digs for Fulshear (39-6).

CLASS 5A DIVISION II: Frisco Wakeland d. Cedar Park, 3-0

In the first trip to the state finals, the No. 22-nationally-ranked Wolverines took home the title on Saturday with a sweep, 25-20, 25-19 and 25-23.

Wakeland knocked off 10-time champion Lucas Lovejoy and then Argyle to reach the finals. The win at Argyle was held at the same location just four days prior. 

Cedar Park, at one point 13-15, had a 21-match winning streak snapped with the loss to finish 34-16.

The last two sets were tied a total of 15 times. In the final set, Wakeland broke a 23-23 tie with a kill by LSU pledge Hannah Lee. The junior, the championship game MVP, had 15 kills. West Virginia signee Sarah Pfiffner had 24 assists and Jaleah Bauss added 10 for Wakeland (35-6). 

Cedar Park’s Joy Udoye had a double-double with 15 kills and 10 digs.

CLASS 5A DIVISION I: Corpus Christi Flour Bluff d. McKinney North, 3-2

In a showdown of programs without a state title, Flour Bluff won the second, fourth and fifth sets to take home the championship on Saturday.

It is the first state title for a Coastal Bend school since Freer won in 2A in 1994.

The final set was tied at 10 before two errors on McKinney (28-12) opened the door for Flour Bluff.

SMU pledge Margaret Croft was championship game MVP and just missed a triple-double with 28 kills, 20 digs and 9 blocks for Flour Bluff. 

All 12 of the losses for the Hornets (38-12) came in August. The title even caught the attention of a famous graduate from Flour Bluff.

McKinney North had a balanced attack with Allyn Brewer (18 kills), Chloe Lewis (15) and Anna Sayman (12) all finishing in double figures. Junior Gabi Rodriguez, a Texas A&M pledge, had 43 digs in the loss. 

CLASS 4A DIVISION I: Decatur d. Bellville, 3-1

In the last game on Friday, the Lady Eagles won 25-22, 25-21, 24-26 and 25-23.

The championship was the sixth for the program in six berths in the finals and came under first-year coach Stormi Snider, who made the move from Ponder prior to this season.

The same day Decatur won the title, the 2014 Decatur Lady Eagle volleyball team was recognized for its state title a decade prior.

East Texas Baptist University signee Lara Hornsby had 16 kills and 26 digs for Decatur and was named the championship game MVP. Peyton Dickinson had a double-double as well with 13 kills and 12 digs for Decatur (32-13).

Bellville (44-6) had more kills — 45 to 43 — than Decatur. Sydney McKay had a game-high 18 kills for the Brahmas. 

CLASS 4A DIVISION II: Wimberley d. Canyon Randall, 3-2

After losing the first two sets on Friday, the Texans won the last three, 25-14, 25-23 and 15-9 to claim the state championship.

History repeated itself for Canyon Randall, which held a 2-0 lead over San Antonio Davenport last year in the Class 4A title game and lost 3-2.

The Alabama signee Laney Hennessee had 18 kills, 15 digs and 3 aces to spark Wimberley (42-3) and earned game MVP accolades.

It was the first title for Wimberley since 2007.

Sidney Soria added a double-double with 15 digs and 10 kills for the Raiders (33-13).

CLASS 3A DIVISION II: Stockdale d. Boyd, 3-1

Stockdale made the state finals for the first time and took home the state title, winning 29-27, 23-25, 25-21 and 25-21.

LeAnn Wise UIL state championship record with 47 kills on 118 attempts to win the MVP award for Stockdale (32-12). Wise broke the previous record of 40, set by Fayetteville’s Brooklyn Jaeger in the 2A finals in 2021. 

Wise added 11 digs, five assists and five aces for the Brahmas.

Sophomore Cami McIntire had 12 kills and 20 assists for Boyd (37-5), which was playing it its second finals. Addy Delgado, a junior, added 23 kills.

CLASS 3A Division I: Bushland d. Goliad, 3-1

After winning the 3A title last year, Bushland won the 3A Division I finals on Friday. The teams split the first two sets, but Bushland won the last two, 25-13 and 25-8.

Mackenzie Sims was the MVP for the second year in a row. She had a triple-double with 24 assists, 11 kills and 10 digs.

The Lady Falcons (45-4) finished with 59 kills, with Ambree Hatfield and Lilyann Shannon sharing the team-high with 15. Bella Babbit had 12 to go with Sims’ 10. 

Goliad (41-6) received a double-double from Maevyn Wunsch with 15 digs and 13 kills.

CLASS 1A: Harrold d. Neches, 3-1

In the first game on Thursday, the Lady Hornets took home the school’s first title in the sport.

Harrold won 25-23, 19-25, 26-24 and 25-21 to finish the year with a 38-6 record.

The MVP of the 1A championship game was Harrold senior Mylie Maness, who had 15 kills goals, 4 assists, and 15 digs. Iyona Willie added 14 kills, while Jaylee Lowe dished out 41 assists in the win.

Kacie Trimble had 31 kills and 10 digs for Neches (38-6).

CLASS 2A DIVISION II: Crawford d. Iola, 3-2

The Lady Pirates kept Iola from winning a second straight title by winning the final set, 15-5. 

In the decisive set, the Lady Bulldogs (45-7) pulled with 6-4, but Crawford (43-5) closed out with seven kills — three from Hattie Hayes.

The senior finished with 20 kills, 3 assists, and 20 digs for Crawford. Bre Featherstone had 23 digs, 7 aces and 12 kills for the Lady Pirates. 

Rylee Goodney contributed 37 assists and 20 digs for Iola.

CLASS 2A DIVISION 1: Johnson City Lyndon B. Johnson d. Wink, 3-2

Back in the finals for the first time since 1994, the Central Texas area school took home the title by winning the final two sets on Thursday.

The Lady Eagles won 25-22 in the fourth set to tie the match. In the final set, they prevailed 15-9 to overcome what was a 2-1 deficit.

Senior Casey Loewer pulled off a triple-double with 16 kills, 14 assists, and 16 digs for LBJ (37-8) and earned MVP honors.

Ava Craig contributed 12 digs and 34 of the LBJ’s 55 assists.

The Lady Cats (42-7) received 33 kills and 18 digs from Aizilyn Dewberry in the contest.

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Cody Thorn
CODY THORN

Cody Thorn is a veteran journalist who covers high school sports across the state of Texas and Missouri. He is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and has covered sports and news since 1999.

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