Reservoir, South Carroll win first state titles

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - As soon as Reservoir coach Carole Ferrante walked into Ritchie Coliseum for her team’s Maryland 3A semifinal match against Towson last week, she was reminded of the worst day in team history.

In last year’s 2A state final, Reservoir won the first two games against North East of Cecil County and appeared on the verge of bringing home their first state title. But the Gators lost their composure, and then the lead, as they fell in five games.

“I had nightmares about this place,” Ferrante said. “But now the demons are gone.”

That’s because Reservoir exorcised them by dominating their two matches at the state tournament by sweeping Towson before capping the greatest season by any team in school history by defeating Huntingtown of Calvert County in the final.

But Reservoir (20-0) wasn’t the only local public school that won its final match of the season.

South Carroll (13-6) joined Reservoir by winning its first volleyball championship in school history on Saturday. The Cavaliers topped Boonsboro, 3-1, to claim the 1A title, and Broadneck (20-1) claimed its fourth championship in seven years with a 3-2 win over Wootton in the 4A final.

The Gators finished their perfect season in dominant fashion against Huntingtown, beating the Hurricanes, 25-13, 25-22, 25-19. Reservoir lost one postseason game — to three-time defending champion Centennial — and just seven games all season.

“We were relaxed and extremely focused on getting to Saturday,” senior outside hitter Jamie Huffman, who had 12 kills and 12 digs in the victory, said. “There was a really big change in our intensity.”

South Carroll coach Marcia Kunkel was in a similar position on Saturday as she was 13 years ago. That’s when Kunkel played for Centennial, which defeated the Cavaliers in the 3A final. But this season, the first-year coach guided South Carroll to the title she prevented it from winning as a teenager.

“I think it’s a little bit more satisfying as a coach,” Kunkel said. “Having been there as a player, all the things that I was taught, I’m now passing on to these girls.”

Kunkel expected her girls to play for the title from the first practice, but five losses in seven matches during October rattled the Cavaliers’ confidence. However, the Cavaliers defeated Carroll County rival Liberty on the final day of the regular season, which set the tone for their playoff run.

“We had a massive slump up to that point. We had a few games where it was not looking good for us,” South Carroll senior Kelsey Franklin said. “We beat Liberty, which is a county rival, a team we’ve always wanted to beat. We hadn’t beaten a big team up until then. That’s when we realized our potential.”

mpeters@baltimoreexaminer.com

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