The Fredonia girls volleyball team is pictured with the Section VI Class B overall champion plaque after defeating Depew in Friday’s crossover match 25-23, 25-16, 25-18 at Lake High School Shore. Pajama photo by Braden Carmen

ANGOLA — “We deserve this moment. »

Fredonia captain Elizabeth Morris wasn’t afraid to speak candidly about the respect her team has earned this season.

Morris first highlighted how hard Fredonia has worked in recent years to climb from the bottom of Section VI to a section championship. Friday night added another accomplishment to Fredonia’s most successful volleyball season in nearly four decades.

The lights were bright, but the Billies had their place in the spotlight. Any doubts about that were silenced when Fredonia won all three sets against the Depew Wildcats, 25-23, 25-16 and 25-18, to win the Class B girls crossover volleyball match Friday night at Lake Shore High School.

“It’s incredible. I don’t have the words to say how incredible this moment is. I worked hard, the girls worked hard over the years. It just goes to show that with consistent persistence and hard work, it will pay off. You will achieve your goals,” Fredonia head coach Amanda Krakowiak said.

Fredonia advanced to Friday’s crossover game by defeating the defending Section VI champions, the Southwestern Trojans, on Wednesday. The victory gave Fredonia its first sectional title in 38 years. But there was still one win left for the Billies to take the overall Section VI crown, and with the way the competition started Friday, it wasn’t going to be easy.

From the first point, the first set was a battle. Both teams fought hard for every point, and every time Fredonia (13-6, Class B2 champion) started to pull away, Depew (12-7, Class B1 champion) had an answer.

The Billies led 20-16 after an ace from Londyn Wilmot triggered a Depew timeout, but the Wildcats responded by cutting the deficit to just one point. Fredonia started to pull away again with Elizabeth Morris serving, but once again Depew cut it to one point at 24-23.

That’s when Fredonia called a timeout, just one point away from a victory in the first set. As the ball sailed gently over the net and fell to the ground, Fredonia scored the point and celebrated as any team that hadn’t reached this stage in decades would, with several players hugging each other. with hugs as they jumped around. joy.

But rather than let this celebration be enough, it was only the beginning. Fredonia experienced its victories throughout the evening, including a big party after each set.

By the third time, it no longer seemed surprising. The first set celebration was just a warm-up for what was to come.

Fredonia used the momentum from its first set victory to take a huge lead to start the second set, with seven straight points in its favor. The barrage to open the second set included a pair of blocks from Wilmot and a violent spike from Lydia LaBarr. Unlike the first set, Fredonia maintained its lead from that point on and led comfortably throughout the second set.

“There’s going to be ups and downs in volleyball, that’s the way it is, but the second you can get that momentum to come back in your favor, it’s huge,” Krakowiak said. “You want to try to maintain that as long as possible.”

The third set started much like the first set, as the first 10 points were split evenly at five each. As Depew began to gain ground, a Fredonia timeout allowed the Billies to regroup to tie the game at 10.

Four points later, stuck at 12-12, Fredonia is making progress. Rather than give the opponent a chance to win the third set like Fredonia did two nights before in the Class B2 final against defending champion Southwestern, Fredonia took the upper hand Friday and advanced. An aggressive Fredonia attack captured 10 of the next 12 points to take a commanding lead, 22-14.

From there, Depew only delayed the inevitable. The final point passed without incident as Fredonia looked to officials for a decision. While the late reaction left Fredonia waiting a few extra seconds to storm the field, the Billies more than made up for the moment with a celebration of their lives.

“It’s so humbling to see what kind of support we have at this point in the playoffs. My daughters and I are very grateful and appreciate everything our fans do to support us,” Krakowiak said.

“To continue to win with this group and bond with this group, it’s such an honor.” I’m so happy to play with them,” said Fredonia senior co-captain Maddie Saunders.

Teammates hugged and danced as classmates and fans stormed the field to celebrate the culmination of Fredonia’s Section VI surge.

“These girls have had their ups and downs. They had difficult seasons and they didn’t give up, they improved. They create success themselves,” Krakowiak said. “…I’m so proud of them. It warms my heart that they followed all the little tips. They put in the time and effort to be persistent and relentless.

As a team, Fredonia had 37 kills, 10 aces and 27 assists. Saunders had all but one of the assists as the offense relied on her ability to set up her teammates, a skill she honed playing every position on the court during her four seasons as a college volleyball athlete.

Kaylen Rollins led the team with 11 kills, while LaBarr and Wilmot each had seven, Katherine Fortna had six and Morris had five. Saunders and Wilmot are tied for the team lead with three aces each.

“We really tried to be very aggressive,” Krakowiak said. “…That’s what helped us be successful.”

Defensively, LaBarr led Fredonia with 11 digs, while Rollins had seven, Morris had six and Madison Ambrose had five. The ‘Billies had 38 digs as a team. Wilmot also made four of the team’s six blocks on the night.

Fredonia now advances to regional qualifiers for the state playoffs Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Lake Shore High School. The winner of this competition will advance to Section IV to determine who advances to the state championships in Glens Falls Nov. 22-24.

“We face very competitive teams in our league and even outside our league. I strive to go find competitive tournaments, play at bigger schools, play at schools that you don’t see. All of these things are in preparation for the playoffs,” Krakowiak said. “If you don’t plan and try to prepare, you’ll never succeed.”

Fredonia has now reached the top of Section VI. Next week they will find out if this climb will continue even higher.

“All the memories with this team, the great matches, I will keep them forever in my heart. They are so important during and after the game,” Saunders said. “These are memories I will keep forever.”