Hackett won its second straight state title Saturday night at Bank OZK Arena, sweeping Paris in three sets to claim the Class 3A volleyball championship.
A year after winning the Class 2A state title, Hackett (22-2) moved to 3A, but the Lady Hornets continued to dominate their opponents, knocking off Paris, 25-13, 25-14, 25-23.
Hackett head coach Bridget Freeman said that winning the school's second state title was "just exhilarating."
"My seniors, they are the ones who started the program when they were in seventh grade," she said. "So this is just our fifth year to have senior high volleyball. We started in junior high as the very first year with those kiddos and, I mean, to finish it with that group of seniors -- man, it's just icing on the cake. We just stepped up into 3A, and we just really wanted to prove that we could do it."
Saturday night marked the third time the two 3A-West powerhouses met this season.
"We knew Paris was great; they've always been great. And the first time (we played them), we lost in five, and it stunk. And so the next time, we beat them in four. And so we just kind of had to get them in three. So, I mean, they just took it. They just went after it."
Freeman's daughter, Madeline, got things going for the team early, and she helped to propel the team throughout the match. The junior setter also earned the tournament MVP award, finishing the nightcap with 14 kills, four aces and two blocks.
Hackett took a quick 4-0 lead behind the service of Freeman, leading to a timeout by Paris coach Jordan Devine. The Lady Eagles (16-4) got things going with sophomore Maggie Richey setting up 6-foot junior Akira Robinson for the kill. Hackett, however, soon upped its lead with back-to-back blocks from freshman Alona Rothwell to go up 12-4. Jamye Durham iced the game with a drop shot.
"We could have played better, there's no doubt about it," Devine said. "We're pretty young, so I think the big stage got to them. But we'll go back and get ready for this next year. (Hackett) fought for it. They fought for it, and we didn't."
Junior MacKenzie Mendenhall put the Lady Hornets on the board first in the second set, taking a 6-2 advantage after a Paris net violation. Although the Lady Eagles came within 13-11, attack errors plagued Paris. An assist from Freeman to Vaughn sealed the win.
Freeman started the third set behind the line as Hackett jumped out to a 6-0 lead, thanks in part to three aces from Freeman. The Lady Eagles began a comeback, though, with a drop shot from Robinson to come within three. Paris remained close for the remainder of the set, later knotting the score at 19-19 with a kill from junior Alyssa Komp off the assist from freshman Carsyn Johnson.
Hackett senior Madi Taylor helped bring it home, setting up kills for Freeman and Vaughn to secure the state title.
Vaughn tallied eight kills, five digs and two blocks for Hackett, Durham had six kills, six digs, four blocks and an ace, and Taylor finished with 11 assists and an ace. Rothwell had four blocks and two kills, and Byrd added 4 digs.
Robinson finished with eight kills, two blocks and an assist for Paris, Forst had seven kills with seven digs, and Richey had 11 assists and four digs. Johnson had eight assists, Komp had seven digs and five kills, and Hart added four kills and three digs.