STARKVILLE — When Caledonia senior Tori Brooks unleashed a scorching shot off the face of an unwitting Vancleave player for an emphatic kill early in the second set of Thursday’s MHSAA Class 4A semifinal, the Confederates thought they’d found some much-needed momentum.
But when the Bulldogs responded on the very next point with a laser of a kill into an undefended corner on the ‘Feds’ side of the court, it was gone just as quickly.
The two-point sequence, as it turned out, neatly summed up Thursday’s semifinal match: Caledonia opened the door. Vancleave slammed it shut again. Rinse and repeat.
The ‘Feds had some rallies in them but never experienced sustained success, and Caledonia’s season came to an end two victories away from the ring the team chased all year with a 3-0 loss to Vancleave (38-4) at the Newell-Grissom Building in Starkville. Set scores were 25-14, 25-14 and 25-15.
“I felt like we went out there and gave it all,” Caledonia coach Samantha Brooks said.
Coach Brooks said she thought the ‘Feds’ defense performed admirably against a punishing Vancleave attack — something else was missing.
“Our offense wasn’t as strong as it needs to be when we play a team like this,” she said.
Tori Brooks acknowledged as much. The Bulldogs were masterful at keeping the ball in play, frustrating Brooks and Caledonia’s other hitters.
“It’s hard,” she said. “It’s hard to try to put it where they’re not.”
The Bulldogs typically covered the entire court, so when Caledonia (27-8) tried to do just what Brooks laid out, the ‘Feds tended to overshoot, hit wide or tap the ball into the net.
“It was just the unforced errors that we had,” Tori Brooks said. “It was just our errors.”
Coach Brooks, aware of the challenge of facing a team as fundamental and consistent as Vancleave, said her team played as well as it could given the opponent.
“They’re just a team we have to play up to, and I feel like we did,” she said. “We brought our A-game other than being a little offensively weak. They wanted it, they gave it their all, and that’s all I can ask for.”
The loss caps Caledonia’s season with a 19-3 record, including a 10-0 mark in its region. The ‘Feds advanced further than they had in any season in school history.
“This is probably my favorite season,” Tori Brooks said. “I’ve bonded with the team really good. We’ve had a really good season, and it’s just fun.”
The loss meant the final match for Caledonia’s seven seniors, a couple of whom will go on to play in college. Tori Brooks committed to Itawamba Community College earlier in the week, and setter Camryn Johnson plans to sign with the Mississippi University for Women at next Friday’s National Signing Day. Libero Maddy Suggs will join Johnson at the W and play softball, but Suggs hopes to be able to play volleyball with the Owls as well.
But the loss of a big senior class doesn’t mean the end of Caledonia’s relevance. Far from it.
The ‘Feds’ roster this season featured six juniors, and they’ll take on the responsibility this year’s seniors had.
“I hope my juniors take away the experience of being able to come here and have this opportunity,” coach Brooks said. “I hope going into next season, they can impart that wisdom and that experience on the younger ones.”
Brooks knows the talent her team will lose, but she doesn’t expect Caledonia to miss a beat.
“We’ll be competitive next year as well,” she said.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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