Slidell secures second-consecutive division I title in win over Dominican

by: Travis Connelley // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

LAFAYETTE — In last year’s Division I title game, Slidell ended Dominican’s three-year state championship win streak. 

Following Saturday’s rematch, the Tigers started one of their own. 

No. 3 Slidell defeated top-seeded Dominican 25-23, 25-23, 27-25 to repeat as Division I State Champions. 

“Believe it or not, I am in shock and in awe,” Slidell head coach Danny Tullis said. “But I truly believe that if you are disciplined, super disciplined, and you take care of everything on your side and you play with the right passion, and put all of those things together, then you only worry about being the best teammate you can be.” 

Dominican tried to set the tone early, but Slidell went on a 7-1 rally, which included a pair of kills from Emma Pippenger and one from Ava Barduca. When the dust settled, the Tigers enjoyed an 11-5 advantage.

Dominican managed to narrow the gap to as little as four, but couldn’t pull any closer as the Slidell middle hitters and outside hitters both proved to be a thorn in the side of Dominican, both offensively and defensively. 

Down the stretch, Dominican tried to get back in the contest but couldn’t match the intensity of Slidell as the Tigers took the first set. 

A strong start to the second set proved beneficial for the Tigers as it provided a huge boost in momentum. 

Barduca once again stepped up, getting a pair of kills before Peppinger recorded three of her own, helping push the Slidell lead to five at 9-4. 

Despite a Dominican timeout in an attempt to regroup, the Tigers kept pouring it on, growing their lead to 12 at 20-8. 

But Dominican showed a strong sense of resilience and rode the back of Mallie Mahoney. The senior outside hitter helped lead a 9-2 run where she accounted for five points, all on kills. 

In the end, though, the Tigers held on to secure the second set. 

Once again, the Tigers caught fire early on and rode momentum early in the third set. A pair of kills from Barduca were complemented by one from Tessa Symons. Afterward, Pippenger got into a groove, scoring the next three Slidell points, helping the Tigers grow their lead. 

Later in the set, Dominican battled back, tying the match at 18, but the Tigers’ mids and outsides once again stood out on the defensive end, being a wall against the Dominican attack. Slidell rattled off five consecutive points to pull away. 

And even though Dominican showed why it is one of the best teams in Division I, rallying late to tie the set at 25, it could not get the final push as the Tigers scored the final two points to claim the match and secure their second-straight title.

Barduca, who was named Most Outstanding in the match, led Slidell in kills and blocks with 21 and six, respectively. Ava Labat also recorded six blocks to go along with her team-high 46 assists. 

After the match, Barduca said that she is proud to be named Most Outstanding. 

“I feel like sometimes, middles get overlooked because sometimes we cannot be that big of a position,” she said. “But we can really contribute a lot to the team. I was really surprised when I got it. I know that I did a lot, but our outsides did incredible, our other middle did incredible.” 

Dominican head coach Jessica Chatellier says that even though her team didn’t come away with the win, she believes that yet another state title appearance has only further cemented her program’s legacy. 

“I can say a lot of things about this program,” she said. “This program has definitely now set a standard to be here on this day, and I can say that this group fought so hard to uphold this standard. Every day they fight hard, even on the tough days.” 

Mahoney had a strong outing for Dominican with 16 kills and four aces. Rani Smith also stood out with eight kills and four blocks. Molly Baker posted 41 assists and 18 digs.