SJCHS girls win school's first

Alex Salvo

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The Jayhawks hoist the school's first 1A UHSAA State Volleyball Championship trophy after the winning game. Courtesy photos/Alex Salvo

OGDEN/DRAPER — The Saint Joseph Catholic High School Jayhawks girls won the school’s first 1A UHSAA State Championship title in volleyball at Utah Valley University Oct. 31 in four sets against the Piute Thunderbirds Oct. 31.

"Last year’s loss in the final game broke my heart," said senior outside hitter Britt Sederholm, after the Jayhawks won the school’s first volleyball championship with a 25-11, 25-9, 19-25, 25-12 victory over Piute High School.

"We had a bad taste in our mouth from last year," agreed Ray Franklin, SJCHS volleyball coach.

As a result, Franklin gave his team the option to start practicing this year in February. "We’ve just been working hard for months," he added. "Their hard work paid off with a dominant championship run."

"We are not only happy for the girls and the Saint Joseph community, but also for our wonderful coach, Ray Franklin, who was long overdue for a state championship," said Alex Salvo, SJCHS athletic director. "Ray has been the coach for more than 15 years and has put so much effort into bringing this program to a championship level."

The win is "ironic," said Franklin. When Franklin became the head coach, he took over for Cindy White who was pregnant with her daughter, Mady White, now a junior on the team.

"Cindy White was a big part of our success this year, because she had been coaching four girls, including her daughter, Mady, since they were 10 on a club team," said Franklin. "When they got to high school, I had her come and be the assistant coach."

Last year going into the championship game the team wasn’t mentally prepared, "so from the moment we left that gym last year until our last game it was all about getting back to the championship game and making sure we didn’t make the same mistake," said Franklin. "All of the team members were an essential piece of the puzzle for all of our team’s victories. We had a lot of talented girls on the team and they all played as well as I had ever seen them play in the final game."

The Jayhawks were undefeated in Region 18 and only lost three matches all year, two to 3A teams and one to a 4A team.

Meanwhile, the Judge Memorial Catholic High School girls volleyball team concluded their fall season finishing seventh out of 31 teams in its first year in the UHSAA Class 4A.

The Lady Bulldogs volleyball team coached by Matt Carlson, were led by five seniors: Taylor Gustafson, captain; Amelia Luttmer, Emmi Mancini, Channie McDonald, and Liz Nicponski. These girls were all part of the 2012 squad that earned the Region 10 title; Judge Memorial’s first region title in girls’ volleyball. A large contingent of committed underclassmen rounded out the 2013 squad as the team moved to 4A competition.