This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Orem • Some teams that enter a state tournament as the fourth-best team from their own region certainly are just glad to be there. But they also know that a probable first-round exit at the hands of another region's champ is their imminent fate.
On Friday, however, at the Class 2A state volleyball tourney, South Sevier turned that old story upside-down.
The Rams may have entered state as only the fourth-place finisher from Region 13, but they'll greet the last day of the season as one of the best four teams in the classification.
South Sevier outlasted Region 14's top seed, Rowland Hall, in five sets to open its day at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University. Then the Rams recovered from a 2-1 deficit in the quarterfinals to beat Emery 25-20, 18-25, 15-25, 25-20, 15-11 to advance to Saturday's semifinal round.
Awaiting South Sevier in the final four today will be top-ranked Delta, with whom the Rams are well acquainted. Delta, which swept Wasatch Academy and Maeser Prep, was the Region 13 champ.
"We're gonna be tired, going back to back in five sets, but we know Delta and we know what they're going to do," said Brett Beagley, in his first year as the South Sevier coach. "Yes, they're very good but we're going to come out and play them. I've seen stranger things happen."
Beagley, previously the head coach for a very successful 11-year stint at Richfield, knew enough of his current squad not to panic despite a lopsided game-three loss to Emery in which almost everything went wrong for the Rams.
The Spartans, themselves only a third-seed from their region, sprinted out to an 11-3 lead and rolled to the set victory.
"Yeah, we just wanted to get that one over with. I think that ended and I still had a timeout," Beagley said. "I didn't want it to stop. I wanted it to get over with.
"I've seen it and I knew that, if we had a minute to regroup, we'd do that," he added. "We're Jekyll and Hyde, but they have a short memory and that's what you like to have with volleyball players."
South Sevier broke an 18-18 tie in the fourth set with a 6-1 run, including four straight points behind the serve of junior Bailey Palmer — one that came on a back-row kill by Palmer herself.
In the fifth, Palmer again was behind the line during four consecutive points that gave the Rams a critical early 7-4 advantage. Palmer and senior McKenzie Jenson combined for five kills in the fifth set.
"Every team has their ups and downs. It's just important to keep your head high," Palmer said. "You've just got to go point by point. You can't focus on the last one — it's in the past."
In the other semifinal today, North Summit will face Enterprise after eliminating Kanab 26-24, 25-19, 25-17 in the quarterfinals. Enterprise, the defending 2A state champs, won a battle of Wolves by eliminating North Sevier 25-16, 25-11, 25-14. —
Prep volleyball results
Class 1A
Opening Round
Rich def. Bryce Valley 25-16, 25-20, 25-21
Tintic def. Green River 25-23, 25-20, 25-17
Monument Valley def. St. Joseph 25-20, 25-19, 22-25, 25-17
Panguitch def. Manila 25-9, 25-15, 25-16
Monticello def. Piute 25-23, 25-18, 25-8
Milford def. Tabiona 19-25, 25-16, 25-20, 26-24
Duchesne def. Wayne 25-10, 25-14, 25-13
Intermountain Christian def. Valley 25-18, 25-11, 21-25, 25-14
Quarterfinals
Rich def. Tintic 20-25, 25-17, 25-16, 25-9
Panguitch def. Monument Valley 25-15, 25-14, 25-18
Monticello def. 25-18, 25-19, 25-19
Duchesne def. Intermountain Christian 25-20, 25-20, 25-23
Today
Semifinals
Rich vs. Panguitch, 9:30am
Monticello vs. Duchesne, 9:30am
Championship at 4:00pm, Utah Valley University
Class 2A
Opening Round
Maeser Prep def. Grand County 25-17, 23-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-13
Delta def. Wasatch Academy 25-4, 25-15, 25-8
South Sevier def. Rowland Hall 22-25, 26-24, 21-25, 25-23, 15-13
Emery def. South Summit 25-13, 20-25, 18-25, 25-17, 15-10
Kanab def. Waterford 25-22, 25-23, 25-18
North Summit def. San Juan 25-14, 25-23, 25-17
North Sevier def. American Leadership 25-10, 25-11, 25-10
Enterprise def. Layton Christian 25-13, 25-16, 25-13
Quarterfinals
Delta def. Maeser Prep 25-14, 25-15, 25-10
South Sevier def. Emery 25-20, 18-25, 15-25, 25-20, 15-11
North Summit def. Kanab 26-24, 25-19, 25-17
Enterprise def. North Sevier 25-16, 25-11, 25-14
Today
Semifinals
Delta vs. South Sevier, 11 am
North Summit vs. Enterprise, 11 am
Championship at 6:30pm, Utah Valley University