Conway Lady Cats Varsity Volleyball made it to the 6A tournament in Springdale, where they had a first-round bye. Their first game was against the hosting team Har-Ber on October 30, and they won 3-1. Har-Ber won the first set against Conway 25-23, but the Lady Cats bounced back to win three straight sets. This win against Har-Ber led to Conway advancing to the Semi-Finals, where they would face off against the Fayetteville Bulldogs. Senior setter Madden Cabantac said, “Losing in the finals last year was extra motivating this year. We did a lot of lifting, and a lot of us have just worked hard individually and we had more team love and bonding so we connected better on the court.”
They faced Fayetteville in the semi-finals on October 31 in a tight game. This was a highly anticipated and intense match, as this was the championship game last year, where Conway barely lost to Fayetteville. Junior hitter Wren Jones said, “ The emotions before the game were really hyped up and excited because we lost to them last year and I think that helped a lot to fight through the game.” This game was for the ages as the Bulldogs won the first two sets, but the Wampus Cats played them tight in those two sets and responded by winning two straight sets to play an intense 5th set. The 5th set was fiercely fought by both Fayetteville and Conway, but the Lady Cats came out on top and won 15-13. This resulted in a Conway win 3-2, which would send them to the 6A State Finals.
The State Champion Ship was played against the Bentonville Tigers on November 2 at Bank OZK Arena in Hot Springs. Bentonville took the first set 25-19 against Conway, but as they have done throughout the playoffs the Lady Cats responded. Conway would go on to win the second set 25-19, the third set 25-17, and they would win the fourth set dominantly with a score of 25-12, thus winning the state championship 3-1. Many players had a huge role in becoming State champions, but the player who won MVP was Senior Hitter Madison Derden. Derden was electric alongside Jones and combined for over 20 kills against Bentonville. “This win shows our determination from a tough loss last year,” Derden said. “Coming back from a loss in the championship last year fired us up to work hard all year and win this time.”
This 2024 Conway Lady Cats Varsity Volleyball team will go down in history as they have cemented their legacy with a State championship, only the third in school history. One of the key parts of the Lady Cats’ success was the incredible play from this year’s seniors. These seniors will be missed both on and off the court next year, but Conway’s underclassmen have shown that they will be ready to take the next step and help defend their championship next year.
