The match was over for about an hour Thursday night when the Emmaus girls volleyball team returned to the school from Liberty High School, where it had just made history.<\/p>\n
Their excitement was still palpable as they got off the team bus and huddled one last time before dispersing to their families.<\/p>\n
In a classic championship match, the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference\u2019s top seeds went toe-to-toe and to the wire. The Green Hornets got down to unbeaten and top-seeded Bethlehem Catholic two sets to none, but, as they have done all season, they refused to quit. They fought back for a memorable 23-25, 24-26, 25-23, 25-22, 15-13 victory and the program\u2019s first league championship.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was phenomenal,\u201d Emmaus coach Jessica Olang said. \u201cThe amount of pride I feel for what these girls did tonight \u2026 was unreal. But everything in our season was setting us up for this moment. It really was. We\u2019ve had to overcome so much, and these girls have had to stick to each other like glue. They had to learn how to fight through adversity. We\u2019ve had a couple of five-setters \u2026 thank you, Parkland \u2026 and we were prepared for that situation. They hung tough. The defense was unbelievable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olang, who is the daughter of longtime area volleyball coach Sue Arndt, said that even though Emmaus had lost the first two sets, her team didn\u2019t lose confidence because there was very little separation between the teams. Emmaus actually had a 23-21 lead, but couldn\u2019t hold on.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told the girls that I am not even calling that second set a loss,\u201d Olang said. \u201cWe were right there. It could have gone either way. We had the momentum and we just had to keep it going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olang said \u201csome strange stuff happened\u201d in the beginning of the third set.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had the wrong server and things like that, but the girls kept their heads on and capitalized on every moment that they could,\u201d Olang said. \u201cOur offense came on really strong, and there was no turning back from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alyssa Heffner settled the offense with 51 assists and added six kills. She also had 15 digs and two aces. Amanda Rivera had 18 kills, and Fiona Answini, Rosie Landino, and Claudia Walls each reached double figures in kills. Sophomore Emma Nesfeder, who started the season as a reserve setter, moved into the starting lineup as a middle hitter after two of Emmaus\u2019 best players \u2014 Maleya Hinds and Andraya Flowers \u2014 went down with injuries and delivered a solid all-around performance.<\/p>\n
But it was the defense that stood out the most as Emmaus collected 124 digs, led by Corrine Slivka\u2019s 25 and Sophia Freemont\u2019s 20.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just had to play as a team and count on each other,\u201d Heffner said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere really was no strategy,\u201d Rivera said. \u201cWe just said we\u2019re going to play, we\u2019re going to give it our all, and whatever happens, happens. In the fourth or fifth set, we started to think more about what\u2019s open, what do we have, and not just swing away. We knew we were so close. We knew their weaknesses, and we just had a lot of motivation because we knew we were so close. We just never let a ball drop and went for everything. I don\u2019t know. It doesn\u2019t feel real that we made history.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was the second straight year Becahi lost in five sets in the league finals. In 2024, the Golden Hawks (20-1) lost a thriller to Allentown Central Catholic, and several of the girls had said they desperately wanted to get the gold this time, but it wasn\u2019t meant to be. Instead, it was Emmaus\u2019 time.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the girls are in the gym working so hard every single day, you want it so bad for them,\u201d Olang said. \u201cBut the hardest part of coaching is knowing that you\u2019re not going to get on the court and do it for them. They have to get it done, and it was so rewarding to watch them do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olang, who has her mom and sister, Lindsay Olang, along with Kelsey Nilsen and Emily Elek on the staff, said that the strong connections of the coaches made it even more special.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have the most incredible coaching staff,\u201d Olang said. \u201cI always joke and say if I dropped over, any one of them could take over tomorrow and do a fantastic job. I am so grateful for each and every one of the coaches. They\u2019re awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before the team left the school parking lot, Olang told the girls they would be off on Friday, but the work would resume soon with districts up next. A scrimmage between Emmaus and newly-crowned Colonial League champion Southern Lehigh was arranged for Monday.<\/p>\n
Emmaus has won a District 11 title before, taking the gold in 1995 when Arndt was the coach. Earlier this year, the Green Hornets celebrated the 50th anniversary of the start of the program with a special reunion. They would like the special occasions to continue with a strong showing in the District 11 4A tournament, which will begin next week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll reset, stay focused and just keep doing what we\u2019re doing,\u201d Oland said. \u201cWe put ourselves in great position because Freedom had the first seed before tonight, but now we moved ahead of them as the No. 1 with the preferential seeding. We\u2019ll play our first match in the quarterfinals on Thursday. We\u2019ll scrimmage Southern Lehigh to help get us ready. It\u2019s nice because we don\u2019t normally play each other. But we\u2019re going to enjoy this. These girls deserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sparkling Spartans<\/p>\n
While Emmaus had never won a league title before, Southern Lehigh made it 11 straight titles in the Colonial League with a 3-0 win (25-11, 25-13, 25-20) over Northwestern Lehigh in the championship match at Catasauqua Thursday night.<\/p>\n
Eliana Marques had a solid all-around performance for the Spartans (18-0) with 23 assists, a kill, four aces, eight digs, and three blocks. Natalie Pristas chipped in 14 kills, six digs, and five blocks, and Zoe Siuta had three aces, four kills, two assists, and six blocks. Mia Stanten and Bella Germani hustled on the defensive end with 14 and 12 digs, respectively.<\/p>\n
The Spartans, who won the District 11 3A title last year, will be the top seed in this year\u2019s tournament.<\/p>\n
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