Last weekend was a memorable one for Central Texas volleyball as three Austin-area teams advanced to UIL state championship matches in Garland. Cedar Park, which was a state finalist in 2024 as well, swept top-ranked Argyle to bring home the Class 5A Division II title while Austin High lost an epic five-set battle to Southlake Carroll in Class 6A DII and Wimberley fell in four sets to Eagle Mountain in Class 4A DII.

All three teams won five playoff matches to reach the state finals. And as it turned out, all three teams also had to end up playing a district rival for the regional championship: Austin High beat Dripping Springs, Cedar Park beat Liberty Hill and Wimberley downed Canyon Lake.

Cedar Park beat top-ranked Argyle in three close sets (26-24, 25-22, 26-24) and Stanford commit Joy Udoye was the championship match’s MVP after the 6-foot-2 senior slammed 13 kills to lead the Timberwolves (39-12) to the state title. She finished her prep career with 2,051 kills, 1,174 digs, 167 assists and 168 blocks. She had the winning kill in the first set.

Mya Cheatum had the final two kills in the second set and seven overall. Sibley Oster also had seven kills and added 12 assists, and Katelyn Hughes had 17 assists.

It was the first volleyball state championship in Cedar Park history.

Southlake Carroll came from behind to beat Austin High 27-25, 17-25, 23-25, 25-19, 15-10. The Maroons’ state runner-up finish was the program’s best season since winning the 1992 Class 5A state championship. Setter Maggie McCarroll, who’ll play for Arkansas, had 15 kills, 24 assists and 14 digs while USC-bound Riley Malloy added 14 kills and 13 digs. Future Texas Longhorn Camille Presley added nine kills.

Leading two sets to one, the Maroons (42-6) were up 17-12 in the fourth set only to see the Dragons stage a 13-2 rally to even the match and force a fifth set. They led 8-4 in the fifth set before the Dragons’ 11-2 scoring run to win the title.

Wimberley had a tremendous season but ran into 6-foot-4 U.S. National Team member Keoni Williams, a high school All-American who’ll play for Nebraska, in a 15-25, 20-25, 25-22, 18-25 loss to Eagle Mountain. Williams pounded 22 kills.

Eagle Mountain took the first two sets and led 17-13 in the third, but Wimberley’s Lilli Sandoval reeled off seven straight points, including a pair of aces, as the Texans rallied for the third set win. And Trinity Laney’s blistering kill tied the fourth set 7-7, but Eagle Mountain then went on an 11-1 scoring run for an 18-8 lead, then held off the Texans for the win.

Laney had 14 kills and Sandoval had 12 for the Texans (46-6), who advanced to their second straight championship match. Wimberley is 86-9 over the last two years.