Montgomery Catholic volley coach Sellers Dubberley believes there was a tangible moment when his team turned the corner and never looked back.

After falling to its rival early in area play, a second meeting was only two weeks away and a restless Dubberley sent out a late-night text message to his players that held a simple charge.

“I’m tired of losing to this team. Mark my words, we will beat that team and end their season.”

Mission accomplished.

The second-ranked Knights prevented a 3-peat as they earned a 3-1 win over No. 1 Trinity Presbyterian, 10-25, 25-15, 25-23 and 25-16, in the 2022 AHSAA Class 4A title match Wednesday at Birmingham’s Bill Harris Arena.

“This moment has been a long time coming for this group,” Dubberley said. “It’s really been a culmination of two years of a lot of really, really hard work. I’m extremely, extremely proud of this group of girls. Nobody, except for me and them, knows what we’ve been through, what we’ve pushed through and what we’ve accomplished. It’s the ending we feel we deserved.”

Montgomery Catholic (31-10) wins its first state title in program history while keeping Trinity Presbyterian from a third consecutive title. The Wildcats won the first meeting in the series this season but fell to Montgomery Catholic each time afterward.

Senior Allyse Rudolph took home tournament MVP honors in leading the Knights with 18 kills and six digs in the title match.

“It means a lot to lead my team,” Rudolph said. “I’m more excited about the state championship than the MVP. I’m just glad I got to do it with my best friends.”

Trinity Presbyterian dominated the opening set, bolting out to a 6-0 lead before building a 24-5 advantage over the Knights. Montgomery Catholic scored five straight times to cut the deficit to 13 points but Reese Patterson clinched the set for the Wildcats with a kill off an assist by Addison Cherry.

Montgomery Catholic reasserted its regular-season dominance in the second set, fending off an experienced Wildcats team that consistently fought back from multiple droughts. The Knights opened up a 5-1 lead in the second frame, Trinity Presbyterian tying the set up almost immediately, and built an 18-11 lead before closing out the set on a 6-1 run.

The Knights opened the third and fourth sets with 4-1 leads and only relinquished the advantage late in the third frame. Trinity Presbyterian responded in the third set with an 8-0 run, taking a 9-4 lead, and battled to within a single point before Lennon McAnnally struck the dagger with a set-clinching kill off an assist from Maria Schwarz.

The Wildcats built on its early lead in the final set, growing the advantage to 12-6 and eventually clinching the match with a 5-1 closing run punctuated by another Schwarz to McAnnally kill.

“It’s a great feeling but every point has to lead up to that,” McAnnally said. “It’s not just me. We are a team and a family.”

Stat sheet: Schwarz led the Knights with 38 assists, 14 digs and three aces, followed by McAnnally with 14 kills and 12 digs. Harper Howell had nine kills and two blocks and Mally Barranco added 26 digs.

For the Wildcats, Emma Kate Smith led the way with 15 kills, followed by Reese Patterson with 14 kills. Cherry finished with 34 assists and eight digs, and Grey Bendle and Isabel Hill combined for 38 digs. Emma Moody contributed eight kills.

All-Tournament Team: Joining Rudolph (MVP) on the All-Tournament team were teammates McAnnally and Schwarz, along with Trinity Presbyterian’s Cherry and Patterson and Smith.