Cy Falls volleyball team advances to state tournament

Nov. 14, 2011—The Cypress Falls High School volleyball team defeated District 17-5A opponent Cypress Woods in the Region III final on Saturday at the Campbell Center in Aldine to advance to the UIL Volleyball State Tournament, set for Nov. 17-19 at Texas State University’s Strahan Coliseum in San Marcos.

Cypress Falls (40-7) will face McKinney Boyd in the state semifinals on Friday, Nov. 18 at 5 p.m. The winner will play the winner between San Antonio Johnson and Coppell on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m.

The Lady Eagles will shoot for their first state championship since 2000, when current head coach Kathy Stephenson led a 38-2 Cypress Falls team to the title.

“It’s very exciting, somewhat overwhelming and a little crazy, but we’ve done this before,” Stephenson said. “This is a goal that the girls have been talking about since last spring, and it’s a lot harder making it happen because there are a lot of outstanding teams out there. Fortunately, we’re getting better and stronger as the playoffs have gone on.”

The Lady Eagles first won their regional semifinal over Deer Park on Friday in five games (23-25, 12-25, 25-15, 25-19, 15-10) to advance to the regional final. Cypress Woods had defeated Fort Bend Clements in three games (25-19, 27-25, 26-24) to also advance to the final, where Cypress Falls prevailed in three games (25-22, 25-22, 25-19).

“We were down 0-2 against Deer Park, and to come back with such determination and win the last three games shows you the kind of character our players have,” Stephenson said. “We had beaten Cy Woods at the beginning of the season in a tournament, but they came back and beat us twice in district. They’re a powerhouse, and we knew what was coming at us and that we just had to play our game and stay focused. It was a joy to watch them play together and stay mentally tough to win that match.”

Cypress Woods finishes its season as the 17-5A champion and Region III finalist.