Claiming the District 9-5A title and a 16th consecutive win, the volleyball team overpowered Heritage 3-0 on Friday in the final home game of the season.

“Friday’s match was pretty consistent over all, our goal was to win in three sets and we accomplished that so it was a really successful night,” senior Ashley Pennington said via text. “We expected Heritage to put up a fight, but we did expect to come out on top.”

Holding a 16-1 district record did not come overnight, as the team had set a goal to win the district championship prior to the start of season.

“We all ended our summer early and came to open gyms and conditioned a lot,” Pennington said via text. “We were very determined to win the district this year and worked so hard everyday in practice and it’s feels amazing that we finally get that title as district champs.”

One of the seven seniors on the team, Pennington thinks the district title shows what the team can do.

“As a senior having such a fun and winning season for my last year is such a blessing and I’m so proud of my girls for working so hard because I know they all want it just as bad as I do,” Pennington said via text. “I think winning district really opened our eyes to what we can really do and how far we can go into playoffs, and a confidence booster.”

The Redhawks’ grind does not stop after winning a title, as the girls prepare for their last District 9-5A match against Lebanon Trail on Tuesday, as well as shifting into playoff mode.

“Now that we’re going to playoffs, we’re really focusing on our mentality and our connection on the court,” senior Jessica Gordon said via text. “We know we will be playing harder teams in the future, and especially with the possibility of us playing Lovejoy, we are really trying to step up our game.”

Falling short to Lovejoy in a close 3-2 loss during last year’s 5A Regional Quarterfinals, the Redhawks hope to bounce back against the Leopards in hopes of advancing farther into playoffs.

“We’ve set our goals very high for playoffs,” Pennington said via text. “This year we plan to win the first two again and then take down Lovejoy, who took us out last year, and go from there.