By RICHIE HALL
Reporter Sports Editor
Carmel boys volleyball coach Jon Harmon couldn’t have asked for a better retirement present than what he and his team received on Saturday afternoon.
The Greyhounds were the top seed in this year’s Indiana Boys Volleyball Coaches Association state championship, which took place over the weekend at Southport High School. Carmel lived up to that seed, winning its third state title over second-seeded Noblesville 25-23, 25-20, 25-21 in a hard-fought match.
“The boys were really in tune, they were working really hard,” said Harmon, who had been the coach of the Greyhounds since 2008. “We’d had a rough season, a lot of injuries. A lot of players had to miss for different reasons, and the last three weeks, we’ve just really started to play at a new level.”
After a tight first set, Carmel broke out of a battle with the Millers in the second set by winning eight straight points to 19-10. Noblesville was able to cut the lead slightly, but a kill by Jason Schug gave the Greyhounds the second set.
“I think it went really well,” said Schug of the match. “Our passing held us together. That was the biggest deal for us.”
The third set was back and forth until Carmel won five points in a row, turning a 5-4 deficit into a 9-5 advantage. The ‘Hounds led by as much as 19-11 before the Millers made a run to within 22-20. But Carmel won three of the next four points to close out the match.
“That’s a great program over there, first-year coach Ryan Pence,” said Harmon of Noblesville’s team. “Really talented young men, and I thought they put up a great match.”
“For the most part, I think we played pretty well,” said Pence. “We’ve had a lot of kids being sick this week with the flu and stuff, so I think they came out and played with a lot of heart. There’s not a team that was in this tournament, the top 10, that couldn’t have won it. I’m proud of them.”
After the match, the IBVCA handed out its All-State honors, and also named Carmel’s Joel Kellum as the Mel Young All Tournament MVP. Both Kellum and Schug were named to the All-State team.
“It feels like a great end to the year with some awesome teammates,” said Kellum. “I love the journey that we’ve had as a team. We’ve put in a lot of hard work and effort and it’s special because it’s our coach’s last season as well. And as seniors, it’s nice to be able to give each other a state championship as well.”
In the morning semi-finals, Carmel beat Cathedral, the defending state champion, 25-20, 25-22, 25-16, while Noblesville defeated Roncalli 25-17, 23-25, 25-17, 25-23. In the Friday night quarter-finals, both teams won in straight sets: The Greyhounds swept Southpot 29-27, 25-16, 25-21 while the Millers took care of Lafayette Jeff 25-17, 27-25, 25-22.
Fishers made its first appearance at the IBVCA state meet in the Friday quarter-finals, falling to Roncalli 25-15, 25-19, 25-23.
IBVCA awards
ALL STATE ATHLETES
Carmel: Michael Hostetler, Jacob Kellum, Joel Kellum, Jason Schug.
Fishers: Chase Christiansen, Mario Capo.
Guerin Catholic: Jacob Banter.
Hamilton Southeastern: Raj Patel.
Noblesville: Kyle Wellman, Cameron Snaden.
ACADEMIC ALL-STATE
Seniors
Carmel: Michael Hostetler, Jason Schug, Ross Weterston.
Fishers: Matt Conaway, Revanth Guttikonda, Lucas Hoffman, Connor Krehibel.
Guerin Catholic: Marcus Jost, Casey Spillane.
Noblesville: Tyler Law, Drew Owens.
Juniors
Carmel: Hayden White.
Fishers: Christian Ibrahim, Suraj Marakani, Alex Williams.
Guerin Catholic: Jason Gandhi, Dylan Stagge.
Noblesville: Brady Nicholson.
The Carmel boys volleyball team won the IBVCA state championship Saturday at Southport High School. The Greyhounds beat Noblesville in a hard-fought straight-set match to win their third state title. (Richie Hall)
Noblesville finished as runner-up at the IBVCA state championship. (Richie Hall)