CHARLESTON – State volleyball championship titles under Musselman head coach Shawn Martz have been commonplace.
Heading into the 2021 Class AAA state tournament, Martz had guided Musselman to seven titles. Now you can make that eight.
After beating Hurricane and George Washington to reach the finals, the Applemen dispatched cross-town rival Hedgesville 3-1 Saturday for back-to-back championships.
“I am just really happy for the kids. They have worked their butts off and done all of the right things all year long,” Martz said. “They have earned the right to be here. They have earned the right to win. I am super happy for them. We have been the best team in the state all year and it just feels great to be able to show that down here. This is probably one of our best seasons ever, if not the best ever.”
The match looked to be a runaway early when Musselman beat the Eagles 25-10 in set one. Hedgesville responded with a 25-21 win in set two.
“Our kids knew that (Hedgesville) was capable. We went five (sets) with them the first time we played and they have taken a set off us every time we have played (since),” Martz said. “We certainly weren’t taken them lightly. We have done that a couple times against them, but they played well in that second set, so give them credit. I knew our kids weren’t going to panic. They stayed composed and got it back together.”
Musselman took control of the match again with a 25-20 win in set three before closing out the match with a 25-18 win in set four.
“I thought we served and passed pretty well and got them out of rhythm. There has been great leadership all year long and they are a great group of kids,” Martz said.
