Moment of the Year: Andover volleyball completes comeback to get to state

Varsity Kansas has introduced a new series, Moment of the Year. The series will highlight the top moment or performance from the 2017-18 high school sports season for each of the Wichita-area schools. And now, the Andover Trojans.

Since 2009, Maize had missed the state tournament only once, and Andover had made it only twice.

Often separated by classification, the Trojans and Eagles rarely met in postseason play. But Andover got its crack in 2017 and took full advantage.

The Trojans came back after losing the first game 25-20 to make it to their first state tournament appearance since 2015. Andover outscored Maize 50-30 over the final two games to clinch the substate title.

Andover came in as the heavy underdog after beating Valley Center in the first round. The Trojans had four fewer wins and three more losses than Maize and had lost to the Eagles in straight games less than two months earlier.

Maize had slipped in reaching the state tournament in 2016, but the Eagles were still one of the premier programs in the Wichita area. They had wins against Garden City, Hutchinson and Bishop Carroll, all of which qualified for the state tournament.

Andover just found another gear with seniors Isabelle Reynolds and Olivia Hessman, who finished the season with more than 600 combined kills in 2017.

The Trojans (30-13) fell short in the state tournament, going 1-2 in pool play with a two-game loss to Liberal and a hard-fought three-game defeat to top-seeded Goddard. Andover closed the tournament with a 25-19, 25-15 win over Leavenworth.

Other key moments

• Andover's girls golf team finishes runner-up at the Class 5A tournament, 13 strokes behind St. Thomas Aquinas. Senior Baylee Bloom finishes fourth with a +11, 82.
• The Trojans come home with the third-place trophy after a solid day at the Class 5A boys cross-country meet. Andover places five runners in the top 50, including Asher Moen, who came in sixth.

This story was originally published June 12, 2018 at 12:15 PM with the headline "Moment of the Year: Andover volleyball completes comeback to get to state."