From one win to the state title match, Smoky Valley seniors complete historic turnaround
Before the Kansas Class 3A state tournament on Saturday, Sharlene Ramsey made a copy for her players of the 1986-87 Smoky Valley High School yearbook page that featured the volleyball team.
It was the last volleyball team at Smoky Valley to reach the state tournament, she told them as they stared at a picture from more than three decades ago. The coach wanted to impress upon this year’s Smoky Valley team the significance of what it was about to accomplish.
“We told them they were going to make history,” Ramsey said. “People are going to look back at the 2020 yearbook years down the road and say, ‘That’s the team that went to state.’ We told them that they’re always going to have their mark on this program and nobody can ever take that away from you.”
Smoky Valley completed the best season in school history on Saturday, reaching the state championship match and losing a third-set, heartbreaker to Sabetha, 25-19, 25-27, 25-23. The Vikings (34-4), which set a school record for wins, had never advanced past pool play at state until Saturday.
Making the accomplishment even more impressive was the fact that this year’s senior class finished with a 1-35 record on varsity three years ago. By the time Addie Heitschmidt, McKinley Johnson, Belle Peters, Bri Franklin, Elyse Ramsey and Kerington Haxton were seniors, the group that had been playing together since third grade at the YMCA improved Smoky Valley from 35 losses to 34 wins.
“I remember our freshman year, Bri and I told each other that we would be league champs our senior year,” Heitschmidt said. “We knew we could be good, but I don’t know if we ever thought we could go this far. This season has honestly been the best feeling in the world. I love all of those girls with my heart, and I will remember them forever.”
Smoky Valley’s magical run came agonizingly close to ending with a championship, too.
The Vikings were in control late in the third set, with a 21-18 lead, but errors plagued them during the crucial end stretch and No. 1-ranked Sabetha won seven of the next nine points to win its first championship in school history. Smoky Valley clawed back to one point and produced the look it wanted, a ball set to hard-hitting junior Abby Rose for the potential tie, but Sabetha blocked it for the winning point.
“We told the girls we didn’t care, we were going to go down swinging,” Sharlene Ramsey said. “We weren’t going to tip it, we weren’t going to send free balls, we were going to go down swinging. I’m so proud of the way the girls battled every last point, every last ball. It was something to be proud of for sure.”
It was a brutal finish to a senior class that had come so far and gotten so close to a championship.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Peters said. “I am so proud of the way that we played. We would have loved to obviously win, but we have nothing to be upset about.”
The group smiled when asked to reminiscence about what Smoky Valley volleyball was like three years ago. Heitschmidt and Franklin played varsity that season and had to endure the lifeless, one-win season, while the other seniors watched the struggle from junior varsity.
“Honestly, I think everyone on the team that year was just ready to get the season over,” Heitschmidt said.
“It wasn’t about playing volleyball,” Peters said. “It didn’t seem like anyone wanted to be there. I could tell they didn’t want to play volleyball. This year’s team, we wanted to play volleyball. We wanted to be on the court together and get every ball, every swing, every dig together.
“Volleyball is all about having a team mentality and that’s what we really had this year.”
The group transformed Smoky Valley from an afterthought to a dominant machine this season. The Vikings won 27 of their 34 matches this season in straight sets.
“These seniors are so special,” Rose said. “They brought so much leadership to our team. I don’t know what we’re going to do without them.”
Rose, a 6-foot-1 junior, blossomed into one of the most dominant hitters in Kansas, while Franklin and Heitschmidt gave Smoky Valley three dangerous hitters for the team’s two setters, Johnson and Ramsey, to target. Junior Aubrey Boldra also had a strong season playing back row for Smoky Valley.
Together they produced a historic season that cemented their place in school history for others to someday look back on.
“The community support has been amazing,” Heitschmidt said. “It was so amazing to have everyone tell us they’re supporting us and watching online. Players from the 1986 team sent us letters wishing us good luck. Honestly, we felt like stars. We felt like we finally put Smoky Valley’s name on the map in volleyball.”
Class 5A (at Salina)
Records: Lansing (26-1), Bishop Carroll (25-2), St. Thomas Aquinas (24-2), Maize South (29-6).
10:45 a.m. — Bishop Carroll def. Lansing, 2-0 (25-22, 25-23); St. Thomas Aquinas def. Maize South, 2-0 (25-12, 25-15).
11:45 a.m. — St. Thomas Aquinas def. Lansing, 2-1 (20-25, 25-20, 25-23); Bishop Carroll def. Maize South, 2-0 (25-12, 25-17).
12:45 p.m. — Lansing def. Maize South, 2-0 (25-22, 28-26); St. Thomas Aquinas def. Bishop Carroll, 2-0 (25-12, 25-18).
3 p.m. — No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas def. No. 4 Maize South, 2-0 (25-8, 25-9); No. 3 Lansing def. No. 2 Bishop Carroll, 2-0 (25-22, 25-23).
4:15 p.m. — Championship: No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas def. No. 3 Lansing, 2-0 (25-13, 26-24); Third place: No. 2 Bishop Carroll def. No. 4 Maize South, 2-0 (25-17, 25-7).
Class 3A (at Hutchinson)
Records: Sabetha (36-1), Smoky Valley (31-2), West Franklin (32-3), Goodland (34-5).
10:45 a.m. — Sabetha def. Smoky Valley, 2-0 (25-23, 25-16); West Franklin def. Goodland, 2-0 (25-18, 25-19).
11:45 a.m. — Sabetha def. West Franklin, 2-0 (25-22, 25-18); Smoky Valley def. Goodland, 2-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-20).
12:45 p.m. — Sabetha def. Goodland, 2-0 (25-17, 25-18); Smoky Valley def. West Franklin, 2-0 (25-20, 25-20).
3 p.m. — No. 1 Sabetha def. No. 4 Goodland, 2-0 (25-13, 25-21); No. 2 Smoky Valley def. No. 3 West Franklin, 2-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-21).
4:15 p.m. — Championship: No. 1 Sabetha def. No. 2 Smoky Valley, 2-1 (25-19, 25-27, 25-23); Third place: No. 3 West Franklin def. No. 4 Goodland, 2-0 (25-23, 25-22).
Class 1A-Div. I (at Dodge City)
Records: Lebo (30-3), Pratt Skyline (27-7), Central Plains (28-11), St. John (22-17).
10:45 a.m. — Lebo def. Pratt Skyline, 2-0 (25-22, 25-21); Central Plains def. St. John, 2-1 (23-25, 25-12, 25-15).
11:45 a.m. — Central Plains def. Lebo, 2-1 (21-25, 25-21, 25-17); Pratt Skyline def. St. John, 2-1 (25-23, 21-25, 27-25).
12:45 p.m. — Lebo def. St. John, 2-0 (25-14, 25-15); Central Plains def. Pratt Skyline, 2-0 (25-17, 25-16).
3 p.m. — No. 1 Central Plains def. No. 4 St. John, 2-0 (25-22, 25-19); No. 2 Lebo def. No. 3 Pratt Skyline, 2-0 (25-17, 25-18).
4:15 p.m. — Championship: 1. Central Plains def. No. 2 Lebo, 2-0 (26-24, 25-23); Third place: No. 4 St. John def. No. 3 Pratt Skyline, 2-1 (25-23, 19-25, 25-22).
Class 1A-Div. II (at Emporia)
Records: Hanover (29-6), Attica (28-6), Hutchinson Central Christian (19-8), Wheatland-Grinnell (24-15).
10:45 a.m. — Hanover def. Attica, 2-0 (25-18, 25-15); Central Christian def. Wheatland-Grinnell, 2-1 (25-22, 24-26, 25-20).
11:45 a.m. — Hanover def. Central Christian, 2-1 (25-23, 21-25, 25-14); Attica def. Wheatland-Grinnell, 2-1 (17-25, 25-20, 25-20).
12:45 p.m. — Hanover def. Wheatland-Grinnell, 2-0 (25-16, 25-13); Attica def. Central Christian, 2-0 (25-16, 27-25).
3 p.m. — No. 1 Hanover def. No. 4 Wheatland-Grinnell, 2-0 (25-12, 25-16); No. 2 Attica def. No. 3 Central Christian, 2-0 (25-15, 25-23).
4:15 p.m. — Championship: No. 1 Hanover def. No. 2 Attica, 2-0 (25-18, 25-19); Third place: No. 3 Central Christian def. No. 4 Wheatland-Grinnell, 2-0 (25-23, 25-18).
This story was originally published October 31, 2020 at 7:00 AM.
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