RAPID CITY – In a year of Class B volleyball parity, Warner showed there was indeed one team that stood out from the rest.

The Monarchs claimed their seventh Class B state championship with a dominating performance over Colman-Egan 25-18, 25-20, 25-8 in the title match at The Monument. The squad closed the season by winning 19 consecutive matches.

“It means a lot, because we knew coming in here it was so balanced, that it could be anybody’s game,” said Warner coach Kari Jung. “The girls just kept telling me, ‘We got this coach. It’s in the bag. It’s in the bag.’ And I’m like I’m glad you believe girls. And they said right after, ‘Coach we told you it was in the bag.’ And I’m like I’m glad you believed. They believed in themselves.”

In the end, they made believers of everyone else.

The opening set was tight until the Monarchs pulled away from a 14-14 tie by scoring nine of the next 10 points to signal the beginning of the end for Colman-Egan. Kyra Marcuson had a pair of kills and two aces in that stretch, while Kamryn Anderson had two big blocks.

Warner then jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second set and eventually pulled away from 19-16 advantage to secure that set. The Monarchs then put an exclamation point on the title with an all-out assault in the final set.

“I think we all just had a lot of motivation to come back and win the state championship,” said Warner senior Peyton Fischer after the Monarchs lost in last year’s title match. “We knew we could do it. We had the strength. This summer we worked a lot on our defense, because our motto is defense wins games, and obviously it wins us championships.”

Defense played a important role in the match strategy against the Hawks.

“Our game plan was just to have our defense be on point, try and touch every ball we could get, and just to work as a team, as a unit, just to get this championship,” said Warner hitter Kyleigh Schopp.

The Monarchs’ offense wasn’t bad, either, racking up 47 kills, led by Jennifer Aman with 14 and Schopp with 10. At the helm of all of it was setter Ava Nilsson who finished with 36 set assists.

“The girls just came with a goal to win and boy they were on fire,” Jung said. “Ava mixed it up so well and we had kills in all different spots. It’s hard to stop them. They just wanted it that bad today.”

Warner also continued to serve the ball well. The Monarchs recorded nine aces and also made life tough for the Colman-Egan offense with their aggressive serving.

“Our serves were great tonight,” Schopp said. “They really got the other team out of system and just helped our offense get the kills.”

Warner closed the season on a flurry, losing just one set in 19 total matches, culminating with the state title. A mid-season adjustment proved once again to be a key factor.

“It happens every year it seems like that I’ve been playing,” Fischer said. “Coach makes that one mid-season adjustment and next thing you know, we’re all clicking.”

As a result, the Monarchs added yet another title to a program with a rich history of volleyball accomplishments. Warner also won state championships in 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2018.

“They all mean something,” Jung said. “This is fun for them. I’m happy for them.”

Serving: Warner 9 aces (Kyra Marcuson 4, Ava Nilsson 3, Courtney Bjorgaard 1, Lauren Marcuson 1); Colman-Egan 3 aces (Daniela Lee 2, Ava Mousel 1).

Hitting: Warner 47 kills (Jennifer Aman 14, Kyleigh Schopp 10, Kamryn Anderson 8, K. Marcuson 7); Colman-Egan 24 kills (Hailey Larson 9, Mackenzie Hemmer 6, Faith Taggart 4).

Setting: Warner 45 assists (Nilsson 36); Colman-Egan 21 assists (A. Mousel 12, Lanie Mousel 6).

Digs: Warner 50 (K. Marcuson 12, Bjorgaard 9, Kiah Koch 9, L. Marcuson 7); Colman-Egan 45 (Lee 11, Hemmer 10, Larson 7).

Blocks: Warner 1 solo 2 assists (Anderson 1 solo 1 assist, Nilsson 1 assist); Colman-Egan 8 assists (Hemmer 2, Larson 2, Taggart 2, Brynlee Landis 1, Lee 1).

Records: Warner 33-5; Colman-Egan 27-8.