Great Bend volleyball ends two-decade title drought

Duvall-led Lady Panthers repeat 20-year effort of her mom

Garden City’s Harris named WAC POY

It had been 20 long seasons, a time that spanned more years than the ages of her six seniors.

So, when Great Bend’s Lady Panthers swept through the Western Athletic Conference volleyball championship in Dodge City in early October, there were many reasons to celebrate.

Not since 2003 had the Great Bend girls claimed a WAC volleyball title, and that came on the back side of a four-year run of championships from 2000 to 2003.

The coach of that Great Bend team was Jackie Engle (now Cook). She had grown up in nearby Ellinwood before taking the reins of the Panther program.

Six years ago, her daughter, Shelly Duvall, left the same small town program in Ellinwood for the Class 5A Great Bend job. Each of the previous five seasons had ended in disappointment.

But this time around, with a veteran cast of six seniors leading the way, the Lady Panthers made it back to the WAC championship platform with a clean sweep of four matches against Dodge City, Hays, Garden City and Liberal.

“It made it extremely special for a number of reasons,” said Duvall, whose team came up just short of qualifying for the Class 5A state tournament with a three-set loss to Andover High on Oct. 21. “Just winning WAC is a big deal; but accomplishing something my mom did, too, was an amazing feeling and she’s my biggest fan.The six seniors I’ve been coaching since I arrived and they were in middle school, so to see them finally break through and do this was amazing, too. They’ve been through everything, so this was rewarding.”

After Garden City’s decade-long reign that ended in 2021, the WAC has seen four different schools claim the top prize – Garden in 2020, Hays in 2021, Liberal in 2022 and now Great Bend. Talk about parity!

“There was more balance among the teams this season than I can remember,” Duvall said. “Even though we never lost a match (10-0 vs. WAC teams), we had some tough ones where the scores in some sets were close.”

Even Dodge City, the team that went 0-4 at the WAC championship, gave the Panthers fits. During the regular season they took a set off Great Bend before dropping the match.

Duvall said the fact she had six veteran seniors on this year’s team was critical to maintaining focus throughout the lengthy season.

“If we were hyped up and good with the first toss, the energy was good,” Duvall said. “If the focus was a little off, it usually reflected around non-volleyball stuff and it could affect our play. For the most part, though, this group was as focused as any group I’ve coached here.”

Of all 36 matches the Lady Panthers, the interesting statistic was that all five l losses came in three sets.

“I’m not sure what reason you could come up with for that, but it’s an interesting thought.”

One quality of this year’s team was that through the infusion of underclassmen, the roster was much deeper and more talented.

“I believe we anticipated a good season, but we set a school record for most wins and that’s a major accomplishment and a credit to the girls for their consistency all season,” Duvall said.

One aspect of volleyball that is difficult to sort through is the quickness of momentum switches, Duvall said.

“When you’re playing high level teams, you can’t afford to have a big lapse and give up runs of four, five, six points,” Duvall said. “Both teams are going to score points, and you most likely won’t catch up.”

With her veteran squad, Duvall employed an offense that played much faster than in the past and on defense utilized a strong back row with more size on the front line.

“We just had a good mix of experience and talent with this group, and they enjoyed playing together,” Duvall said.

Duvall said she hopes this year’s success will carry over to ensuing seasons for her program.

“I think there is a lot of validity that once you win, it helps to understand what it takes to keep winning,” Duvall said. “This group made great strides over their four years.”

Garden City’s Piper Harris garners POY award

In her third season playing volleyball for the Garden City Lady Buffaloes, 5-10 outsider hitter Piper Harris knew there would be some added responsibility and pressure on her and less than a handful of experienced players on her team.

Harris, though, enjoyed her best season yet, and considering she was a two-time all-Western Athletic Conference first-team selection., it proved to be an impressive performance. She was the lone returner from the 2022 all-WAC first team as well.

“I was really excited to learn of the honor,” Harris said of getting a phone call from her coach, Trista Bailey. “This is going to sound crazy but I was having dreams of being chosen all-WAC and in my notes I had both of these goals listed. I knew if I just played my game that others might see and I would be considered. There are so many other good players in the WAC, so I feel fortunate to be considered for this.”

Harris’ Lady Buffs finished the season with a record of 25-16, three of those losses coming in the Class 6A state tournament in Salina. This season brought a four-year drought of missing the state tournament to an end. Despite the 0-3 record in Pool Play at state, Harris considers the season a success.

“We got one of our goals accomplished and that was to go to state,” she said. “The other — to win WAC — is something we will point to next year. This was a long time coming for this group. We’ve been playing together since fifth grade and this is a big deal for us.”

In her third season, Harris compiled an impressive set of statistics, led by her 310 kills and a hitting efficiency of .219. She had a serve completion percentage of 92.0 and had 338 digs, both career highs. Now, her career totals are 922 kills, 87 service aces, and 749 digs. She will reach 1,000 kills sometime in September of 2024 in her senior year.

“Piper has definitely upped her game in hitting efficiency since so many balls go to the outside,” Bailey said. “She can also hit from the back row and I think it’s her versatility that makes her so good. She’s really put in a lot of time and effort to get better. We changed out defense this year and I think she reads the ball better and she makes smarter decisions with the ball.”

Harris, too, echoed her coach’s sentiments.

“I just try to find different spots in the defense to score,” Harris said. “Probably down the line is my favorite, but you just have to know what the strengths of the other team are and find ways to deliver the ball.”

Harris described the one-day WAC championship as an endurance race, playing four matches between 10 a.m. and the middle of the afternoon.

“Every team was pretty evenly matched this year,” Harris said. “A lot of close scores. Every match was competitive.”

The Lady Buffs went 2-2 and placed third behind Great Bend and Hays, and finished ahead of Liberal and Dodge City.

A starter on the Lady Buffs’ softball team in the spring (first base), Harris said she has improved her strength and jumping ability by getting into the weight room.

“Trina (softball coach Mai) really gotten me into some good stuff with the weights,” Harris said. “I can definitely see I’m jumping higher and it has been helpful in the off-season.”

While she enjoys both sports, volleyball appears to be the leader as she looks to the future of playing at the collegiate level.

“I just like softball to relax, have fun and enjoy,” Harris said. “It doesn’t have the same pressure I feel with volleyball.”

Winning the POY award will just further her desire to improve for her final season.

“There’s a lot more I want to accomplish and I know it will take hard work to get there,” she said. “I’ve got a great coach, teammates who are supportive. So it should be a fun season to look forward to.”

Piper Harris – Career Statistics

SEASON	KILLS	HITTING EFFIC.	ACES	SERVE COMP %	DIGS
Junior	310	0.219	32	92.0	338
Soph.	321	0.191	27	90.9	250
Frosh.	291	0.181	28	90.3	161
Totals	922	0.195	87	90.8	749

WAC All-Conference Volleyball
First Team

	PLAYER	SCHOOL	YEAR
1	Piper Harris	Garden City	11
2	Macy Nachtigal	Great Bend	12
3	Kya Behr	Great Bend	9
4	Piper Mellinger	Dodge City	10
5	Kierrah Pinchon	Garden City	10
6	Kara Feist	Great Bend	11

WAC All-Conference Volleyball
Second Team

	PLAYER	SCHOOL	YEAR
1	Aubree Thomas	Hays	12
2	Molly Martin	Hays	11
3	Easha Potts	Dodge City	12
4	Sadie Spray	Great Bend	12
5	Annie Humphrey	Hays	10
6	Kamdyn Carr	Garden City	12