Three-peat! Cardinal Newman captures SCISA 4A volleyball state championship
Cardinal Newman’s volleyball dominance continues.
The Cardinals defeated Porter-Gaud, 3-0 (25-21, 25-12, 25-18), to win their third-straight S.C. Independent School Association championship in a match held Tuesday at Lexington High School.
It’s the sixth championship in school history and the fourth in the last five years. The Cardinals have established themselves as the top SCISA program and one of the best among all schools in the state — public or private.
“It is just a lot of hard work and I am truly blessed to have the players that I have and the coaching staff that I have,” Cardinal Newman coach Cynthia Dimapan said after the match. “It is really a testament to their hard work and believing in each other. Nothing this season was easy. We had lots of challenges, hurt players and lot going on. Again, I am just so blessed that we all came together at the right time to win the state championship.”
The Cardinals graduated four key seniors from last year’s team, including Division I signees Victoria Harris and Christianna Greene, but Dimapan talked about other players stepping into new roles. Some of those included Leila Hargrove, Danielle Dais, Lauren Rivers and Khylie Remmenga.
The team was without its lone senior, Tori Brandon, for much of the season after an injury during the summer. Brandon came back for the final few weeks of the season.
“All these challenges before us and getting the girls to believe that they could do it is the biggest thing,” Dimapan said.
The Cardinals have won 125 matches during the three-year run, with all their losses coming against S.C. High School League teams or out-of-state opponents. Cardinal Newman hasn’t lost a match to a SCISA opponent since falling to Porter-Gaud in the 2021 state championship, 3-2.
Three of Cardinal Newman’s championship wins have come against the Cyclones. The Cards have played in six straight title matches.
Cardinal Newman advanced to the championship match with wins in the playoffs over Northside Christian, Palmetto Christian, Northwood and John Paul II in bracket play held in Myrtle Beach over the weekend.
Porter-Gaud gave Cardinal Newman all it could handle in the first set. The Cyclones led 16-13 before the Cardinals rallied. Remmenga’s kill tied the first set at 16-16. Remmenga then added an ace to make it 20-18 and Dais’ kill finished off the set, 25-21.
The Cards jumped up to a 13-7 lead in the second set before cruising to a 25-12 win. It was much of the same in the third set as Cardinal Newman closed it out, 25-18.
This story was originally published October 22, 2024 at 9:31 PM.
