Fontainebleau’s dream of a Division I state volleyball championship came to an end Saturday night at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner when the St. Joseph’s Academy Red Stickers rebounded from a first-game loss to down the Lady Bulldogs, 24-26, 25-21, 25-10, 25-22.

St. Joseph’s (43-3), the No. 3 seed and eight-time state champion, got a superb effort from junior Cori Martone, named the Division I Most Outstanding Player. Martone, who dislocated her shoulder earlier in the year, posted 16 kills with 12 blocks and two aces to lead the Red Stickers.

“I’m speechless. I worked so hard coming back from my injury. Our setters did a great job, and the passes were on. I couldn’t have done it without them,” Martone said.

Fontainebleau senior Amanda Schneck (31) prepares to pound a kill attempt against St. Joseph'€™s Academy'€™s Carol-Ann Bryant (22) and Kendall Knobloch in Saturday'€™s championship match played at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner. SJA (43-3) captured its eighth state title. FHS finished its season at 35-7. (Staff Photo by Mike Pervel)

Fontainebleau (35-7), the No. 5 seed, received an exceptional effort from senior outside hitter Lindsey Barron, who notched a match-high 18 kills with four blocks.

Senior Amanda Schneck delivered eight kills with an ace. Sophomore setter McCrea Barney netted 17 assists, while junior Michelle Cabeceiras totaled 15. Lady Bulldogs’ sophomore libero Caitlyn Auxilien pulled up 14 digs, followed by Jessica Guttierrez with 12.

FHS third-year coach Danny Tullis has helped build a successful program with playoff appearances in the quarters, semis and now finals this year. Tullis said his club struggled with serve receive in the championship match.

“St. Joseph’s Academy comes every year, and this is our first time in a championship game. I was really proud of my kids. They could have easily quit after that third game (10-25) when we never got in sync. They came back to get really focused, but once again serving cost us in game four,” Tullis said.

Tullis praised the consistent play of Barron and Schneck, two of his three seniors, during the post-game interview.

“You can’t say enough about what these seniors have done to help establish this program,” he said. “They helped build this program. They didn’t win the state title, but they are very deserving, based on what they have done for their school. When it is all said and done, I think they will reflect on it, and realize what a gift it was to be in this situation. There were a whole lot of other players and teams that weren’t.”

Barron, fighting back tears, said before the championship match she and her teammates talked about how they were a family.

“Win together or lose together, we are a family. We worked so hard as a family, as a unit. I’m proud of everything we have accomplished,” Barron said.

The other Fontainebleau senior is Brittany Dupaquier.

Fontainebleau gave a tremendous effort in a closely contested game one, which was tied 12 times before the Lady Bulldogs came away with a 26-24 victory.

St. Joseph’s Lindsey Fourroux knocked down a kill to ties things at 7-7. Fourroux then served three straight to give the Red Stickers the lead. Following a Schneck kill for Fontainebleau, Auxilien put away two points for a 10-10 tie.

After the teams exchanged points, SJA’s Kaitlin Hatcher delivered three consecutive points. Trailing 17-12, FHS’ Barron powered down a kill to regain serve. Guttierrez stroked three straight points for the Lady Dawgs. Another Barron kill cut the lead to one at 18-17. Cabeceiras had two points to regain the lead at 19-18. The final tie occurred at 24-24 before Barron tallied a kill and an unforced error put game one away for FHS, 26-24.

Strong serving by SJA helped the Red Stickers take game two, 25-21. May contributed five points, and Hatcher served three straight. FHS’ Cabeceiras reeled off four straight at one point to give the Lady Bulldogs an early 8-1 advantage.

Game three was close early, but with SJA holding a 7-5 lead, May strung together six straight points. FHS was unable to get back in it when SJA’s Martone clicked on five consecutive points, including an ace, to build a 22-9 lead. Carol-Ann Bryant put down two consecutive kills before FHS’ Taylor Anderson finally broke the run with a block, but the damage was already done. The Red Stickers took game three, 25-10, to give them the momentum.

Game four proved to be a struggle for either team to gain much of an upper hand. SJA’s Ashley Legendre opened with three straight points. The contest was tied 10 times with Fontainebleau holding a 12-9 lead on a kill and a block by Barron. The game’s final tie came at 19-19.

Following an unforced error, Taylor Mocker served two points, including an ace, to push out to a 22-19 lead. A Barron kill kept FHS in it before the Lady Dawgs fell, 25-22.

Legendre topped SJA with 23 assists, and Fourroux added 20. Bryant totaled a match-high 13 blocks, while Hatcher was credited with 21 digs.

St. Joseph’s Academy coach Sivi Miller said it was a tremendous team effort.

“It’s a great feeling winning a state championship. It’s something the girls work very hard for. This is a great group of disciplined girls,” Miller said.