In 2023, the Bel Air volleyball squad defeated Poly in the Class 3A North Region II semifinals, ultimately winning that region and advancing to state quarterfinals. A year and change later, the same two programs met on Poly’s home court for the regional championship.

The match featured the region’s two top seeds with a combined one loss between them, but it was the visiting Bobcats who looked the part on Wednesday evening and, for the second straight season, dispatched of the  Engineers in the postseason, 25-21, 25-13, 25-11.

“We know Poly is a great program. They have a great history of success and they always play us tough,” Bel Air coach David Simon said after the game. “We just reminded our players of all the work, the effort they’ve put in, and asked them to use that to propel them forward. They were ready to swing today.”

The first set proved to be the closest, but Bel Air established an advantage and keep the hosts at arm’s length. They needed the margin toward the end as after a Hayden Pennypacker kill brought the Bobcats to the verge of a set victory at 24-18, the unbeaten Engineers rallied with three straight points. Arianna Durham sparked the rally with a big kill, while libero Elizabeth Sterling went full extension to dig a potential set-sealing kill, leading to another Poly point.

However, Bel Air settled down, and Pennypacker delivered another monstrous kill from the left side to push the Bobcats to a 1-0 lead.

“Hayden Pennypacker really seems to be on fire right now,” Simon said. “She seems to be getting a great kill every time she swings.” Outside of Pennypacker, Simon praised the full-team effort that brought them to a first-set victory.

“We’re really resilient. I never was worried. We have a lot of faith and confidence in them. I knew even if it got close, that we have a well-rounded team with a lot of depth to [pull it out],” he said.

The second set featured some odd moments, but ultimately Bel Air proved its resilience again and used a couple of big runs to establish a dominant lead. Up 4-3 early, the Bobcats ripped off four straight points to go up 8-3, leading to a Poly timeout. Out of the timeout, the Bobcats were penalized for a service rotation error, which, after a lengthy conversation, resulted in a three-point penalty, resetting the score to 5-3.

However, the point deduction and lengthy break between points didn’t rattle the visiting Bobcats. They won seven of the next eight points to grow a 12-4 lead. Leading the charge was kills from Pennypacker and Emma Duvall, along with three consecutive aces by Lucy Griger.

“Even though we felt like we had a few points taken away from us, we were confident we’d come back,” Simon said. “They have a strong belief in each other.”

After Poly notched three straight points, Bel Air ripped off another 7-1 run. This one started with consecutive aces by senior Anna Kane, along with kills by Duvall and middle hitter Annalise Lewis.

“Anna Kane has been our leader. A senior, she’s a lefty playing on the right side and she’s been dominant and getting stronger,” Simon commented.

Up 19-8, Bel Air was content to largely exchange points and closed out a 25-13 victory on the strength of a Julie Stillwagon kill. Stillwagon was another piece of Bel Air’s deep rotation of outside hitters that relentlessly punished Poly with thundering kills throughout the evening.

“We’ve got a committee of outsides, Hayden Pennypacker, Julie Stillwagon, Olivia Mannion and Aubrey Faulkner — those four are interchangeable and all have had great moments this year,” Simon said. “We just try to ride the hot hand.”

The third set featured much of the same. Poly fought hard but ultimately fell victim to a series of mini-surges by a Bobcat team that made few mistakes throughout the evening.

Another Duvall ace and a pair of Kane kills sparked a quick 4-0 run to push Bel Air out to a 5-1 lead. Poly fought back within 9-7, only to see the Bobcats strike for four consecutive points once more, kickstarting a 19-1 run. A pair of Poly errors sandwiched kills by Kane and Stillwagon and brought the Bel Air lead to 13-7. After a service error halted the run, the Bobcats refused to hand over any momentum, firing off six more points. Bel Air played sound defense that led to both timely hits and Poly errors.

Bel Air polished off the match with efficiency, winning six of the final nine points and rolling to a 25-11 victory in the third set. Stillwagon powered home two more kills, Sophie Rivera notched the kill to set up match point, and Gaby Watts sent Bel Air to the state quarterfinals with a service ace. It’s Bel Air’s third straight appearance in the state quarterfinals, and they’ll be looking to advance to the state semifinals after falling short the past two seasons.

“We believed that we could be a final four team this year,” Simon said. “The last two years, we haven’t made it past the [state quarterfinals]. This team feels different…they have a special bond, a special belief that I think can help us when we have to face a really good team. We’re going to have the belief ‘why not us’, play loose and free no matter who we go up against.”