A Catholic state title eluded Fontbonne Hall, but it has plenty to be proud of.
The team, which placed third in the four-team, one-day tournament last year, reached the school’s first-ever state final before falling to Kellenberg, 25-21, 24-26, 25-17, 25-23, at St. Anthony’s on Nov. 14.
But it’s the second-straight year that the Bonnies won the Brooklyn-Queens diocesan and Catholic High School Athletic Association city championships — and moved a step closer to the elusive state crown.
Saturday’s defeat was still a win for the program, one player said.
“It was a major accomplishment, we’re the first team to get this far in states,” said senior outside hitter Francesca Castellano. “So even though we didn’t come in first we were still really proud of ourselves.”
Fontbonne lost its first match in pool play to Kellenberg but rebounded to beat Buffalo’s St. Mary’s and split two sets against Maria Regina of Westchester County. After pool play, Fontbonne gave its best performance in the semifinal, besting Maria Regina in two sets.
The team had a leg up, because this year wasn’t its first rodeo.
“This year we had a lot more confidence,” Castellano said. “We knew what to expect. Since most of our team are seniors, we all wanted to go out with a win. We just felt like we had more of a shot at winning it.”
But to do so, she and the Bonnies would have to get through Kellenberg, which was 4–0 on the day, in a best-of-five match. The teams split the first two sets, with Fontbonne winning the second 26–24. Kellenberg ended up winning the last two — the final by just two points — to earn the Catholic High School Athletic Association state title, leaving the Bonnies a little short of the goal.
“It just wasn’t our time,” Fontbonne coach Linda Strong said. “That’s all I can say. We were very well matched, the two of us.”
Nevertheless, the team has a lot to look back fondly upon thanks to what have been the program’s best two years in history. Despite losing a talented crop of seniors, Strong believed the program is set up for long term success, because the exiting group laid a strong foundation.
“I definitely feel like we have a lot to be proud of,” Greenstein said. “We played very well, probably our best year ever. We have a really solid team — a lot of great players.”
