2025 Fall Volleyball Championships: Historic First Titles for Oliver Ames, East Bridgewater, Bellingham, Hopedale, Franklin

The 2025 MIAA Fall Volleyball Tournament began with a total of 190 teams across five divisions, and after playing out over a span of 2½ weeks, five champions stood at the end.

It was a historic day for the winners, as all five schools took home their first championships in program history. For three of them, it came in their respective programs’ first state finals appearances.

All five championship matches were played Saturday, November 15 in a marathon day/night of volleyball at Billerica Memorial High School.

Here is a recap of the championship matches, in the order they were played:

Division 2

One year after falling short in its first championship appearance, No. 1 seed Oliver Ames High School overcame losses in the first two sets and stunned No. 7 seed Wayland High School, 3-2, to complete the 41-team bracket.

Junior Chelsea Wagner ended the 15-11 final set and the match with the last of her 27 kills for the Tigers, a number matched by junior teammate Taylor Donohue. Junior Lyla McDonough notched her 1,000th career assist during the final.

Down 2-0 in sets, Oliver Ames started its comeback with a 25-16 victory and then pulled even with a 25-14 win.

Wayland, which was making its first state final appearance, took command early with a pair of 25-22 set victories. Juniors Anna Yalli (19 kills) and Audrey Nugent (15 kills) led the way for the Warriors.

Division 4

No. 2 seed East Bridgewater High School made the most of its first state championship appearance, overcoming a rough start to pull out a 3-1 win over No. 1 seed Bourne High School.

Despite dropping the first set 25-12, the Vikings bounced back for 25-21 and 25-14 victories to take the lead. Then facing a deficit again in the fourth set, East Bridgewater again regrouped and clinched the championship with a 25-23 victory.

Junior Liv McManus had 11 kills to pace East Bridgewater.

Bourne was making its third straight finals appearance, but moved up to the 37-team Division 4 bracket after winning Division 5 a year earlier.

Division 3

After losing in back-to-back championship appearances in 2023 and 2024, No. 1 seed Bellingham High School finally broke through and won the program’s first state championship, holding off No. 3 seed Joseph Case High School, 3-1.

In the final match of the 41-team bracket, the Blackhawks prevailed in a pair of battles in the first two sets, taking 27-25 and 28-26 victories. The Cardinals made things interesting with a 25-21 win in the third set, but Bellingham closed things out with a 25-18 win in set No. 4.

Junior Mia Milani clinched the win for Bellingham, finishing her day with 19 kills and 13 digs. Senior Val Nolan added 18 kills and 10 digs for the Blackhawks.

Joseph Case made its 18th state championship appearance, the second most in MIAA Volleyball history, but fell short of a 12th championship all time.

Division 5

With both programs making their first state championship appearances, there was guaranteed to be a first-time winner at the end of the 38-team bracket.

It ended up being top-seeded Hopedale Jr/Sr. High School, which cruised to the day’s only sweep with a 25-11, 25-16, 25-23 conquest of No. 7 seed Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School.
Seniors Phoebe Carroll (6 kills) and Mia Casey (5 kills) sparked the Blue Raiders.

Junior Leah Franklin had 10 kills to lead Smith Vocational.

Division 1

The final match of the night lived up to the hype, as No. 5 seed Franklin High School broke through for its first championship and also dethroned three-time defending champion Newton North High School, 3-2.

Down 2-1 in sets, the Panthers evened the match with a 25-23 win and then ground out a 15-12 fifth set to cap the program’s first state championship appearance in style. Makayla Kuykendall’s 19th kill clinched the victory for Franklin.

The final match of the 33-team bracket started with a 25-15 Franklin victory. But the No. 2 seed Tigers, who were making their fifth straight title match appearance, showed their championship mettle by surging to 27-25 and 25-19 wins to briefly grab the lead in the match.