Ste. Genevieve, Mo. (KFMO) - The Ste. Genevieve Dragons are the MAAA Conference Tournament Champions, defeating both Potosi and Valle Catholic on its way to its first title since 2021.
Ste. Genevieve defeated the Lady Warriors 25-18, 25-19 in a rematch of the Old Settlement rivalry, a matchup that Valle Catholic had won earlier in the season. The Dragons opened Set 1 on a 4-0 run and never looked back, never trailing and leading Valle Catholic by as many as 11 points. Ste. Genevieve senior Emma Gegg picked up 7 kills in Set 1, and libero Emme Browne helped the Dragons' cause with a run of 3 straight aces late in the set.
The second set saw a couple of lead changes, but again, Ste. Genevieve was able to pull away with a long run mid-set. Valle Catholic played valiantly, and were able to close the gap to as little as 3 points, but the Dragons held firm and finished off Valle Catholic to take the title.
Gegg led Ste. Genevieve in kills with 10. Kailyn Harmon had 4, and Browne finished with 4 total aces. Valle Catholic was led by Ava Bauman, who had 8 kills.
In the third place game, Farmington defeated Potosi 25-20, 25-18. Freshman Lila Roth led the Knights with 9 total kills, Zoey Gerwitz added 5, and senior Ava Cooper had 5 kills and 4 blocks. Potosi sophomore Eden Robart led all attackers in the third place game with 11 kills, while Layla Juliette had 6.
Ste. Genevieve, Potosi, and Valle Catholic will all next turn their attention to the Class 3, District 2 tournament next week. Farmington will play in the Class 4, District 1 tournament.