This season, however, Oliver Ames defeated Canton for the first time since 2022. It beat Attleboro for the first time since 2019. Adding a win over Franklin, the Tigers (9-0 entering Thursday) can say they took down the next three best Hockomock teams, all on the road.
Anyone overlooking the team without Sarah Hilliard (’24, now at Bucknell) and Addyson Smock (’25, Alabama-Birmingham) can’t argue with the results. Ranked sixth in this week’s Globe poll (No. 1 outside of D1), OA is primed to build on its first finals appearance.
“I believe in them just as much as they believe in me,” said Chelsea Cunningham, last year’s Globe D2 Coach of the Year. “This team is awesome. We have so many great kids that are willing to put the work in and earn it for themselves.”
They key is a “Fab Five” of juniors, which fully formed when the players were in seventh grade on the 13s team at Lockdown Volleyball club.
“I think off the bat we knew that we were basically the same person in different bodies,” said Claire Kenny. “It was really easy for us all to be friends.”
Kenny plays middle, flanked on the pins by fellow 5-foot-8-inch hitters Taylor Donohue (a captain) and Chelsea Wagner. Molly Milliken, a 5-foot libero, and 5-2 setter Lyla McDonough lead the passing and setting, but the group prides itself on versatility.
“Part of my role is trust, no matter who’s in the back row,” Milliken said. “I have to know if the ball is coming to them they’re confident. Anyone on our team really can play back row. I have such a strong connection with everyone. I’m confident the ball is going to get up somehow.”
The five players don’t just play together, they see each other every day.
Their chemistry helps them fix mistakes on the court, and their familiarity allows them to bounce back after a down day.
“That literally makes the experience, just knowing that after a bad game, I have my friends to pick me up,” Donohue said. “After a good game, we’ll go and celebrate and eat dinner together. We always have that support system built in, and that’s a really good feeling on and off the court.”
The trio of hitters, along with freshman Sophie Hinds (third on the team in kills per set) makes up for any height gap on the other side of the net with great jumping and out-of-system adaptation.
“It’s really their timing and getting to my set,” McDonough said. “I know who’s there, so I kind of know where to place the ball and how fast they can get to it.
“We’re going all around. We’re passing, we’re hitting, we’re blocking, we’re doing anything no matter what position.”
The connection has always been instant. Wagner, Donohue, and Kenny met in elementary school. McDonough met the triad in middle school. Milliken, cut from the middle school team, stuck with the sport and clicked with the quartet at Lockdown.
“I wanted to prove myself,” Milliken said. “Making [the club team], I just knew . . . Still now, I have high standards for myself. You can’t take anything for granted. Once you get here, you’re not done. You have more to prove.”
That’s what these Tigers have continued to do. After Hilliard graduated, the team did not have high expectations for last season. The then-sophomores stepped up with Smock leading the way at middle, Ava Barth at libero, and Clare Kavolius setting with McDonough.
A year later, it’s the Fab Five era of Oliver Ames volleyball.
“Since all those amazing seniors have left, we’ve been the ones to step up and take the leadership role on our team,” Wagner said. “It feels really good to see where we came from at such a young age.
“I’m really proud of us, how we kept the momentum from last year and brought it to this year.”
▪ In its sixth season as a varsity program, East Bridgewater is off to an 8-0 start. Coach Andrew MacDonald knew there was promise after taking note of their offseason work, but it was the Vikings’ five-set victory over defending Division 5 champion Bourne on Sept. 19 that has fueled his optimism for a deep postseason run in Division 4.
East Bridgewater trailed for the majority of the fifth set, but battled back to get the win.
“It was electric. The energy after was something I haven’t seen,” MacDonald said. “Even I got the chills after we beat them.”
Junior captain Olivia McManus, a 5-foot-6-inch rightside hitter, has three games with 10-plus kills. Junior setter Ayla Kingman, also a captain, has three games with more than 20 assists. Senior captain Bella Abrams started as a setter, but has transitioned to libero.
But MacDonald is most surprised by Elizabeth Wills, a 6-1 freshman middle who played for the team as an eighth-grader, she had 21 kills and seven blocks against Bourne.
“She’s made so much progress this offseason,” MacDonald said. “She’s one of the most dominant players in this area and in our division.”
“Staying on task, showing up every day and still enjoying the game are keys for us,” MacDonald added. “I haven’t seen a group of girls that hate losing more than them.”
▪ Barnstable is 4-5 in its first year in Division 2. Following Tom Turco’s first year coaching (a 5-11 record in 1988), the Red Hawks have not been close to finishing .500 or below, and the most losses the program has had in a single season is six. Turco, an 18-time Division 1 state champion coach, entered his 38th season with a 781-86 mark.
▪ Saturday, Boston Public Schools will host a girls’ volleyball showcase. From 10 a.m. through 3 p.m., there will be eight matches in a row at Madison Park and O’Bryant.
▪ The 2025 MIAA tournament will conclude Nov. 14-15. Billerica is reserved for the 15th, and Worcester North and West Springfield are the sites for the 14th. Brackets will be released Oct. 28.
After years of holding the girls’ volleyball finals at Worcester State, the committee was encouraged by the turnout at Xaverian for the Division 1 boys’ championship in the spring, which sold 833 tickets, accounting for 18 percent of the entire boys’ tournament (which made $4,200 all told).
“It was a great, great volleyball environment,” said volleyball tournament director Brian McNally, the former Andover AD. “We’re looking to do the same thing with the girls this fall . . . This gives us flexibility to look at the teams competing and put them in better places so fans can come out and support.”
• The volleyball committee voted 12-2 Thursday to clarify the use of line judges. They are recommended but not required for regular-season play and are used “when available” in the tournament. There was significant support for requiring line judges at all matches — which NFHS rules require — but as with many things, the hurdle is money.
“It’s a great idea. I think we all want to do it. But how do we implement it? How do we make it happen in the gym?” mused Milford AD Peter Boucher. “When you’re pulling kids and fans out of the stands you’re asking for trouble. It’s a tough concept.”
▪ Other topics discussed: Going up to three divisions for boys’ volleyball, switching to a textured ball for girls (in May the committee voted to use textured balls for boys’ matches starting in 2026-27), an NFHS rule change that allows contacting the net or pole outside out of the antenna, whether matching shorts are required for liberos, and whether any changes should be made to the jewelry ban. The committee will meet next in January.
Friday, No. 1 Brookline at No. 4 Winchester, 5:30 p.m. — Possibly the best nonleague matchup of the season, featuring explosive hitters like Emilie Ferdinand (Brookline) and Hazel Lovins (Winchester).
Monday, No. 20 Canton at No. 12 Franklin, 5 p.m. — A high-powered offense (Franklin) meets a stout defense (Canton), as the No. 2 in the Hockomock Kelley-Rex hosts the No. 2 in the Hockomock Davenport.
Tuesday, Wakefield at No. 18 Wayland, 5:30 p.m. — Both teams are new to Division 2, and have the potential to make postseason runs. This matchup could be important for power rankings.
Tuesday, No. 14 Medfield at Weston, 5:30 p.m. — These teams matched up in the past two Division 3 championships, each winning once.
Wednesday, No. 7 Attleboro at No. 13 Bishop Feehan, 5:30 p.m.— These two bring fast offenses and are formidable opponents, facing off for city supremacy.
Correspondent Julianna Schwindt and Brendan Kurie of the Globe Staff contributed to this story.