How a mid-season tournament sparked Seaman volleyball to win state championship

TOPEKA — Momentum has been building throughout the Seaman volleyball program over the past few years as the Vikings placed fourth in Class 5A in 2021 and 2022.

Finally, Seaman reached the mountain top by claiming the state championship on Saturday afternoon.

“This was coming and it was a really rewarding feeling to finally accomplish something like this,” Taylin Stallbaumer said.

It marks the first volleyball state championship in Seaman history. This roster will forever be enshrined as one of the best to wear the uniform, but senior Brooklyn Gormley delivered all of the plaudits to past teams.

“We owe it to those past years and those players and also all of the hard work that we have put in,” Gormley explained.

Seaman has become a powerhouse since Tatiana Dowling became the head coach in 2017. The Vikings have had just one losing season, which came in her first year.

The Vikings went a perfect 5-0 during the state tournament as they defeated Spring Hill, Andover and Andover Central in pool play on Friday. Seaman dominated Maize South 25-17, 25-21 to punch its ticket to the championship match.

It pitted the newbies versus the veterans in the championship as Seaman faced defending state champions St. Thomas Aquinas. However, it was all Vikings as they won 25-19, 25-22 to claim the title. It wasn’t just a state championship that Seaman was celebrating, it was also Dowling’s 200th career victory as a volleyball coach.

“She has a great mix of when to support us and when to get on us and be disciplined,” Stallbaumer said. “She is our biggest supporter, but she is also going to be the first person to get on us when we need it. That is a really good quality to have as a coach.”

This wasn’t a state title the Vikings stumbled upon, rather they had been preparing for months, especially during the preseason workouts. Dowling explained the team’s dedication along with the community’s love of the sport helped them thrive.

“These girls have lived in this community for a really long time, I think that they truly care about each other and I think the families truly care about each other,” Dowling said. “Our community is really tight-knit at Seaman and all of that contributes to how they are raised and it all comes together when they play at our school.”

Momentum started to brew for Seaman when they competed in a tournament hosted by Emporia on Saturday, Oct. 14. The Vikings' defense, passing ability and offense were all displayed in solid form.

Their lone loss in the tournament was to Class 6A state tournament finalist Washburn Rural, but the Vikings won four of their five matches during that stretch. Seaman also won 16 of their final 17 matches overall.

“Once we hit the Emporia tournament, that is when things started coming together for us and we turned things around,” Stallbaumer said. “The main thing that we were working on mid-season was our defense and once we started doing that, it helped our offense, too.”

The season was a journey with difficult practices, tough defeats and injuries, but there is one characteristic Seaman can hang its hat on: The intangibles never wavered.

“It is always a mix of your mentality, your effort and your attitude,” Gormley said.

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Silver Lake takes third

The Eagles shined in the Class 3A tournament as they finished in third place, securing a podium spot. Silver Lake defeated Cheney, Neodesha and Riverton in pool play on Friday to advance to the state finals.

In the semifinals, Silver Lake lost in a close three-set match against Smoky Valley. Silver Lake claimed the first set 25-22 but lost the next two sets by the same score of 25-23. The Eagles defeated Cheney 25-19, 25-23 in the third-place match. This was the first time Silver Lake 32-12 finished in the top four since 2019.

Washburn Rural featured in state finale

Washburn Rural entered the Class 6A tournament as the defending state champions. But the No. 6 seed had a tricky start to its state tournament campaign. It lost to Blue Valley West and Blue Valley North in the first two matches. It then capped the weekend by defeating Maize 25-10, 25-20 in the final match of pool play. Yet, the Junior Blues were unable to qualify for the final four.

Liam Keating covers high school sports for The Topeka Capital-Journal. You can reach him at Lkeating@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: How Seaman volleyball claimed Kansas Class 5A State Championship