photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior outside hitter Anniston Clark jumps to spike a pass from senior setter Tessa Nover-Estes in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence. The first set was back and forth and ended in a win for the visiting Jaguars. That momentum stayed into the second set, where Free State lost big. The Firebirds played better in the final set but fell short to get swept. The match showcased the two region-leading teams, with an undefeated Mill Valley leading the 6A East and the 18-5 Free State Firebirds leading the 6A West.

A volleyball match between Mill Valley and Free State, the two 6A region-leading teams, ended in disappointment for the home Firebirds, who were swept by the Jaguars on Thursday.

Free State’s offense struggled with consistency in the game, especially in a lopsided second set that the Jaguars won by 16.

“The big thing I reminded them was that it’s just one match,” Free State coach Joel Grillot said. “We still have every goal we need out in front of us, and we just have to keep our eyes on it.”

A loss is, of course, never the intended outcome, but the Firebirds saw a lot of what can work and what doesn’t work against a team that will also be competing for a state championship.

“If you get past substate and get in the state tournament, you’re going to be faced with Division I and high-major Division I hitters across the net,” Grillot said. “You’ve got to be able to defend against those teams and understand that they’re going to score points, but you have to respond.”

The start of the match was highly competitive, showing just how capable the Firebirds are against an undefeated Mill Valley team. Free State took a 7-3 lead early on, thanks to a strong presence at the net defensively that forced a Mill Valley timeout.

The Jaguars came out of the timeout and got their offense in gear. They tied the game at 11-11 and ultimately took their first lead since the third point of the set after getting back to a tie at 14. The set remained close for the next few points, with neither team able to gain much momentum before a service error or some mistake was made.

That boded well for Free State, who momentarily was without one of its top players. Senior outside hitter Anniston Clark went to the ground with a knee injury that took the air out of the gym, though she managed to get back up and play a little more before being subbed out. She returned later in the match, providing some much-needed offense at times.

“(That was) terrifying,” Grillot said. “I know what she’s been through, and obviously she’s an extremely key player to what we’re trying to accomplish this season, but the biggest thing is the kid herself. That’s what I care about, bar none.”

Free State took a 23-22 lead that forced Mill Valley into a second timeout, but the Jaguars executed better in the final stretch of the set, winning the next three points to take the opening set 25-23.

“The emotions of that set kind of carried into the second,” Grillot said. “We didn’t respond as well. The biggest thing is we’ve got to make sure that when we have the opportunity when we’re in-system that we’re putting the ball away.”

Mill Valley took a quick 7-2 lead, forcing Free State to call timeout. The Jaguars only extended their lead to 11-3, leading to Free State’s second timeout.

“From time to time, we struggle to score on the pins,” Grillot said. “Sometimes we just need to make some changes to put someone out there because we have to score. When we don’t score effectively, we struggle.”

The Firebirds got it together after that second break, and Clark got the Firebirds their next two points on kills.The Jaguars pushed their lead to double digits right after, and the Firebirds struggled to get out of their own way at times. Junior middle hitter Marlea Copeland had a big block to keep the set at 10 points, but the Firebirds followed that up with a service error. Free State only scored twice more before the Jaguars took the set at 25-9.

Free State bounced back and had a much more typical third set. Despite the back-and-forth nature, the Firebirds held a slight lead for most of the start of it, until the Jaguars started to pull away with a 16-12 lead that forced the Firebirds to call a timeout.

The Firebirds let the deficit grow a little more before some more defensive play at the net spurred the team and led the Firebirds to tie the set at 21-21. But the Jaguars got the final four points, winning the set 25-21 and securing the sweep.

While the loss was disappointing, the Firebirds still are at the top of the region and have the leadership to bounce back. Free State will be at the De Soto Spikefest this weekend before hosting its final two regular season games next Tuesday and Thursday.

“We are still in a really good spot in our standings in the west side of the state,” Grillot said. “That gives us our second league loss out of all the matches we’ve played… so all of our goals are still ahead of us that we set out for at the beginning of the year. One loss is not going to define us.”

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior outside hitter Anniston Clark bumps the ball over the net in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State sophomore libero Brinley Whitney bumps the ball in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior setter Tessa Nover-Estes prepares to receive the serve in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior defensive specialist Marygrace Bradford serves the ball in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State junior middle hitter Marlea Copeland spikes the ball in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State volleyball celebrates a point in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State sophomore middle hitter Grace Toner communicates with the team in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior outside hitter Daisy Devlin bumps the ball in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior setter Tessa Nover-Estes serves the ball in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State volleyball celebrates a kill by freshman outside hitter Bryna Clark in a match against Mill Valley on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Lawrence.