Canton spikers outlast Hale-Ray to advance to Class S final

Players on the Canton High girls volleyball team celebrate a point during Tuesday night’s Class S semifinal win over Hale-Ray. More photos of the game

HARTFORD, Nov. 11, 2025 – The Canton High girls volleyball team didn’t dominate Hale Ray in Tuesday night’s Class S semifinal match at Sport Medicine Science Academy but they certainly wore down the Little Noises.

The Warriors had their hitters, most notably captain Mia Whilby and senior middle hitter Emery Howard, who could put the ball down on the floor and get a kill.

But Canton’s pesky defense made it tough for Hale-Ray to score points. The Little Noises had hard hitters like Reagan Bean and Katie Hagery but the Warriors had players ready and able to dig the ball and keep it off the floor.

Hale-Ray eventually made mistakes and it was enough for the Warriors.

No. 10 Canton advanced to their first-ever state championship final after beating No. 3 Hale-Ray, 3-1, by scores of 25-23, 23-25, 25-19 and 25-23. Canton (18-8) will face NCCC nemesis and No. 1 seed Coventry in the championship game this weekend at a time and date to be announced.

Hale-Ray (20-4) was two points away from victories in game one and in game four. In both games, Canton rallied to win. In the opening game, Canton had a 5-1 run to close out the game. In game four, the Warriors had a 6-2 run to secure the match.

“Our defensive coverage really does step up in a game like this,” Canton’s second-year coach Andrew Barnes said. “When games are tight, we know it’s time to make a dig or a big play to help our offense out.

“It starts with great serve receive and great defense,” he said. “You can see the girls flying around in the back row so our offense can have some great opportunities.”

Whilby finished with an unofficial total of 15 kills while Howard had 14. But Olivia Foy and Avery Rodriguez also got some kills and setter Sophia Mazza did a masterful job of delivering the ball to her teammates.

Canton’s Emery Howard hits the ball during Tuesday night’s Class S semifinal win over Hale-Ray in Hartford. More photos of the game

“We all know our spots so well and we just flew together,” Whilby said. “Our team has never been so close. It all comes down to chemistry. We all love each other. It’s like a big family.”

Barnes said that closeness helps in tight matches – which this match was.

“You can tell when the score is tight or the score is lopsided, they really believe in each other and lean on each other when those games get tough,” Barnes said.

There were some outstanding rallies in the match, especially in later stages of game three. In one rally, Whigby had three hard hits that Hale-Ray kept off the floor and the Warriors did the same. In another rally, Canton liberio Audrey Lindquist made a diving dig that kept the ball in play for a rally that seemed to go on for quite a while.

In game one, Hale-Ray had a 23-21 lead and was two points away from the victory.

But the Little Noises couldn’t handle a hard hit from Howard to give Canton the ball back and cut the lead to one, 23-22. At attempted spike by Hale-Ray was out, Mazza dropped in a dink for a point and Lindquist had an ace in the back corner of the court to give Canton a 25-23 decision.

In game two, Hale-Ray had early 10-point lead, 13-3, but Canton wouldn’t go away quietly. Howard had six kills and Whilby had three as the Warriors cut the lead to one several times but dropped a 25-23 decision.

Canton led by 10 points four times in game three but the Little Noises rallied to make it close. Still, Canton prevailed, 25-19 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Game four was a battle with multiple ties. Whilby had three kills among Canton’s nine points. Trailing by one, Howard had kills on three consecutive plays to help Canton grab a 17-15 lead.

Trailing by two, Whilby had consecutive kills to tie the match at 21-21. A service ace from Mazza gave Canton a 22-21 lead. Tied at 22, Whilby had a kill to put Canton two points away from winning the match. Two errors by Hale-Ray gave Canton a 25-23 win and the match.

Canton advanced to the semifinal with a 3-2 win over No. 2 Valley Regional in the quarterfinals last week and victories over Wright Tech and East Catholic earlier in the tournament. Previously, Canton’s best performance in a CIAC tournament was the quarterfinals.

Canton 3, Hale-Ray 1
At Hartford (SMSA)
Canton (18-8)         25  23  25  25
Hale-Ray (20-4)    23  25  19  23
Of note: Canton advances to Class S championship for first time in school history. Mia Whilby had 15 kills for Canton while Emery Howard had 14 kills.

More photos of the semifinals