By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Greg Maxwell has built a bona fide program. In 2018, his Ellinwood High School volleyball team qualified for state for the first time in 21 years. Three years later, the Eagles finished fourth at state. In 2024, a completely new team set a school record with 42 wins on the way to another fourth-place finish at state. As history would have it, that's the last time the Eagles lost. Ellinwood has won 94 straight matches following that consolation loss to Inman. Saturday in Salina, the Eagles defeated Rossville 25-9, 25-14 for a second consecutive 47-0 record and Class 2A championship.
"The balance on this team is unbelievable," said Maxwell. "I've said all along, I don't know how you can defend us. To do a game plan against us would be so difficult because, if you take one away, we have five others who can beat you. You'd have to have such a balanced defense to stop our attack. The thing that's probably the most incredible about it is I don't know if our attack is the best part of our game. We pass so well, we defend so well, our blocking has taken a huge step forward this year."
The 2024 team accomplished its record-setting season with just one senior in Kennedy Behnke, who continued her career at Pittsburg State University. Last year’s perfect record was assisted by just two seniors: Regan Widener and Kyndal Moore, who joined the Fort Hays State and Emporia State rosters, respectively.
Maxwell finished another perfect season with yet another relatively young roster. This year’s squad featured just three seniors: Alyvia Batchman and Bennett Jacobs played in virtually every set during the regular season, and Addi Stickney played in 55 of the 87 sets. That means the state record of 137 consecutive wins, set by the now-defunct Nemaha Valley from 1988-91, could be in jeopardy next year as Ellinwood returns most of its roster.
The Tennals wrote the book on volleyball history in Kansas. Kimbrook coached six undefeated teams, including the record-run at Nemaha Valley. In 20 years at Nemaha, Kimbrook posted a 791-49 record with 19 trips to the state tournament. His teams won 11 titles, finished runner-up five times, and placed third three times. His wife, Kim, with Kimbrook as an assistant, won 126 straight matches at Centralia, and led the Panthers to eight consecutive Class 1A titles.
The rules of high school volleyball have changed over the decades, and records regarding set are much hard to glean, but Maxwell’s Eagles are doing something special in that regard. Only four times in the last two seasons has any team taken a set against Ellinwood. Kim Rolf’s Little River team, winners of four straight Class 1A, Div. I titles, accomplished that feat. In the second match of this season, Little River took the first set 25-23. The Eagles have not dropped a set since.
“I would see certain teams beat other teams at a higher level than we did, and I’d always think we’re missing something, we’re not there,” Maxwell said. “Last year, we started putting those numbers up consistently. This year, that was the challenge: no one plays with you. We just said, the only way you can do that is show up every day, every point, every minute. They’ve done that at an elite level.”
High school teams, especially in the lower classifications, typically feature one, two, maybe even three standouts. Maxwell has developed multiple standouts in all aspects of the game, making his Eagles a truly dominating force.
Through the regular season, five girls had at least 160 kills. Junior Brynn Widener led the way with 276, followed by junior Mette Maxwell with 225, and junior Ayla Ritchie with 214. Not far behind, senior Alyvia Batchman had 194 kills, and sophomore Reagan Stickney had 164.
Likewise, the Eagles had plenty of defensive ability at the net. Stickney led the team with 73 blocks, and Ritchie and Widener split another 121 blocks. That was evident at this year’s state tournament as the Eagles had to beat the likes of Rossville senior Nora Burdiek, a Washburn commit, twice to win the title. Burdiek helped the Bulldawgs beat No. 2 seed Moundridge in three sets in Saturday’s other semifinal match, but Ellinwood put her on mute in the championship match.
"A huge part of our preparation was knowing what the other side was going to bring, and we knew we had to block her," Batchman said. "We did what we had to do, blocking, committing, and keeping our eyes on going forward. Even if she gets a big kill, it's our game."
If the ball does get past the net, there was a host of Eagle defenders ready to clean it up. Maxwell led the team with 245 digs, followed by Jacobs with 244. Widener added 239 digs, and Batchman finished with 200. Junior Reagan Wirtz, who finished with 203 digs during the regular season, kept several plays alive with back-row play at state.
The service game is the first way to keep an opponent on its heels. Maxwell helped the Eagles to a 14-0 start against TMP in the state semifinals. She led the team with 115 aces this season. Widener added 70 aces, Stickney finished with 62, Wirtz served up 53 aces, and Batchman finished with 48.
Ellinwood had already secured the longest active win streak in the nation, and moved into No. 3 all-time in Kansas for win streaks. With this week’s 5-0 run at state, Ellinwood will take its 94-match streak into next season. The math is obvious: Ellinwood needs 43 more wins to tie the state record, and they’ve played 47 matches in each of the last two seasons. In the least, the streak has shined a bright spotlight on Ellinwood and its volleyball team.
"That is the part of this I'm loving so much is the exposure these kids are getting," Maxwell said. "People are talking to them from across the state. It goes back to that last loss. That was something that motivated them to a new, elite level. We talked about being elite this year and they've accomplished that every day."