After a holding a 2-0 lead in the state championship game, the Lady Islanders lost to Radford High School.

The Lady Islanders were one of three Bay Rivers District volleyball teams to play in a state championship game. Poquoson High School matched up with Radford for the Class 2 state title game, and the results didn’t quite go as Poquoson had hoped.

After taking a 2-0 lead and needing only one more set for the state title, Poquoson allowed Radford to secure three straight set victories to take a 3-2 win. The result didn’t take away from how hard the Lady Islanders had fought the whole game, even mounting comeback efforts in the first two sets that they did win.

“The girls fought as hard as they could and had an opportunity to win the match,” Poquoson coach Tim Hatok said. “We just didn’t do enough to earn the victory. We have beautiful comebacks in the first two sets but didn’t generate enough points the rest of the way.”

Poquoson finished the regular season with an 11-7 record. They made a strong playoff push, which included four consecutive wins to reach the state championship game.

“Our postseason success speaks to the group effort any coach would hope for,” Hatok said. “One of our top players, Chloe Dupuis, suffered a torn MCL in our last regular-season match against Grafton. Many could’ve thought all hopes were gone for the postseason. My players didn’t bat an eye and just jumped at the opportunity to show that they can step into other roles and perform the job required.”

In the last two years, Poquoson has made school history, as last year they were the first team to reach the state title game and are now the first team to reach back-to-back games.

“I am so proud of this team for all that they did this year,” Hatok said. “Back-to-back regional champions and state runner-up is a big accomplishment.”