Sarah Hettich (31) and members of the Freeport volleyball team celebrate after beating Beaver in the PIAA 2A semifinals last season. The Yellowjackets went on to win the state title, joining Knoch as Butler County champions in the sport in 2017.

BUFFALO TWP — Members of the Freeport volleyball team walked dejectedly off the court at Baldwin following a loss to Beaver in the WPIAL 2A championship.

Little did the Yellowjackets know at the time that the loss would perhaps be the best thing that happened to them during a magical 2017 season.

Freeport went on to cut a swath of dominance through the PIAA 2A playoffs, avenging that loss to Beaver in the state semifinals before dispatching Delone Catholic, 3-1, in the state championship match.

“I think losing the WPIAL championship gave us a lot of motivation to win a state title,” said senior Ally DeJidas, who had 21 kills against Delone in the title match in Johnstown last November. “I think without that, who knows if we would have won the state.”

But the Yellowjackets did win the state title, making a longtime dream of coach Tom Phillips come true in the process.

All these months later, the title still feels surreal to the returning players.

The dream now for Freeport is to repeat.

Read how the Yellowjackets are preparing to win again in Friday's Butler Eagle.