WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High volleyball team’s season came to an end on Nov. 5 with a 3-0 loss to Canton at the Charbonneau Field House.
The 8th-seeded Warriors gave the 9th-seeded Bulldogs all they could handle but Canton held on each set, with scores of 25-17, 25-23, 25-22.
Canton, a D2 state champion in 2019 and consistent participant in the Final Four and state championship in recent years, proved their D2 experience against a Wakefield team that just made the jump from D3 this year.
The Warriors had plenty of standouts in the match, especially from a deep and talented group of seniors including captain Mia Kenny who led the way with 10 kills. She also added 5 digs and 16 serve receptions.
More senior standouts included captain Cara Carangelo who had a team-high 22 serve receptions, 7 digs and 2 aces; captain Lila Arkinstall who had 7 kills and a block; captain Tori Grace who had a team-high 13 assists and 5 digs; Allison Cook who had 10 assists to reach her 500th for her career and 5 digs; Jackie Sullivan who had 3 kills and a block and Brendia Diaz who had 6 digs and 14 receptions.
Wakefield could never quite catch up in the first set as the visitors stayed at arm’s length to take a 1-0 lead.
The action certainly picked up in a back-and-forth 2nd set. A kill from sophomore Talia Galante made it 8-5 Wakefield early but Canton went on a 3-0 run to tie it and later a 5-0 run to force a timeout from the Warriors with Canton up 17-13.
Wakefield fought back, starting with a Kenny kill from the outside. Trailing 20-16, the Warriors went on a 5-2 run. Grace followed a fake set and kill with a diving dig on the next rally which eventually resulted in a point and a timeout for the Bulldogs with Wakefield cutting the deficit to 20-18.
An Arkinstall kill later made it 21-19 and two Kenny kills made it 23-22 Canton. The Warriors looked like they tied it at 24 with a long Arkinstall kill on the line but an illegal procedure by Wakefield before the point was called afterwards, resulting in a meeting between the refs. The set was then declared over at 25-23, Canton.
Wakefield put that call behind them and fought hard again for the entirety of the 3rd, a Sullivan kill in the middle and two Arkinstall kills helping keep pace with the Bulldogs early. Impressive shots from Sullivan, Kenny and Arkinstall got the home crowd back into it and forced a Canton timeout with the Bulldogs up 19-18.
Arkinstall continued to dig deep at the net, giving it all she had to force another set and Kenny kept up her strong hitting. A Carangelo ace tied it at 21-21 but a few mishits from the Warriors gave the visitors the edge and Canton’s defense, which was terrific all night, made it tough for Wakefield to come back again as the Bulldogs closed on a 3-0 run.
The Warriors finished their season at 17-5 overall, the best record in program history. Canton advanced to the Elite Eight where they were topped by No. 1 Oliver Ames, 3-1. Ames will be playing in the D2 state title against No. 7 Wayland on Saturday morning, 10 a.m. at Billerica High.
Wakefield’s historic season included their first-ever victory over Melrose, the alma mater of Warrior head coach Kayla Wyland and the first Middlesex League Freedom Division title.
Their 10 seniors — Arkinstall, Carangelo, Grace, Kenny, Addison Butland, Cook, Diaz, Emma Ickes, Morgan Jackson and Sullivan — have led the Warriors to new heights over the last four years. Since their freshman season, the program has accomplished innumerable first’s such as league wins over Melrose, Arlington, Woburn and Belmont along with the program’s first trip to the Final Four back in 2023.
Together, the volleyball Class of 2026 will go down as the best in Wakefield history.
