CASPER — The Cokeville Lady Panthers are back on top after winning the 1A state volleyball title in Casper over the weekend. This makes 26 state team titles for the Lady Panthers.

The team was led by six incredible seniors and one junior libero with head coach Kristen Vierig and assistant Tanya Moyes at the helm.

The Lady Panthers entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed from the West, as they edged out the Lady Rattlers for the regional title in five sets the week before.

The ladies had Guernsey-Sunrise for their first match and won easily in three sets, 25-7, 25-13, 25-9.

On Friday evening, they matched up against the No. 2 seed from the East, the Lady Cyclones of Southeast. They were tall and they were strong. The Lady Panthers took the first set in a hard-fought battle, 25-21. The Lady Cyclones came back and stole the second set, 20-25. The Lady Panthers owned the third set, 25-14, and battled for the fourth to take the win 25-21.

This win earned the Lady Panthers the right to compete in the championship game against the Little Snake River Lady Rattlers for the 2023 1A State Crown. This was the fourth time these two had competed against each other this season.

It was a fight for every ball, but the Lady Panthers were determined and played their hearts out. Every set was close, with the last one going down to the wire, but the Lady Panthers got the sweep 25-21, 25-20 and 26-24. The crowd erupted as the last ball went down.