For a 16th straight year, Lincoln is headed to the state tournament.

The No. 5 Bulldogs won their 16th regional championship in a row on Thursday, as Lincoln will head to state this upcoming Thursday, looking to capture the school's 6th state championship.

Lincoln swept McLain in the regional semifinal on Thursday afternoon, before doing the same to No. 12 Weatherford in the championship.

The Bulldogs (24-13) won 25-8, 25-11 and 25-7 over McLain. Lincoln beat Weatherford 25-20, 25-22 and 25-8 in the finals.

"This week was just a glimpse of what our team has been working so hard all season to do," said senior Ellie Stine.

In the win over McLain, Harlow Brown led the Bulldogs with eight kills. Stine had seven, while Jada Faulkner had six and Olivia Tucker had four.

Emily Ingraham had five aces in the match, while Maleah Levell and Avarie Castagna each had four for Lincoln. Frannie Rollandini had three aces and Tucker finished with two.

Rollandini had 25 assists in just 37 attempts. She also led the team with three digs, while Faulkner, Levell and Ingraham each had two.

Lincoln had 30 assists and 18 aces to just two apiece for McLain.

"I cant wait to experience an exciting state tournament with these girls and this team," said Stine.

In the regional championship win over Weatherford, Lincoln started off in impressive fashion, as the Bulldogs had 17 kills in the opening set win over the Eagles.

After seven missed serves in the second set, Lincoln held on to win 25-22 before running away from Weatherford in the final set.

Lincoln held the Eagles to a staggering zero kills in the 3rd set.

"Our tough regular season schedule has prepared us for the state tournament," said senior Francesca Rollandini. "We are peaking when it counts."

Faulkner led the way again with 14 kills, while Stine had 11 and Tucker finished with 10. Harlow Brown added five.

Rollandini had 38 assists in 76 attempts, as she continues to set the table for Lincoln.

Tucker had nine digs to lead the team, while Rollandini had eight and Levell had seven. Ingraham had five for the Bulldogs.

Tucker also had three aces in the match, while Levell, Ingraham, Nelson, Stine and Castagna each had one.

The Bulldogs finished the regular season with a 14-11 record against ranked teams, as well as an 11-6 mark against Class 6A teams and a 6-1 record against Class 4A teams. 

Photos by Jamie Ingraham