The scene was set for another Cicero Prep state title. The chants from the crowd were in sync. The bench’s routines were crisp and fun.

The red mohawk on a Centurion dad was a tone setter, and red dyed hair and goatees among the fathers and student body section were nice touches. Not sure what to make of the ‘Dirty Ace Daddies’ t-shirts but it seemed to be part of the winning atmosphere within the program.

The statement on the back of the Cicero coach’s shirt said it most: Be The Standard.

Cicero lived up to it Saturday at Coronado High as the No. 1 Centurions beat No. 2 St. David in three sets to win their fourth straight 1A state title.

Only one other 1A program has ever had such a streak, matching Joseph City, which won four from 1999 to 2002.

Cicero took down St. David 25-18, 25-19, 25-14 to match the feat behind 11 seniors who helped transform the Centurions into the dynasty it has become since they stepped on campus.

“We did not expect this to be a quick like this,” first-year coach Brooks Docktor said. “We won a lot of those long rallies, picked up some momentum early. We expected it to be a battle and it was. We just won some of those big points.”

The Centurions were led by Nicole Damian (9 kills, 14 assists, 12 digs), Penelope Burman (9 kills) and Clara Hodgson (9 kills, 8 digs), while libero Layla Hrabe (11 digs, 2 aces, 1 kill) and Grace Combs (18 assists, 7 digs) did their work in the back row and setting up the offense, respectively.

“We go in with the mentality of play every point as if it is your last one, especially for the seniors, because at some point it is,” said Damian, who was named MVP of the match. “Our bond as players is at the next level. Most of us have been playing together since the sixth grade and we knew our careers could only end one way.”

Docktor took over for Kirsten Fry, who stepped down to work toward her doctorate in psychology, and kept the momentum rolling.

“I knew a lot of the players when I took over and there was no need to change a whole lot,” said Docktor, who coached a Veritas Prep previously. “We had a lot of the same philosophies and approaches to the game so there wasn’t a lot of transitions. Plus, we have a lot of great athletes that know the game.”

While it was a big win for all, especially the 11 seniors on the roster, Hrabe felt the emotions of the moment before the match even started. She was emotional but once the ball was put in play there was only one thing left to do.

“It was so surreal,” she said. “Volleyball overtook my love for softball, and I’ve been playing with these girls since sixth grade. My whole time at Cicero has been with these girls and volleyball. We put in the hard work and we all had to the drive to win. We are all friends and love each other and wanted to do this so bad. And once we won the first one we were like ‘As long as we are here, this is happening.’ ”

St. David, which has won nine state titles with the last one coming in 2020, played its heart out in front of a strong contingent of fans.

The Tigers, who have made 19 state title matches, just didn’t have enough to take down the Centurions, who lead the all-time series 9-1 including the 2023 title game.

They were led by Emma Hart (9 kills, 9 assists, 8 digs), Tracey Brielle (8 kills, 8 assists, 8 digs) and Briklyn Jacquez (8 digs).

“We played hard, but (Cicero) won a lot of those big points,” St. David coach Breanna Tillett said. “There’s no questioning their heart. They don’t give up. We were down but they kept playing hard. It’s all I can ask of them.”

It seemed no matter what St. David did, it could not gain more than a one-point lead in any of the matches.

Cicero Prep is on a level that is hard to match at this point. It showed up again on Saturday when the crowd chant turned to “We want four. We want four.”

The Centurions completed the four-year dominance by playing together, working through tough stretches and winning the big moments.

“I think coming in and keeping up the bond and connection we had added to the program,” said Damian, who is headed to Bryant University in Rhode Island. “The first year set the tone and after that we kept pushing for more, and we were never satisfied.”

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