But against a senior-laden Riverside team -- a team that like Apex a year ago, had a little bit of everything -- the Cougars' inexperience came into play as it lost in the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A playoffs.

The Pirates, champions of the PAC-6 Conference, trailed only for a point it its 25-19, 25-17, 25-11 home triumph against Apex.

"Playoffs bring out pressure situations, and on an inexperienced team, it showed," Apex coach Nikki O'Connell said.

Senior Megan Gravley said that even she wasn't sure what this season would bring.

The second-round loss wasn't as bad, considering Apex won a share of the Tri-Nine Conference title, its fourth in as many years. It was also the fourth consecutive season where the Cougars (19-5) won at least 19 matches.

"Last season was a lot to live up to," Gravley said. "But we were determined to do our best in whatever we were put up against."

As much as experience played a factor in Riverside's win, so too did size. The Pirates boasted middle blockers that stood 6 feet 4 inches and 6 feet 2 inches respectively, as well as two 5-foot-10 outside hitters.

Even in those times when Apex was able to sneak a shot past Riverside's tall blockers, the Pirates were able to keep the ball in play, then get it to setter Maddie McCallie. McCallie, who finished with 33 assists, kept the Cougars' defense off-balance by spreading her passes around.

Of those assists, many of them found Olivia Williams (16 kills) or Kiara Speer (16 kills). Apex had just 25 total kills on the night, with Gravley having 11 of them.

"Riverside played really well. They run a quick offense, and we really haven't seen a lot of that," O'Connell said. "We were a bit shaken up by that."

O'Connell said that in all, she thought her team played well this season and credited her players for stepping up.

Her players credited her.

"Our coach trained us well and we tried to go hard at everything," Gravley said. "Coach O'Connell was really preparing us well for how young we were."