Norman High's volleyball season ended Thursday, Oct. 22, with a five-set loss to Edmond Memorial in the quarterfinals of the OSSAA 6A State Volleyball Tournament.

The Tigers dropped the first two sets before fighting back to win the next two and force a winner-take-all fifth set inside Carl Albert's gym, the Norman Transcript reported. Edmond Memorial held on to end Norman High's season.

"After the second set, the Tigers could've easily mailed it in," Transcript sports editor Davis Cordova wrote. "However, Norman High fought back and took the game to the furthest it could've gone, but it wasn't enough to extend its season."

Norman High coach Alexis Brendemihl praised her players' effort after the loss, according to the Transcript. The Tigers battled through injuries to nearly every player throughout the season and were challenged each week, the Transcript reported. Brendemihl said the quarterfinal matched the team's identity all year: they kept fighting.

Senior right-side hitter Olivia Carter, a Mississippi State commit, was a force at the net. Carter recorded kills against the Bulldogs in what was her final high school match, according to the Transcript.

The loss caps a season that included back-to-back state tournament appearances for the program. Norman High's 2025 trip to state was the program's first in two decades, according to Transcript coverage published in August. Making it back in 2026 showed the program's continued growth under Brendemihl.

The Tigers opened the season on Aug. 10 with a five-set win over Piedmont despite seven of eight starters dealing with injuries before the opener. Brendemihl acknowledged the rough start at the time but expressed confidence in the group.

"I think as the season goes on and we're able to practice with a full roster, which we haven't been able to do, I think we're still trying to lock in, but I think it's going to be a good season," Brendemihl said in August coverage by the Transcript.

It turned out to be more than good. The Tigers earned a regional championship and reached the state quarterfinals before their run ended against Edmond Memorial.

Carter plans to play collegiate volleyball at Mississippi State and study psychology, according to Norman Athletics.

Edmond Memorial advanced to the semifinals.