PARIS (KFSM) - It’s a Tuesday night in a town of less than 3,400 people. 5 o'clock rolls around, and you can find a good chunk of Paris, Arkansas residents at the high school gym.
“When people hear Paris, they hear volleyball," right side hitter Ciara Boswell explained.
Packed stands glued to thrill of a dominant run seen once in a lifetime.
“I fully believe that the community is the best part of this program," setter Paiton Forbis mentioned. "They support us with whatever we do, wherever we are. Anything that we need - the community is there to help us.”
That support doesn’t come undeserved.
“I had no idea that it would be like this," middle hitter Faith Mainer remembered of when she first joined the program. "It was crazy. Seventh grade was like, well maybe we’ll try out volleyball. I never thought I would be here.”
Perhaps the only thing more impressive than the Eagles play on the court is their trophy cabinet - where you can find state titles from 2015-2018.
“Nobody wants to be that first group now that loses it," head coach Jordan Devine emphasized. "It’s like one, cool. Two, we’re kind of on a roll. Three and four is like, whoa. Now we’re getting to like, you don’t want to be the one.”
Winning is no longer a goal in Paris, it’s an expectation. So much so - that the Eagles have only dropped six sets the whole year.
“I really think that these girls just work harder than most," Coach Devine explained. "We probably practice more than anybody. We play as many games as we can possibly play. Not because I’m like, hey we need to go do this. They’re begging me to get into the gym. I mean, begging me.”
“It’s a part of my life," Boswell added. "I spend so much time in the gym. I probably spend more time in the gym than I do at home with my family, which says a lot.”
Now eyes turn to winning a fifth consecutive championship, after finishing out another night the way Paris knows best - with their 29th sweep in their 33rd match of the year.
“We just know that people are always going to be trying to tear us down," libero Robyn Gossard mentioned of the pressure to keep to winning ways. "Even though they’re like hey, that’s pretty cool - they’re going to be like well, we hope you lose.”
The drive for five is on the final lap - with another trophy for the cabinet waiting at the finish line.
“All the pieces are there, it’s just putting it together at the right time," Coach Devine concluded.
Paris has one game left to play in the regular season, currently holding a 32-1 record and capping out the past five years with a record of 151-16-2.