Staff Reports
ALEXANDRIA – There must be something about playing on Alexandria’s gym floor during an area volleyball title match that lights a fire within the Cherokee County Lady Warriors.
For the second straight year, the Lady Warriors finished as runner-up in Class 4A, Area 12 to the Lady Cubs in the regular season. And, for the second straight year, Cherokee County claimed an area tournament championship in five sets over the Lady Cubs behind Most Valuable Player Ava Haygood and Best Offensive Player Macy Lea on Tuesday evening. The scores were 11-25, 25-22, 22-25, 25-19 and 15-5.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the heart and grit our girls showed tonight,” Cherokee County head coach Tiffany Rieger said. “After a tough first set where we made several errors and fell 11-25, it would’ve been easy to fold, but these girls chose to fight. They embraced a bend-but-don’t-break mentality and responded with hustle, focus, and determination.
“Alexandria is a strong, scrappy team that doesn’t give you anything easy, but our girls matched that energy and showed they weren’t going to back down. Every dig, every long rally, every hustle play, they kept battling. It wasn’t perfect volleyball, but it was gutsy, and I feel like that made a difference tonight.”
In the championship match, Haygood collected 18 kills, nine digs, two aces, a block, and an assist. Lea accounted for 40 assists, eight digs, four aces, three kills, and a block for the Lady Warriors (44-9).
Ellisan Givens posted 22 digs, an ace, and an assist. Nevaeh Gaidurgis gained 12 kills, six digs, four aces, and a block. Raegan Garmany delivered five kills and a pair of blocks. Jolie Alexander added seven kills, three blocks, three digs, and an assist. Jesslyn Hincy had 16 digs, a kill, and an assist. Mattie Green finished with a kill and a block.
But before Tuesday’s championship showdown with the Lady Cubs was set, Cherokee County had to take care of White Plains in the tournament semifinals. The Lady Warriors did just that, sweeping the Lady Wildcats 25-15, 25-21, 25-21. Alexandria did the same in their semifinal match against Hokes Bluff, sweeping the Lady Eagles in three sets.
Against White Plains, Lea delivered 32 assists, nine digs, three kills, and a block. Garmany posted five kills, a block, and a dig. Green managed three kills, two digs, and an assist.
Haygood collected 10 kills, four digs, two blocks, an ace, and an assist. Alexander contributed seven kills, two blocks, two digs, and two aces. Givens gained 14 digs and three assists. Gaidurgis accumulated 14 kills, seven digs, and an ace. Hincy finished with four digs and an assist.
Givens, Alexander, and Gaidurgis joined Haygood and Lea on the all-tournament team.
“What I’m most proud of is that this was a true team effort,” Rieger said. “Every single player contributed, whether it was on the court making plays or supporting from the bench. Everyone bought in and played for each other. That kind of unity and resilience is what makes this team something special.”
Cherokee County will take on the Area 14 runner-up in the North Super Regional at the Finley Center in Hoover at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 23.
