East Hamilton followed up last week's District 6-2A volleyball championship with the school's first Region 3-2A title with a 3-0 win against Hixson Monday at Kingston High School. The Lady Hurricanes will host a sectional match on Thursday at 7 p.m. and a win would send them to the state tournament.
photo by Contributed
(This story has been updated)
East Hamilton defeated district rival Hixson 3-0 Monday night to capture the Region 3-2A volleyball tournament championship at Kingston High School.
The Lady Hurricanes, who beat the Lady Wildcats for the District 6-2A title last week, captured the regional win with set scores of 25-18, 25-20 and 25-21.
It was East Hamilton’s first regional title since 2012 when the Lady Canes advanced to the state tournament, finishing third. The Lady Canes moved up to Class 3A the following season.
East Hamilton also won a region crown in 2011 and appeared in the state tournament.
On Thursday, East Hamilton will host a Class 2A sectional while Hixson will have to play on the road. The two teams will be paired against two clubs coming out of Region 4-2A that plays its semifinals and championship match on Tuesday at Signal Mountain.
Signal Mountain plays Livingston Academy and Upperman takes on Red Bank. The winners square off about 20 minutes later in the title match.
“It was 87 degrees in the gym, really hot, and our kids were tired for the Hixson match,” East Hamilton coach Bruna Langner said. “I’m going home and take a shower first thing. I’m sure Hixson’s girls were tired too.”
East Hamilton (20-13) beat Loudon, the runner-up in District 5-2A, 3-0 by scores of 25-10, 25-16 and 25-5 in the semifinals. Hixson (18-18) reached the title match by knocking off host Kingston, the 5-2A champion, 3-1 and the scores were 25-11, 25-13, 22-25 and 25-9.
“We played really good defense tonight,” Langner said. “The difference between us and Hixson was defense. Our hitters did a really good job and I’m happy the way we played.
“We’re very excited. The coaches have had this team for about three months. The girls have worked hard. I guessed they believed in us (coaches) and trusted what we were telling them and they’re improving every day. They have spent a lot of time in the gym and it’s paying off because we’re having a really good season. Thursday is a big deal. We want to keep winning.”
Langner is assisted by Bojana Hyatt and Donna Kuberg.
East Hamilton entered the 2017 season with new faces – coaches and players.
“It was a new team, really young,” Langner said. “We had a lot of sophomores and freshmen and an eighth-grader, but we knew they had potential. We spent a lot of time in July on ball control and technique. The girls kept asking why we weren’t scrimmaging and we told them this was the way we had to start. We’re lucky that we have a very athletic team.
Madison Hayes had a combined 19 kills, nine aces, four blocks and 26 digs for the two matches. Hillary English added five aces, four kills, 31 assists, 17 digs and two blocks.
The Lady Wildcats will find out their sectional opponent after the Region 4 tournament at Signal Mountain.
“We’ll play that champion and we will have to play hard and smart and just have some fun. This is our fourth straight year getting to Sectional and that’s quite a feat. A lot of people would like to be in our place.
“There are only 16 teams still playing and that’s a big deal. We had a shirt made up before the season: Tradition Never Graduates. Hopefully, it does continue."
Several Hixson players turned in solid efforts in the two matches, including Gabby Tench, Dakota Rawiszer, Abby Rector and Shelby Rector.
Tench had combined stats of three aces, six kills, 16 digs and 17 assists. Rawiszer collected two aces, 17 kills, eight digs and 15 assists. Abby Rector put up seven aces, 10 kills, 39 digs and three blocks while Shelby Rector had five aces, nine kills, 10 digs and one block.
STATISTICS
Hixson 3, Kingston 1 (25-11, 25-13, 22-25, 25-9)
Abby Rector – 3 aces, 10 kills, 35 digs
Shelby Rector – 4 aces, 7 kills, 8 digs
Dakota Rawiszer – 1 ace, 14 kills, 5 digs, 8 assists
Sydni Byerley – 6 kills, 2 digs
Kiera Taylor – 1 block
Annie Zeigler – 4 kills, 5 digs
Marly Fitzpatrick – 3 aces, 19 digs
Gabby Tench – 2 aces, 5 kills, 10 digs, 13 assists
Rachel Cline – 1 ace, 15 digs
East Hamilton 3, Hixson 1 25-18, 25-20, 25-21)
Hixson
Abby Rector – 4 kills, 4 digs, 3 blocks
Shelby Rector – 1 ace, 2 kills, 2 digs, 1 block
Dakota Rawiszer – 1 ace, 3 kills, 3 digs, 7 assists
Sydni Byerley – 1 kill, 1 dig
Kiera Taylor – 1 kill, 1 dig, 1 assist
Annie Zeigler – 3 kills, 3 digs
Marly Fitzpatrick – 2 aces, 16 digs
Gabby Tench – 1 ace, 1 kill, 6 digs, 4 assists
Rachel Cline – 1 ace, 9 digs
East Hamilton
Hillary English – 3 aces, 2 kills, 20 assists, 2 blocks, 13 digs
Taryn Robinson – 2 aces, 16 digs
Emma Mitchell – 9 kills, 1 block, 1 dig
Madison Hayes – 5 aces, 11 kills, 3 blocks, 22 digs
McKenna Hayes – 1 ace, 5 kills, 4 blocks, 3 digs
Jala Price – 12 digs
Raine Phillips – 3 aces, 4 kills, 6 blocks, 4 digs
Kayla Ford – 4 digs
Caroline Clement – 3 kills, 2 digs
Jordyn Griffith – 4 kills
East Hamilton 3, Loudon 0 (25-10, 25-16, 25-5)
East Hamilton
Emily Petitt – 2 aces, 5 assists, 1 dig
Hillary English – 2 aces, 2 kills, 11 assists, 4 digs
Raine Phillips – 7 aces, 6 kills, 5 digs
McKenna Hayes – 1 ace, 5 kills, 2 blocks, 3 digs
Jala Price – 5 digs
Caroline Clement – 1 kill, 2 digs
Emma Mitchell – 5 kills, 1 dig
Taryn Robinson – 2 aces
Madison Hayes – 4 aces, 8 kills, 1 block, 4 digs
(Contact Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and on Twitter @larryfleming44)