MURFREESBORO – Tuesday was a long and challenging day for seven Chattanooga-area teams here for the TSSAA State Volleyball tournament, but we ended up winning more than we lost.
East Hamilton and Signal Mountain both won in Class AA while CSAS and Sale Creek were both tough-luck losers in Class A. Cleveland breezed in Class AAA while Baylor stayed alive with a big five-set win in D-II-AA.
The heartbreaking story of the day belonged to the Boyd Buchanan Lady Bucs, who got eliminated without winning a set in two D-II-A matches after entering play on a 29-match winning streak.
The East Hamilton Lady Hurricanes had a real battle with Murfreesboro Central before winning by scores of 29-27, 19-25, 25-17, 22-25 and 15-5.
Signal Mountain only needed four sets to defeat Tennessee, winning by scores of 21-25, 25-18, 25-16 and 25-18.
East Hamilton will face Dyer County in the first semifinal match on Wednesday morning at Siegel High School while Signal Mountain will follow in a second semi versus Creekwood.
East Hamilton came really close to winning a Class AA state title last fall and have made winning it this year their utmost goal. They took the first step in the right direction with the win over the Lady Tigers.
“I just hope I can survive another day tomorrow, but we just kept fighting and playing to our highest level the entire match,” said East Hamilton coach Antonela Tomic Suzuki after her team had improved to 36-8 for the season.
“That first set was the big one as we were behind and found a way to come back. And I’m really proud of the way we won in set five.
“We left here last year with a bad taste in our mouths, so we’re here this week with the intent on finishing what did left undone a year ago,” she added.
Tristin Sutton was one of several leaders for the Lady Hurricanes as she finished with 20 digs and 14 assists, in addition to four kills and an ace. Hana Suzuki had 18 assists while Georgia Dobson had 13 kills and 10 digs.
Signal Mountain got off to a slow start by losing its first set, but after a few adjustments, things went well for the rest of the match.
“I’m really happy with the way we performed as it was one of our most balanced matches of the season,” said Signal Mountain coach Kim Rackel after her team improved to 29-11.
“I thought we showed a lot of poise and we were smart with our shot selection. All were on board as we executed amazingly. We were definitely doing more than going through the motions.
“We got off to a slow start, but we made some adjustments and got everything back on track,” she added.
Emily Redman had 21 assists and 13 kills to lead the Signal Mountain team while Carlee Lowry had 13 kills, 21 assists and nine digs.
EAST HAMILTON STATS:
Maddie O’Brien – 1 ace
Laila Ankar – 2 aces, 4 assists, 18 digs
Hana Suzuki – 7 aces, 18 assists, 6 digs
Georgia Dobson – 5 aces, 1 assist, 13 kills, 1 block, 10 digs
Julia Culpepper – 9 kills, 4 blocks, 10 digs
Saylor Clark – 6 kills, 7 digs
Chelsie Snyder – 6 kills
Tristin Sutton – 1 ace, 14 assists, 4 kills, 20 digs
Morgan Prichard – 4 aces, 7 digs
Savannah Hughes – 6 kills, 2 blocks
Gabi Repko – 4 assists, 10 digs.
SIGNAL MOUNTAIN STATS:
Addie Jones – 7 kills, 6 digs, 3 blocks, 1 ace
Carlee Lowry – 13 kills, 1 block, 9 digs, 3 aces, 21 assists
Dillia Lowry – 5 kills, 4 blocks, 4 digs, 1 ace
Elle Ramsey – 8 digs, 4 assists
Emily Redman – 13 kills, 4 digs, 4 aces, 21 assists
Becca Rogers – 6 kills, 4 blocks, 1 ace
Amelia Bustamante – 7 digs.
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)