Georgia Volleyball

Yes, Pope is beatable, but only by the narrowest of margins. Through 50 matches this season, Pope High School has run their volleyball record to an astounding 49-1, still unbeaten in contests among fellow 1-AAAA competition. Last year at the 1-AAAAA level, Pope took home the state championship, running their record to 52-2 along the way. Mary Hoey, Gatorade’s 2009 Georgia Player of the Year, leads the squad as she looks to continue her storied high school volleyball career and extend the success of one of the most prolific classes the sport has ever seen. The one stumble this season came at the hands of Walton, defeating the Greyhounds after a comeback bid fell just short in the 5^th set. Pope and Walton are familiar foes at this point, with Pope besting Walton a year ago in the 1-AAAA finals. It should be noted Walton also defeated Pope in their only 2 losses of 2009, with Pope winning 3 of 5 in year’s total matchups, including the State Championship Match. In Fact, the last time a Pope team lost to a non-Walton opponent was November 1, 2008, losing 1-3 to Northview in the AAAAA State Tournament. This year, now in different divisions, Pope faced Walton only twice, splitting the series. (more…)

Sometimes the stars align with milestones for both team and coach. So was the case when the Woodward War Eagles defeated Sandy Creek in the 1-AAA area volleyball championship, securing the title for the players and coach Tad Sahara’s 300^th win as Woodward head coach.For the season the War Eagles have compiled a record of 49-10, led by 1^st Team All-Area selection Zoey Morton and fellow standouts Kelsey Eastman, Maddy Gordon, Courtney Turner, Jordana Klein, Sydney Cooper, Lexie Norfleet and Syndey Morton. Morton led the charge against Sandy Creek, totaling 39 kills over the course of 3 matches, vanquishing any chance Sandy Creek had at hoisting the state trophy along the way. Woodward won the first contest 25-22 before dropping the second match 22-25. In the final frame Woodward survived another 25-22 score to claim the area.Woodward handily defeated McNair and Washington high schools to advance to the final round of competition. Sandy Creek offered no small challenge, having last year advanced to the 1-AAAA semifinals before being realigned to the smaller 1-AAA class. (more…)