Volleyball season has begun and has been soaring under the radar of football hype.

The Briarwood Christian Lions, coached by Robbie Wilson, continue to be a power in volleyball in Shelby County.

The Lions defeated Fairfield on Sept. 5 by scores of 25-7, 25-9 and 25-14. Standouts included Haley Johnson, Leah Scroggins, Emmy DeShazo and Caroline Whitt.

Next up came Oak Mountain on Sept. 7. This time Briarwood won 25-19, 19-25, 23-25, 25-11 and 15-11.

Johnson had 17 kills, 9 digs and two aces. Scoggins had 16 kills, four digs and three aces. DeShazo had 10 kills, one dig and five aces, and Stephanie McKinney had 10 kills and five blocks. Whitt had three kills, 38 assists and three aces.

Briarwood went on to defeat Shades Valley on Sept. 9 by margins of 25-8, 25-6 and 25-10 and McAdory 25-7, 25-10 and 25-11.

The Lions play Gardendale at Briarwood on Sept. 14 at 6 p.m. and will participate in the Lovett Block Party Tournament in Atlanta, Ga. Sept. 15 and 16.

The Calera Eagles coached by Jan Holcomb are 2-6 thus far, but Holcomb said the team&8217;s record does not reflect the 100 percent effort the girls give in practice and during games.

Holcomb said after maturity in the volleyball program itself, Calera will be &8220;awesome.&8221; She also said her ninth grade player Katelyn Dean will be a force to be reckoned with it the future.

In recent action, serving aces for Calera are Lauren Parker and Dean with 18 each. Dean also has 15 kills, and she leads the team in blocks with three, followed by Tiffany Dempsey and La&8217;Jacqueline Morgan with two each.

Donnie Teague is the coach for the Chelsea Volleyball team, which is now 5-6 on the season.

Last week, Chelsea enjoyed wins over Sylacauga and Calera before losing a close match to Shelby County.

The Hornets won the latest match over Calera 25-16, 25-23 and 25-12.

Teague said standouts included Jessica Colyer who anchors the team with strong hitting, serving and solid defense.

Colyer had five aces and seven kills in the match with the Eagles.

Teague said Braden Thacker is the junior setter, and other notables include Kristen Handley and Emily Handley, an eighth grader pulled up for &8220;her exceptional on the court consistency and hard work ethic.&8221;

Chelsea was set to play McAdory, Mortimer Jordan and Montevallo the week of Sept. 11 before leaving for the Spring High School invitational tournament.