By DREW GRANTHUM/Sports Writer

Listed is a recap of county volleyball action from Aug. 22-Sept. 7.

AUG. 22

CVA volleyball drops opener

The Coosa Valley Academy girls’ volleyball team played its first match of the year Aug. 22, falling to Kingwood in three sets.

Head coach Jamie Gill said she was proud of the effort put forth by the team, despite its relative inexperience.

“This is only our third year,” she said. “We lack experience, but make up for it in heart. The girls worked hard this summer.”

In the three sets, CVA scored 22, 22 and 24, respectively.

 

AUG. 27

Hope falls short in opener

Hope Christian opened up its season by taking on Evangel Family Christian in Montgomery. The Eagles played the Saints tough, but came up short in the best-of-five format, losing 3-0. The first set saw the Eagles falter 19-25. The next two, however, showcased the Eagles pushing the Saints, but falling 24-26 and 25-27, respectively.

 

AUG. 29

PHS comes up short against St. Paul’s, Hoover

The Pelham Panthers took on the St. Paul’s Saints in the home and season opener. While the Panthers were able to play the Saints tough, they eventually fell in a best-of-three-sets match, 2-0. In the first set, the Panthers came up short against the Saints, 17-25. While the squad was able to improve upon its point total in the second round, Pelham lost once more, 18-25.

The Panthers then moved on to take on the Hoover Bucs in their second match of the day. While the squad hoped for a better showing than the one against St. Paul’s, the results were the same as the Panthers fell in two straight sets again, 16-25 and 13-25.

Hope falls in three sets to Evangel

Hope took on rival Evangel Christian in Alabaster. The results were not as hoped for the Eagles, as the squad fell in three sets. The closest the Eagles came was in the first set, falling 25-20. The second set saw the Lightning pull away, 25-17. The third saw more of the same, as Hope lost 25-8.

Thompson wins tough one over Chelsea

The Thompson Warriors came out victorious in a match against the Chelsea Hornets, 3-1.

Kelsea Bivins had 17 kills, 6 blocks and 5 aces for the Warriors. Tara Miller had 32 assists, 5 blocks, 2 aces and 4 digs. Milea Ray had 9 kills, 2 blocks, 6 digs and 3 aces. August Newberry had 8 digs and Kiara Pettway had 6 kills.

Calera opens strong against Bibb Co.

The Calera Eagles took down the Bibb County Choctaws in three straight sets to open the 2013 season, winning 25-3, 25-8 and 25-6, respectively.

 

AUG. 30

Panthers fare well in tournament

Pelham moved on to participate in the Juanita Boddie Tournament at the Birmingham Crossplex. In the first match, Pelham faced an out-of-town opponent, Harrison High School, from Kennesaw, Ga. Despite a strong showing in the second set by the Panthers, they again fell in consecutive sets. While the Hoyas were able to win by a sizable margin in the first set, 25-12, the second set saw the Panthers come up short, 20-25. With the loss, the Panthers fell to 0-3 on the season.

After facing Harrison, the Panthers took on Boaz. The match lasted the full three sets, which saw Pelham take down the Pirates, 2-1. In the first set, Pelham stake out a 25-21 win. The second set featured Boaz sneaking out a 25-22 win over Pelham. The Panthers got their revenge in the final set, taking it by a score of 21-19.

 

AUG. 31

Oak Mountain captures second tourney title in two years

Oak Mountain captured tits second-straight Briarwood Serve Off Classic held at Briarwood Aug. 31.

On their way to the title, the Eagles took down seven teams, going undefeated in match play until the championship game.

Opening with Homewood, the Eagles defeated Lawrence County, McAdory, Northridge, Gardendale and Chelsea in succession.

Once in the title game, the Eagles took on county rival Thompson, where they defeated the Warriors, 2-1. The Eagles lost the first set, 23-25, but bounced back to take 25-23 and 15-13 victory the next two sets.

Hanna Beach finished the tournament with 57 kills, 53 assists, 11 aces, 23 digs and 15 blocks. Shayla Williams had 9 digs and 2 aces. Madison Pierce had 3 kills and 4 blocks.

Second day of tournament sees mixed results for PHS

The Panthers took on another out-of-town opponent in Pope John Paul II out of Huntsville in the Juanita Boddie Tournament. Pelham had no trouble with the Falcons, sweeping them 2-0. The first match saw Pelham win, 25-18. The second proved similar, with PHS grabbing a 25-19 victory.

The Panthers were not so lucky against St. Benedict of Memphis. While grabbing the first set of the match, 25-22, Pelham faltered down the stretch, losing the second set, 18-25. The third set saw them fall 9-15.

Calera runs table in tournament

The Calera Eagles went undefeated in the Calera Classic invitational tournament Aug. 31. The Eagles faced four squads on their way to capturing the tournament title.

In the opening round, the Eagles took on the Jemison Panthers, derating them in a best-of-three match, 2-0. Akia Harris had 6 kills, 1 ace and 1 block. Caitlin Ryan had 3 kills and 2 aces.

The second round saw more of the same as Calera defeated Minor, 2-0. Harris had 5 kills and 2 aces, Ryan had 4 kills and 2 aces. Keyanna Gayden had 3 kills and 1 ace.

The Eagles then took down Indian Springs, 2-0. Harris led the way for the Eagles with 8 kills and 1 block. Aubrey Smith had three kills.

The semifinals saw Calera defeat Brooks, this time in three sets. Ryan posted 10 kills and 20 digs. Harris had 8 kills, 4 blocks and 2 aces.

In the championship game, The Eagles were able to defeat Minor, 2-1. Harris had 10 kills, 8 blocks and 1 ace. Faith Graham had 5 aces, Gayden finished with 5 kills and 4 blocks and Ryan posted 2 kills and 3 blocks.

Lady Bulldogs take Marbury Invitational

The Montevallo Lady Bulldogs captured the Marbury Invitational tournament on Aug. 31.

In pool play, the Lady Bulldogs took down Billingsley and Isabella, each in two sets.

Once in the single elimination tournament, Montevallo defeated Tallasee, 2-0, along with sweeping Marbury before taking Isabella again in the finals.

Isabella Howell and Kerringtan Maddox were named to the All-Tournament Team. McKenna Anderson was named MVP of the tournament.

 

SEPT. 4

THS takes down Calera

Thompson won a tightly-contested match with Calera High on Sept. 4. The Warriors took down the Eagles, 3-1.

The two squads went back-and-forth throughout all four sets, as Thompson used a 5-0 run late in the first set to pull out to a 21-26 lead. The Warriors held on to the lead taking a 25-19 win to move to 1-0 on the match.

The second set saw Calera jump out to an early 8-4 lead on Thompson. The Warriors marched back into the contest, tying for the lead at 20, but the Eagles pulled out a 27-25 victory.

In the third set, the Warriors jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but fall behind 17-10. THS used a seven point run to tie the game, eventually capturing a 25-20 win.

Set four saw get ahead early and hang on for a 25-21 win.

August Newberry finished with 12 digs and three aces for Thompson. Kelsea Bivins had 6 digs, 2 aces, 7 blocks and 25 kills for the Warriors.

 

SEPT. 5

Hope takes win over THA

After taking a bit of time off, Hope notched a win over Tuscaloosa Home Educators. The Eagles needed all five sets of the match to pull out a 3-2 win. The contest was a back-and-forth ordeal, and Hope opened up with a 25-8 win in the first set. The Eagles fell 17-25 and 15-25 in the next two sets before capturing the fourth and fifth sets, 25-19 and 15-12, respectively.

Pelham falls on road to Chelsea

Pelham travelled to Chelsea to face the Hornets in area play. The Panthers fell in three straight sets, 25-22, 25-22, 25-15. Autumn Hiett had 7 kills, Sarah Sudd had 6 kills and Courtney Hayhurst had 5 killls. Sarah Sudd had 6 aces, Hayley Brisendine had 12 digs and Autumn Hiett had 10 digs.

Calera keeps rolling

The Eagles took down West Blocton 2-0 Sept. 5.

Akia Harris led Calera with 13 kills and 7 aces. Keyanna Gayden had 4 kills and Grace Rodriguez had 8 aces.

 

SEPT. 7

 Calera takes another tournament

 The Calera Eagles captured the Oak Grove Tournament, going 11-2 through tournament play.

In the opener, the Eagles beat the Dora Bulldogs in three sets, 2-1. Akia Harris led with 13 kills and 1 block. Faith Graham had 20 assists.

The second matchup saw the Eagles defeat the Sylacauga Aggies, 2-0. Harris had 7 kills and 2 blocks. Keyanna Gayden had 9 kills and 1 block. Graham had 28 assists.

The third match pitted Calera against Leeds. The Eagles took the contest in three sets. Harris again led with 10 kills. Gayden posted 9 kills and 4 aces. Graham had 27 assists.

The semifinals saw the Eagles take on the tournament host Oak Grove Tigers. It took just two sets for the Eagles to emerge victorious. Grace Rodriguez led the day with 6 kills. Harris also had 6 kills, with Gayden posting 4 kills and 3 aces.

The finals placed Calera in a rematch with Dora, with the results being very similar to the first match. CHS took home the trophy in two sets, 25-19 and 25-17, respectively. Graham had 17 assists and 4 aces. Gayden had 4 kills and 3 blocks. Harris had 7 kills and 2 aces.

With the win, Calera moved to 12-1 on the year.

Pelham falters in tournament

The Panthers took place in the Huntsville Tournament, falling in four matches.

Pelham dropped the opener to Cookville (Tenn.), 2-0. Autumn Hiett had 4 kills. Erin Hines finished with 8 digs. Sarah Sudd had 4 aces.

The second round saw Pelham come close in three sets, eventually falling 14-16 in the last set. Autumn Hiett had 11 kills. Hayley Brisendine had 15 digs and 4 aces.

The third match pitted Pelham against a tough Grissom squad, as the Panthers lost in two sets, 15-25 and 13-25. Josie Harwood had 5 kills and Brisendine had 12 digs.

In the fourth and final match, Pelham fell to Brentwood (Tenn.) in two sets by the score of 19-25 each time. Hiett had 6 kills. Brisendine had 8 digs. Harwood 2 blocks and Emily Jackson had two aces.