By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Sports Editor
Photo: The Sardis High volleyball team gathers for a photo after winning the Etowah County Schools Tournament on Saturday, Oct. 5 in Sardis City. Pictured, kneeling, from left: Halle Haynes, Lilian Ellis, Ava Knight. Standing, from left: Shelby Abernathy, Emersyn Greer, Ansley Wallace, Vada Willmore, Kate Holland, Judsyn Greer., Ava Garrard. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger)
Most of the members of the current Sardis team were barely out of diapers the last time a team other than Southside won the Etowah County Schools Volleyball Tournament,
Sardis’ first-place finish at the 2024 edition not only ended the Lady Panthers’ 14-year reign. The Lady Lions’ championship match win over Glencoe marked the first time that Sardis had won the tournament since 1995.
Sardis (28-14) began the day with pool play victories over Hokes Bluff (25-15, 25-11) and Gaston (25-14, 25-10) before knocking off the defending champions in the semifinals by a score of 25-22, 22-25, 15-9.
In the best-of-three finals against Glencoe, Sardis opened with 25-18 win, then ran out to leads of 6-0 and 10-3 leads in the second game. The Lady Yellow Jackets (25-14) rallied, reeling off a 14-7 run that tied the game at 17-17, and the set was back and forth from that point on. But Sardis maintained the lead down the stretch and pulled out a 25-22 win to clinch the title.
“We knew coming in that Southside would be a challenge,” said Sardis head coach Leslie Gilmer. “We knew it was going to be close, and I think that beating them changed our girls mental approach. I think that’s what pushed our girls (against Glencoe). They had a lot of energy and showed they really wanted it, and they took it home. Our girls got into the right mindset today and encouraged each other and didn’t quite on each other. Every one of our girls did their job today.”
Sardis junior hitter Vada Willmore, who was named Tournament MVP, finished with 44 kills, 30 dugs and two blocks. A varsity starter since her eighth grade year, Willmore acknowledged how special it was to capture the school’s first-ever county championship in front of a hometown crowd.
“It’s really nice because it’s never been done here before, and to set the path for the people behind us and show them that it can be done is really cool,” she said. “Ever since I’ve been on the varsity until this year, I don’t think we’ve ever beaten Southside in a set, so just getting over that hump was felt really good. (Against Glencoe), we really trusted each other and fought for our teammates, and instead of letting (Glencoe’s comeback in the second game) get into our heads, we buckled down and finished them off.”
Also for Sardis for the tournament, Jordyn Knight had 25 kills, 17 digs and 14 aces; Emersyn Greer had 77 assists, 20 digs and six aces; Shelby Abernathy had nine kills, 18 digs and seven aces; Ansley Wallace had three blocks and two kills; and Kate Holland had seven aces and six digs.
In pool play, Glencoe beat Southside, 25-20, 19-25, 15-9 and West End 25-14, 25-23 before defeating West End 25-17, 25-21 in the semifinals.
“Our girls played lights-out against Southside and beat a really good West End team twice,” said Glencoe head coach Jamie Barkley. “But hats off to Sardis; they really deserved it. [Ava Knight] really put it to us. She had some dynamic serves, and we couldn’t get into a rhythm to find her ball. But even when [Sardis] got ahead of us in the second game, our girls didn’t give up, and I’m proud of them for that.”
For Glencoe for the tournament, All Jo Amos had 16 digs, 13 kills and nine blocks; Ashlyn Stone had seven kills and six digs; Avery Barkley had 36 assist, seven digs and two aces; Evelyn Nowak had 34 kills and 10 digs; Gracyn Bunt had 12 digs and four assists; Kaelyn Hollis had 50 digs, four aces and four assists; Kinlee Montgomery had 39 assists, 13 digs, five aces and four kills; Mia Talbot had 21 kills and 10 digs; Millie Chambless had nine kills, six blocks and three digs; Payton Gray had 14 digs, three assists and two aces; and Sadie Waldrop had 13 digs and six kills.
For Hokes Bluff for the tournament, Addison Simmons had 21 kills and 16 digs, Mazely Ball had 16 kills, Chloe Dodd had15 kills, Haylen Marbut had 13 digs and Mary Davenport and Kenley Staats each had 16 assists.
Joining Willmore on the all-tournament team were Shelby Waters from Gaston; Addison Simmons from Hokes Bluff; Rylan Shaw from Southside; Kaylee Mashburn and Chloe Mayo from West End, Evelyn Nowak, Alli Jo Amos, and Kaelyn Hollis from Glencoe; and Emersyn Greer, Jordyn Knight and Shelby Abernathy from Sardis.