Jefferson closed out a 25-13 victory in the third set of its Class 3A championship match with Calhoun to sweep the Jackets 3-0 (25-14, 25-22, 25-13) and capture the first state title in program history Saturday at the LakePoint Sports Complex. After cruising in the first set, the Dragons overcame a 22-20 deficit in the second-set with a 5-0 run to go up 2-0 and take it 25-22. Junior Addison Headley served Jefferson’s final three points—ending the second set with an ace that came moments after senior Kaytlin Johnson’s kill down the line set up match point.
“That was something that we trained hard for,” said head coach Brittani Lawrence about her team’s success serving the ball on Saturday. “Each girl knew what zones they needed to be hitting and our serving game throughout the whole season has had many ups and downs, but when we are locked in and playing in the moment, our serving game can really be on and that’s what we saw today. The girls did a great job of visualizing what they needed to do and understood their roles and responsibilities.”
Headley served to start the third set and helped the Dragons get out to a 4-0 lead. Calhoun’s All-State 6-foot-3 junior Gracison Saylors found an opening to put her team on the board, but Headley assisted Johnson on the next play and helped spark another scoring burst that eventually put the Dragons up 7-1, fueled by back-to-back aces junior Annabelle Pritchard. Saylors answered with back-to-back kills, but then Jefferson’s Hannah Howard stepped up with four kills on Jefferson’s next four-straight points to give the Dragons an 12-6 advantage. Raegan Lee’s serve was not returned on the next point and Calhoun took the first of its two timeouts.
The Jackets came out of the break with a 3-0 run that cut the deficit to 13-9, but from there, Jefferson closed out the match with a 12-4 run. Johnson took over the serve after her emphatic kill put Jefferson up 22-13. On the next play, Regan Wormley was set up on the outside for one of the most well-executed points of the match that she finished with a booming left-handed kill. Still serving, Johnson closed out the title with back-to-back aces.
“She is one that is hungry,” said Lawrence about Johnson. “The whole team is hungry, but she is one that has a little extra fire and hunger in her and this is something she has been dreaming of and training for, for quite a long time.”
Jefferson battled adversity before the match started when outside hitter Jolie Gunether was taken away by the EMT after concerns were raised by the medical staff on hand.
“We were in the back on the practice courts and something just wasn’t right,” explained Lawrence. “We thought she [Guenther] was just tired. She said she felt nauseous and we thought she might still be bus sick from the way up here. And then things just took a downward turn when we got on the main court. One of our community nurses checked her out and had her pulse going and they called the EMT and they did all the vital checks and things were not looking well. The girls kind of knew that, but the girls also know that we play with heart and ‘we’ means everyone and so we knew that we needed to step up and just shine bright like a diamond. We just got news and she is doing much better.”
The Dragons finish the season 36-5 and Calhoun ends the year 21-24.
Class 6A
Alpharetta 3, North Cobb 0
No. 1 ranked Alpharetta defended its Class 6A title by sweeping defending Class 7A state champion North Cobb 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-19) to win its first state title in Georgia’s highest classification since 2020 and third all-time crown. Alpharetta finished the season a perfect 36-0 and has a win-streak of 41 matches that dates back to last year’s title run heading into next season. Additionally, the Raiders surrendered just six sets all season and one of those sets came in a 2-1 victory over North Cobb when the teams met on Aug. 17. North Cobb had a memorable playoff-run as the No. 4 seed out of Area 5. The Warriors avenged its two regular season losses to Walton in last weekend’s 3-2 semifinal victory. Walton grabbed a 2-0 lead before North Cobb rallied with a season-saving 26-24 win in the third set, a 25-21 win in the fourth and a 15-11 fifth-set victory. North Cobb, however, was unable to avenge its loss to Alpharetta and finished the season 34-16 after making a memorable run back to the finals.
Class 5A
Pope 3, Woodward Academy 0
Pope (35-5) avenged a previous 2-0 loss to Woodward Academy (40-3) on Sept. 17 with a 3-0 sweep on Saturday (25-21, 25-15, 25-23)—winning its 15th-straight match since its regular season loss to the War Eagles and capturing its sixth all-time state title. Pope’s five previous state titles heading into the finals and Woodward Academy’s 10 all-time volleyball state championships made Class 5A the most decorated finals matchup out of all the classifications. Woodward Academy’s last title came in 2010 and the championship drought remains after coming up one match short this season. In the third set, senior defensive specialist Sarah Trowbidge delivered the game-winning kill on an assist by junior Jahan Lalli.
Class A-3A Private
Hebron Christian 3, Mt. Pisgah 1
No. 1 seed Hebron Christian defeated defending Class A state champion and No. 2 seed Mt. Paran 3-1 (26-24, 18-25, 25-19, 25-19) to win its third all-time state title and first since 2019. The Golden Lions closed out their title run with a 22-match win-streak and a perfect in-state record as all five losses within its 40-5 campaign came consecutively to out-of-state opponents. Hebron Christian had won 35 of its last 36 sets heading into the finals after Lovett broke 30-plus set win-streak in the Golden Lions 3-1 win in the semifinals. Mt. Pisgah—which entered the finals riding a 10-match win-streak, answered a tough 26-24 loss in the first set with an 25-18 win in the second set before Hebron clinched the title with back-to-back sets. Mt. Pisgah finishes the season 41-8.
Class 2A
Morgan County 3, Savannah Arts 0
No. 1 ranked Morgan County swept Savannah Arts 3-0 (25-16, 25-11, 25-15) in Saturday’s first championship match to capture its second state title in the last three seasons . The Bulldogs (37-4) finished the year with a a school-record 37 wins—topping their 36-6 championship season in 2022. Senior Haedyn Crumbley served match point in the third set and junior Abby Dennard assisted senior Quinn Butler for the championship-clinching kill.
Monday, Nov. 4
Class A
Elite Scholar’s Academy 3, Gordon Lee 0
No. 2 seed Elite Scholar’s Academy (29-7) swept top-seeded Gordon Lee (41-6) 3-0 in convincing fashion (25-17, 25-12, 25-13) to take home its first-ever state championship. The Royal Knights capped their historic season with a 10-match win-streak and a flawless record within Class A and snapped Gordon Lee’s 19-match win-streak and attempt at a first-ever state championship.
Class 4A
Pace Academy 3, Cartersville 0
Pace Academy (43-6) broke its own state-record for consecutive state titles by capturing its eighth-straight championship in a 3-0 sweep over Cartersville. The Knights battled to take the first set 27-25 and then dominated the next two sets 25-12 and 25-17. Pace Academy ‘s only in-state loss this season came to Class 5A state champion Pope (3-1) on Aug. 27 and the Knights’ entire roster features just two seniors, giving them perhaps the strongest returning squad in the state next season.
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