Lady Gators, Gonzalez pass first post-season test
Photo: Sofia Gonzalez, earlier Tuesday named 6A Miss Volleyball, delivers a kill attempt in Tuesday’s three-set victory over Vicksburg. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
Oct. 9, 2024 – The Lake Cormorant Lady Gators started the road toward a possible third straight MHSAA state volleyball championship on Tuesday night with an decisive 3-0 victory over the Missy Gators of Vicksburg. Set scores in the sweep were 25-4, 25-9, and 25-9. Lake Cormorant won the 6A title last year after taking the 5A championship the year prior to that.
Holding the visitors from Vicksburg to under 10 points a set was one of the goals coach Christina Morgan said her team had for the match.
“We watched some film on them and I told them, ‘let’s make a goal of trying to keep them in single digits’” Morgan said. We did that tonight, and I thought we served really well.”
Lake Cormorant staked itself to a 5-1 lead immediately in the first set and held a 10-2 margin after an ace from Payton Davis. Eight straight points after that grew the lead to 18-2 before a Vicksburg sideout got the Missy Gators back on the scoreboard.
However, Ariana Woods then served a pair of aces to finish the set at 25-4.
The second set got off to a bit of a slower start, but Lake Cormorant still fashioned a 10-3 when Layanna Wilson served an ace. The margin became 13 when Jada Erwin’s serve for Vicksburg fell short of the net for a 20-7 Lady Gator lead. Dallas White served an ace and Lake Cormorant was on the way to a 25-9 set win.
The Lady Gators had little trouble in the third set with 12 straight points to start thanks to Zamoria Nelson’s serving. Leads were 15-2, and 22-9 before the final 25-9 result.
Morgan was especially pleased with her team’s serving abilities.
“I’m really proud of that, because, you know, we’ve struggled with that sometimes during the season,” Morgan said. “ We have really made that a goal the last few weeks, so I was super proud of that.”
Lake Cormorant had another reason to celebrate Tuesday night as junior outside hitter Sofia Gonzalez was announced earlier in the day as the state’s Miss Volleyball in 6A. It’s the second straight year for the honor.
“She’s very dedicated and loves the sport,” Morgan said. “She contributes a lot to this team’s success, but she also really inspires the teammates around her. I just think that we’re lucky to have her.”
Gonzalez admitted she didn’t expect to be named again this year, adding she feels connected with her teammates to make another title run.
“We had it last year, but this year, since we had another year with everybody, I think we’ve got the best connection that we’ve had in a while,” said Gonzalez. “Everybody just works really well with each other.”
The next challenge for Gonzalez and the Lady Gators will come from the same area the first one did, as Warren Central comes to the Swamp Thursday evening for a second-round matchup. First serve is at 6 p.m.
