Three DeSoto County volleyball teams are one win away from returning to their respective state tournaments after victories on the court Thursday night.
Lewisburg, Lake Cormorant, and Northpoint Christian all advanced and now must win their next match to reach state. Lewisburg, which won the MHSAA 7A state title last year, defeated Hernando 3-0 and must travel to Germantown (Madison) for the 7A North Half final. Lake Cormorant, which won a state title for the second straight year, and first last year as a 6A school, must travel to Neshoba Central in Philadelphia, Mississippi for the 6A North Half contest. Both games are scheduled for Monday.
Northpoint Christian, which reached the TSSAA Division 2-A tournament last season for the third time, takes a break and awaits a sub-state first-round winner before their next match. That will be at Northpoint and now is scheduled for Oct. 19. The Lady Trojans won the West Region championship Thursday on the home floor of their opponent, dispatching of St. George’s of Collierville in three straight sets. Set scores in the victory were 25-16, 25-12, and 25-7.
Northpoint coach Kim Robinson called the Thursday win a statement win for her team.
“St. George’s is a team that comes with extra stuff and energy for volleyball, but we wanted to get this one tonight,” Robinson said.
All West Region selections from Northpoint Christian. From left, Val Hurdle, Sarah Johnson, and MVP Quinn Thurman. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
In the first set, Northpoint rallied from an early deficit for a 6-3 lead and the three-point margin held and grew to 14-9 after a kill. The Lady Trojans protected the five-point margin with a Kylee Reynolds kill and it was extended to 21-14 before the Gryphons forged a sideout to return serve to them.
Northpoint took control immediately in the second set, taking 7-2 lead after a Quinn Thurman kill. With twin sister Hassie Clare Thurman serving, the Lady Trojans took a 10-2 lead before a St. George’s sideout. A Reynolds kill extended the margin to 12-3 and a service error by the Gryphons later extended the Northpoint margin to 18-7. Chrissy Nolan’s kill made it 21-8 and she and Reynolds combined for a block that resulted in a point to make the lead 22-8. A couple of kills later and the set was won 25-12.
Again in the third set, Northpoint came out strong, taking a 4-1 lead with Hassie Clare Thurman serving. McKenzie Roach’s block for a point made it 7-3 and Quinn Thurman’s kill extended the margin to 8-3 for the Lady Trojans. A service ace from Quinn Thurman padded to lead to 12-4, a lead that would later become 10 at 16-6 with a kill from Valerie Hurdle. A kill from Reynolds, another from Hurdle and an ace would seal the set and match for Northpoint at 25-7.
Strong play at the net was a big factor in the Lady Trojan victory.
“Our outsides, middles, right sides, everyone was contributing,” Robinson said. “We talk about our blocks being crucial and as much as offense is important, our defense is also important, but if we know that we can get some stuff blocks, our defense doesn’t have to do anything. Blocks were a huge thing for us tonight.”
After the match, three members of the Northpoint volleyball team were named All-Region. They were Val Hurdle, Sarah Johnson, and MVP Quinn Thurman.
With the win, Northpoint will not have to play until next weekend but will await the winner of Tuesday’s match between Friendship Christian School of Lebanon, Tenn. and the fourth seed from East Tennessee. That match is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 19 at Northpoint, but depending on who the opponent is, may be moved due to travel to Friday, Oct. 18.
Northpoint Christian volleyball with the Division 2-A West Region championship trophy after Thursday’s 3-0 victory over St. George’s (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
LAKE CORMORANT, LEWISBURG ADVANCE; CENTER HILL, DESOTO CENTRAL FALL
Also in volleyball playoff action Thursday night, Lake Cormorant defeated Warren Central in three and Lewisburg ousted Hernando, also in three sets. Center Hill fell to Neshoba Central 3-0 and DeSoto Central was dropped by Germantown in Madison, also in three.
Set scores in the Lake Cormorant win were 25-6, 25-12, 25-8. Miss 6A Volleyball Sofia Gonzalez led the Lady Gators with 12 kills, Dallas White served seven aces and made 23 assists, and Jania Rose made nine digs.
Lewisburg shut out Hernando in an all-DeSoto County second-round 7A contest with set scores of 25-17, 25-11, 25-19.
Neshoba Central blanked Center Hill with set scores of 25-14, 25-21, 25-18; and the DeSoto Central contest with Germantown of Madison was the closest of the night, with set scores of 26-24, 27-25, and 26-24.
