Lady Mavs fall just short
Volleyball season ended for the Anderson County Lady Mavericks last Thursday when they fell at Sullivan South in the sectional tournament, just one match shy of the state tournament.
The Lady Mavs fell in straight sets to the Lady Rebels.
Last Tuesday, Anderson County took second place in the region.
In the opening round at Knoxville Catholic, they defeated Carter in straight sets by scores of 25-14, 25-12, and 25-18.
Seniors Maddy Taylor, Emily Sparks, and Annalyse Leach as well as junior Gracie Webb helped set the tone for the match in set one.
In the second set, the overall balance of the team was on display as seniors Madison Gossett and Hannah Headrick, juniors Kaylee Castleberry and Taylor Irwin, as well as freshmen Hannah Freeman, Bailey Wilder, and Morgan McMurray each contributed to a lopsided win.
“We played pretty well. Carter is a scrappy team,” said Anderson County Head Coach Jayme Smith.
The third set was all Anderson County again, giving the Lady Mavs an opportunity at a region championship against the host Lady Irish, who handily dispatched Gibbs in three very quick sets.
In the championship game, Catholic opened the set with a 5-0 lead and the Lady Mavs could not recover as they dropped the set by a score of 25-15.
The Lady Irish did not start as fast in the second set but settled down to take a 9-4 lead and quickly made it an 15-6 lead.
They eventually won the set by a score of 25-8.
The third set was a repeat of the second set as Catholic built a 10-6 lead and pulled away for the win, taking the set by a score of 25-13.
“They’re a good team and we just seemed to be back on our heels tonight. When you face a good team you’ve got to pick up your play and we didn’t,” said Smith.
Taylor and Gossett were named to the All-Region Tournament team for their efforts.
The Lady Mavs finished the season as District 4-2A regular season and tournament champions as well Region 2-2A runners-up.