Class 6 Regionals: The Road to States

<p><span style="font-size: 1rem;">in Class 6A regional action, Kellam was dominant in their semifinal match, sweeping Grassfield 25-9, 25-15, 25-10. The Knights had a great offensive output from a talented trio of attackers with</span> Kate Ayre tallying seven kills and three blocks, Jessica George  led the team with 15 kills, and Sarah Thompson nine kills. Setter Rhea Cammel dished out 40 assists and  Libero extraordinaire Kaytie Gosiene got 19 digs in the win. The Franklin County Eagles and Cosby Titans had an epic battle in the other semifinal with an exciting 5 set match. Frankling prevailed 25-23, 15-25, 25-21, 19-25, 15-10. This was the Eagles fourth consecutive trip to the regional semifinals. Franklin County is hoping for their first trip to states since 2018. Led by Powerful Outside Hitter [player_tooltip player_id="111488" first="Courtney" last="Bryant"] during her junior campaign, the team was 9-2 coming into the semifinals. Bryant had one of the best matches of the season by any player with 32 kills, 21 digs and 6 blocks. She is non-binding verbally committed NC State who is coached by Luka Slabe, the US Women’s National Volleyball Team Assistant Coach. Setter Lauren Stone tallied 27 assists and 13 digs for an impressive double-double, while a dynamic duo of Emmas contributed 5 blocks (Emma Catoe) and 12 digs (Emma Chaudet). They will advance to the Regional Finals on Thursday at Franklin County at 5:30 PM for a single bid for the region to states.  </p> <p>In Class 6B action, top seeded Battlefield plays host to Colonial Forge in the regional finals on Thursday at 6pm. <img class="alignleft" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EzDaoSfXMAEeypn?format=jpg&amp;name=small" alt="Image" width="352" height="264" />Battlefield took down Woodbridge and Forest Park en route to the finals. Colonial Forge bested Osbourn Park and swept Colgan in the semifinals to punch their ticket to the regional finals. Colonial Forge punched their ticket to the state tournament with a win over Battlefield behind balanced and consistent play from Setter and Beach Division 1 commit [player_tooltip player_id="111381" first="Paityn" last="Walker"]. Walker eclipsed 3,000 career assists in her career. Other players to watch include Senior Bayle Ostvig and Alexis Cummins. The team has 7 seniors who provide great leadership for the Regional Champions. Forge won the match 3 sets to 1 over Battlefield. </p> <p><img class="size-medium wp-image-126961 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1203-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1rem;">In the largest bracket of the Class 6 regions, 14 teams began with just four teams remaining. Top seeded TC Williams hosts #5 seed Woodson in the first semifinal. Edison is the second seed and is host</span><span style="font-size: 1rem;">ing #3 seeded Robinson in the second semifinal. TC Williams had a first round bye and then swept Lake Braddock in the quarterfinals. Woodson took down Justice and West Springfield on their way to the semis. Edison also</span><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> had a bye in the first round and downed Hayfield in the quarters. Robinson swept Fairfax and took out West Potomac in 4 sets for their place in t</span><span style="font-size: 1rem;">he semifinals. TC Williams swept their semifinal over Woodson and Robinson swept host Edison in the other semifinal. TC Williams is led by Outside Hitter Milan Rex, Setter Chloe Wilmot, Libero Lila Randall and Middle Hitter Jill Jones. Robinson is led by a strong senior class including Senior Setter Kat Fong. Fong is a very athletic and dynamic setter who has a high volleyball IQ and runs a great tempo of offense. Fellow Seniors Ally Burgee and Kaitlyn Baude will be expected to help carry the load on offense. TC Williams will host the Regional Finals April 16 at 7pm.</span></p> <p><img class="size-medium wp-image-126786 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1553-1-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></p> <p>In our last girl’s region, 6D, Washington-Liberty will battle Langley in the regional finals for the lone bid to the state tournament. Washington-Liberty is led by a quartet of upperclassmen who were all strong in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Senior Setter Mina Oizumi is a solid server and consistently puts up hittable balls with the help of Senior Libero who runs the backcourt for the Lady Generals. Junior Middle Blocker Spencer McCarthy Womeldorf is a two way threat with solid blocking and good offense and Junior Outside Hitter Alyssa Dozier who is an intelligent and strong attacker with good backcourt skills as well. Langley is a perennial powerhouse under Coach Shifflet who has over 400 wins and two state championships since starting the program in 1999. Langley has won five region titles and two state crowns in program history (the last in 2017), has two state runner-up finishes and eight state-tourney appearances. [player_tooltip player_id="111447" first="Ijenna" last="Mere"] is a top college prospect who could be a huge impact player for the Saxsons. Other top players include Setter Katie Westerheim, Libero Ceren Mert and Attackers Amelia Kim, [player_tooltip player_id="111375" first="Nina" last="Kernan"], and [player_tooltip player_id="111455" first="Lauren" last="Sung"]. Langley had topped Washington-Liberty in their two match-ups this season in 4 sets and 5 sets. </p>