Division II State Tournament Overview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Editor's Notes: Do you want to get in front of Prep Dig Scouts? This is one big way to do it. The annual Kentucky Exposure Tour in Wilder is Nov. 28. Click on this link to register:</em> <a href="https://events.prepdig.com/e/2489/register/prep-dig-exposure-tour-kentucky" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://events.prepdig.com/e/2489/register/prep-dig-exposure-tour-kentucky</a>. <em>For 25 percent off, type</em> ET26Mike25OFF <em>at checkout.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AA</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. Briarcrest Christian (29-7)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Saints came into the tournament looking to win the seventh state championship in the last nine seasons. However, Father Ryan knocked off Briarcrest, 3-1 (28-26, 20-25, 27-25, 25-23) in the first game of the double elimination tournament at Middle Tennessee Christian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='807399' first='Sophie' last='Loe'] anchors the defense for Briarcrest with [player_tooltip player_id='958326' first='Allison' last='Floyd'] handling the setting duties. [player_tooltip player_id='805009' first='Camille' last='Northcross'], [player_tooltip player_id='948659' first='Nancy' last='Ward'], [player_tooltip player_id='957052' first='Ashari' last='Jenkins'] and [player_tooltip player_id='766338' first='Jasmine' last='Rawlins'] along with [player_tooltip player_id='960380' first='Chloe' last='Hazelbaker'] give Briarcrest a nice offensive attack. Briarcrest plays at 5 p.m. CST on Monday against Baylor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. Father Ryan (28-5)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Irish are back in the state tournament with nice back row play from [player_tooltip player_id='946605' first='Josie' last='Hinson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='946591' first='Heidi' last='Green']. [player_tooltip player_id='959854' first='Kayleigh' last='Graham'] leads the hitters with [player_tooltip player_id='946589' first='Bella' last='Burk'] and Leyla Friend split the sets. Father Ryan plays again at Noon CST on Wednesday against CPA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. Christ Presbyterian (29-5) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Lions have put out the expected consistent effort all season and find themselves with a sound 3-0 win over Baylor in the first round of the state tournament to earn the rest of the day off. They take on region rival Father Ryan at Noon CST on Wednesday back at Middle Tennessee Christian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sisters Nora and [player_tooltip player_id='947057' first='Edie' last='Cabell'] lead the Lions on defense, making nice passes to dynamic setter [player_tooltip player_id='946577' first='McKenna' last='Stockton']. [player_tooltip player_id='947057' first='Edie' last='Cabell'] has also taken a number of sets. [player_tooltip player_id='807502' first='Taylor' last='Willeford'], [player_tooltip player_id='961441' first='Sophia' last='Freije'], [player_tooltip player_id='947069' first='Emilie' last='Mark'] and [player_tooltip player_id='822408' first='Aubrie' last='Mark'] give the Lions plenty of power on the front line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. Baylor (25-5)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Raiders are back in the state tournament, but face a tough task later today against Briarcrest Christian at 5 p.m. CST back at Middle Tennessee Christian trying to keep their state championship hopes alive. [player_tooltip player_id='803328' first='Rory' last='Oleksik'] and [player_tooltip player_id='791714' first='Nina' last='Lail'] lead the Raiders on defense with [player_tooltip player_id='947506' first='Gabby' last='Minton'], [player_tooltip player_id='959560' first='Molly' last='Billington'] and others taking sound swings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://poll.fm/17597569","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"crowdsignal","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-crowdsignal wp-block-embed-crowdsignal"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://poll.fm/17597569 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>A</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. Goodpasture Christian (31-6)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars beat Franklin Road Academy, 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 25-19) to move on to Wednesday's game against Battle Ground Academy at Noon CST back at Providence Christian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='941490' first='Gwen' last='Forsha'], Ellie Sims, [player_tooltip player_id='946584' first='Lexi' last='Griffies'], Abigail Myatt and [player_tooltip player_id='798858' first='Sloan' last='Jenkins'] give the Cougars nice offensive balance with Zoe Huffine and Kaylin Cross setting things up. [player_tooltip player_id='808870' first='Klyne' last='Davis'] and Isabella Shaw lead the way on defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. Battle Ground Academy (17-8)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wildcats won the state tournament opener, 3-0 (25-9. 25-18, 25-19) over Silverdale on Tuesday. They take on Goodpasture back at Providence Christian at Noon CST on Wednesday. Senior outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='832463' first='Grey' last='Malone'] leads the Wildcats.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. Franklin Road Academy (22-6)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers are in the state tournament behind the dynamic play of [player_tooltip player_id='836964' first='Quinn' last='Cassel'] and [player_tooltip player_id='946608' first='Lucy' last='Schmoke']. [player_tooltip player_id='1048564' first='Lila' last='Maddox'] and [player_tooltip player_id='813756' first='Halle' last='Johnson'] have also made nice contributions on offense. [player_tooltip player_id='1000958' first='Ava' last='Amano'] has made great contributions on defense with [player_tooltip player_id='1000597' first='Ella' last='Cassel'] nicely setting things up offensively. FRA plays Silverdale at 5 p.m. CST back at Providence Christian in an elimination game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. Silverdale (31-9)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Seahawks find themselves playing to stay alive at 5 p.m. CST against Franklin Road Academy. Olivia Hilton and [player_tooltip player_id='1000893' first='Kayla' last='Meyer'] split up the sets to [player_tooltip player_id='819283' first='Sophie' last='Easterday'], [player_tooltip player_id='947152' first='Emily' last='Givens'], Jocelyn Stephenson and Lexie Stembridge. [player_tooltip player_id='1000643' first='Olivia' last='Harness'] anchors things in the back row for the Seahawks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://poll.fm/17597762","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"crowdsignal","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-crowdsignal wp-block-embed-crowdsignal"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://poll.fm/17597762 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["960380"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ad7acefae1be"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Hazelbaker moved into the area and has nicely fit into the Saints rotation. Hazelbaker takes her time to send over quality shots. Hazelbaker tips over double blocks and hits into the holes of double blocks and into seams with precision with a sound downward trajectory. Hazelbaker does a nice job tooling blocks on nines.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["946605"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ad7b1c03c2bf"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Hinson gives the Irish consistency in the back row on defense and serve reception. She uses a great platform to make precise two to three-point passes, taking as few steps to balls as possible. She uses her great range to get to setter dumps and react quickly on defense. She is also an aggressive server.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1000655"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ad7b5cbc22d7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cabell showed great play during club season and has carried it over into the high school season for the Lions. She uses her outstanding range to track down balls under control. Cabell provides sound net backup and quickly changes direction to dig up redirected balls. She can quickly cover lines and does a sound job reading opposing hitters.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["946584"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ad7be177be4c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Griffies comes in hard off fakes and pounds balls over double blocks for the Cougars. Griffies tools blocks and sends sharp crosses over with a nice wrist snap. She pounds ones to side lines and tips balls over blocks when defensive specialists play back. Griffies takes advantage of nice spacing on a balanced team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["832463"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ad7c21d1b186"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Malone does a good job helping the Wildcats control the net. Malone puts overpassed balls away from opponents. She pounds nice cuts shots into donuts with a sound wrist snap and tools blocks. Malone puts great zip on balls when she gets on top of them. Malone does not rush her shots. She tips over double blocks and pounds out tough crosses.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Note from Writer</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mike Graham has been writing for Prep Dig for two and a half years and has enjoyed getting to know the volleyball scenes in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee. If you liked the story, please copy and paste to X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. You may also follow us at @<a href="https://www.instagram.com/prepdigkentucky/#">prepdigkentucky</a>, @<a href="https://www.instagram.com/prepdigtennessee/#">prepdigtennessee</a> or @<a href="https://www.instagram.com/prepdigoh/#">prepdigoh</a> on Instagram in addition to @PrepDigKy, @PrepDigTN or @PrepDigOH on X. If you feel someone in Kentucky, Tennessee or Ohio needs coverage or even have feedback on the Kentucky or Tennessee rankings, please email Mike at michaelgraham@prepdig.com. You may also follow him on X @GMCgrah or Instagram @g.michaelgraham. Subscriptions give you access to exclusive content. For a 30% discount on yearly subscriptions, enter code graham30 at checkout.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->