Walnut’s volleyball season ended Monday, Oct. 12, with a straight-set loss to unbeaten East Union in the Class 2A North State final, leaving the defending state champion Lady Wildcats at 31–5.
The host Urchins won 25–17, 25–13, 25–21 and improved to 37–0, according to Jon Myers’ report on TippahSports.com. The defeat stopped Walnut’s 12-match winning streak.
Molly-Kate Rolison led Walnut with 12 kills, and Vivian Brown had 22 assists. The Lady Wildcats cut a 15–9 third-set deficit to 17–14 before East Union completed the sweep. East Union advances to face Enterprise for the state championship.
A final season under the Walnut name
The loss also closes the program’s final season as Walnut ahead of next school year’s consolidation with Falkner into North Tippah High School, a transition explored in Kedrick O. Storey’s Monday feature on TippahSports.com.
Coach Kelley Hopper launched Walnut’s volleyball program in 2018 after introducing the sport at Kossuth in 2016. Storey’s feature describes a program that won two state championships and a team that reached another North State final after losing six starters from its previous championship squad.
Reporting credit: Jon Myers and Kedrick O. Storey, TippahSports.com. This roundup consolidates their coverage published during the 24 hours ending Oct. 13 at 11 a.m. Central.
Featured file photo: Walnut celebrates a point against Myrtle, as identified in the source caption. Photo: Thornton Photography, credited by the image watermark, via TippahSports.com’s Oct. 12 feature. The source does not specify the photograph’s date.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
