VOLLEYBALL: Lady Tigers start slow, rally for BIG win in season opener…
RIPLEY–“It was a BIG GAME, and a BIG WIN!”
That’s what first-year Ripley Volleyball head coach Julianna Potts said after watching the her new team climb out of 2-0 hole with a three-set rally to upend visiting Saltillo in the season opener for both teams at the RHS Event Center on Tuesday.
And big it was.
Not only was it the debut of a seasoned 2024 Ripley volleyball team that returned a good nucleus in setters Addie Griffin and Ilee Power and outside hitters Ella Reese Shackleford, Ruthie McCafferty, Trea Wallace, and Lola Ward. Last season, the group helped set a record for wins and earn a playoff berth for the first time in over a decade-first in Class 4A-under then head coach Laura Booth.
But it was also big for Potts, an Alcorn Central graduate entering her second year as a head coach. This time last year she was coaching in Alabama.
Booth is now at Tupelo High School, but she didn’t leave the cupboard bare. Potts takes over a team with the potential to push back to the playoffs and maybe a run.
She said she saw the drive displayed on Tuesday while getting to know her players over the last two months.
“These girls have put in a lot of work over the summer and to see it pay off makes my heart smile,” said Potts.
SALTILLO STRIKES FIRST…
A promising Saltillo team, also coming off a solid 2023 season of 20 wins and a second-round exit in the Class 5A playoffs, edged Ripley 25-23 in the opening set.
Ripley had Saltillo on the ropes, late in the second set but the visitors rallied to win 28-26 for a commanding 2-0 lead in a five-set match.
RIPLEY ROARS BACK…
However, Ripley got a combined 41 kills from McCafferty, Ward and Wallace combined for 41 kills, freshman newcomer Sydney Bates added seven more and Griffin had more than 40 assists to rally with a 25-22 win in the third set, a 25-7 blowout in the fourth and a match-clinching 15-9 victory in the finale to close out the victory. .
“These girls deserved the win tonight and I could not be any more proud of their fight to finish with a win,” added Potts. “It has definitely set the tone for the season..”
Ripley (1-0) travels to Kossuth on Thursday. The Lady Aggies (0-1) began their season with a 3-0 loss to Alcorn Central on Tuesday to start the season.
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