The volleyball team ended the season in the Sweet Sixteen, losing to Cartersville 3-2 on Oct. 19. The team placed second in Region 4 AAAA with an overall record of 29-10 and 6-1 in the region. The Knights lost 3-1 to Pace Academy in the region finals.
“I think our turning point of the season was the game against Pace for region finals,”senior outside hitter Vivienne Cannon said. “For us, after playing them, we knew we could take a set or two off of them, and we were able to take a set off of them. That reinforced that we had the skill and talent to beat every other team because Pace is top of the top; they are the best, so if you’re able to take a set off of them and take them into extra points, you are able to beat pretty much anyone else.”
The Knights faced Starr’s Mill on Oct. 15 in the first round of the playoffs. The Knights lost the first set, but won the next three, advancing them to the Sweet Sixteen.
“Even though we beat Starrs Mill, I did not think we played the best,” sophomore middle hitter Nora Goodman said. “We really should have beat them more severely than we did. I think we took them for granted and were surprised we couldn’t walk over them.”
Cannon said the team’s success comes from the bonding they did on and off the court. The team went to a Georgia Tech volleyball game together and had many team lunches.“Team chemistry played a big role in our performance on and off the court,” Cannon said. “We did multiple team bonding events this year. These events helped everyone get to know each other better and to get close to everyone. This showed in our performance because it didn’t matter what line-up coach Stein put in, it was successful. We were all comfortable with playing next to each other and each lineup was successful.”
Head coach Sandi Stein said the team faced many challenges, which made the team stronger.
“We have had to overcome a lot of adversity throughout the season and that builds character in your players,” Stein said. “They really enjoy each other and have matured. The ability to handle pressure and not get rattled.”
Coming off the Starr’s Mill win, the Knights faced Cartersville in the second round on Oct. 19. They fell behind early, losing the first two sets.
“Against Cartersville, we had a lot of unfortunate events happen before the game that threw the team off, and we started off slow and underestimated them,” Cannon said. “We didn’t show up [in] the first two sets; we were making careless mistakes, and we weren’t really talking about what was happening on the other side.”
The Knights won the next two sets.
“I thought we could have won because of the momentum gained from the two-set streak,” Goodman said. “Even though we started the game off wrong, it felt like we were going to win since we just had to win one more.”
The game was tied 2-2, but Cartersville pulled away, winning the game 3-2.
“We had to overcome a lot of adversity on that day,” Stein said. “We were missing a few players, players not having the correct uniforms started us on the wrong foot. We had to refocus on what we do well and believe that we were capable. Our defense broke down in game five.”
Despite losing in the Sweet Sixteen, junior outside hitter Brennan Fritts hit the milestone of 500 kills and junior center Lucy Konisky achieved 1,000 assists.
“I’m so so happy to have received this award,” Fritts said. “I’ve been working super hard, and it was so rewarding to finally achieve that. It was even extra special because Lucy got 1,000 assists at around the same time, so we got to celebrate together.”
Goodman said Konisky and Fritts were key players.
“I think Brennan and Lucy had the most impact on the team’s success,” Goodman said. “They are extremely skilled players and have high court IQ. Brennan is a phenomenal hitter and blocker. Lucy is an unbelievable setter, and she can also pass and even, sometimes, block.”
Cannon said she was proud the Knights advanced to the second round.
“I am most proud of the way the team stuck together,” Cannon said. “We had times during the season that it would’ve been easier for the team to stay apart, but we all stuck together and became closer. We all had each other’s back and wanted the best for each other. We could go to anyone on the team and be able to talk about the game of volleyball or stress. Without it, we wouldn’t have had the great record that we did.”
