LITHIA SPRINGS

The Lady Lions cliched a berth in the state playoffs Thursday with back-to-back 5-AAAAA Area wins at Allatoona High School.

Lithia opened with a 26-24 and 25-10 victory over Villa Rica and then defeated North Paulding in three games, 21-25, 25-21, and 25-17.

Arianna Draine stepped up in the first match with solid outside play and had some good hitting attempts as a first year varsity player.

In the second game, the Lady Lions were led by Anaiah Boyer and Selena Crummie. Boyer stepped up as the setter, making good plays, and Crummie led the middle and was active at the net.

Also playing well were Casi Gilbert and Amariah Boyer.

With a state spot wrapped up, Lithia will enter today’s play looking for a good seeding. They will kick off with Allatoona at 11 a.m. If they win, then they will be in the championship match.

“Allatoona has a very big middle blocker, and they have a dynamic outside hitter,” said LSHS Co-Head Coach Lindsey McKinney. “The last time we played them we were missing some key players who were suspended, but we were still able to take one game from them.”

CHAPEL HILL

The Lady Panther volleyball team reached the state playoffs on Thursday, winning 2-of-3 matches in 2-AAA Area play at Woodward Academy.

Chapel Hill opened the first match a little sluggish after losing one of their starters, Kelsey Taylor, to a knee injury.

With an altered lineup in, the Lady Panthers were able to take advantage of an overmatched Carver team, winning 2-of-3 games, 25-16, 21-25, and 25-15.

“Luckily their team was not very strong,” said CHHS Coach Jeremy Anderson. “We made 23 errors in the match but they didn’t have anyone who could hit and that helped us out.”

Gabby Lord put the Lady Panthers ahead in the final game against Carver thanks to a 100-percent kill average.

Chapel Hill continued to struggle in the first game of their next match against a good Haralson County team, losing 12-25. However, the team began to gel in the second set, but could not overcome the deficit for a 24-26 loss.

With the season on the line against Callaway in the third match, the Lady Panthers fell down one game at the get-go, losing 23-25. Chapel Hill rebounded, winning the next two games, 25-20 and 25-17 to clinch a No. 4 seed for state.

“They knew this was it and they didn’t want their season to come to an end,” Anderson said. “They lost the first game but they responded.”

Kylah Maxwell-Brown led CHHS to victory, picking up 12 points on serve. She recorded 38 points on the day.

Defensively, Michelle Bone made a “ton of plays” in the final two games, according to Anderson, to help in the victory.

The Lady Panthers will now play Rockmart today at 11 a.m. to try and take the third seed. If they win, they will play the winner of Woodward and Haralson for a chance at a second seed.

While Anderson admits that Woodward is in a league of their own, his Lady Panthers were able to beat Haralson during the regular season, which is the expected match-up if CHHS advances past the Lady Yellow Jackets of Rockmart.

DOUGLAS COUNTY

Douglas County split their first two 3-AAAAAA Area games at North Cobb on Thursday.

The team opened with a loss to Hillgrove in two games, 16-25 and 22-25, before taking two games against Pebblebrook 25-11 and 25-19.

“We played well and worked together as a team,” said DCHS Head Coach Lindsey Moon. “

Shayla Bowen led the Lady Tigers on Thursday on offense and defense, picking up “great blocks and kills, while playing “great coverage all around”, according to Moon.

DC will now turn its gaze onto Kennesaw Mountain, which they will play at 9 a.m. today.

The Lady Tigers will need at least two more wins to qualify for the state tournament.

Right now, Douglas County stands in fifth place overall, but will need to finish fourth or higher to qualify.

MISC

Phone calls left for New Manchester and Alexander coaches were not returned Friday. The Sentinel is looking for anyone willing to submit results for either the Lady Jaguars and Cougars in Saturday’s competition. Information can be called in to Rick Winters at 770-317-4622 or emailed to Rwinters@douglascountysentinel.com.