Will face Apollo 6 p.m. Monday in Owensboro in first round
For the first time since 2021, the Henderson County Lady Colonels’ Volleyball team is headed to the state tournament. Completing its flawless run through the Second Region, the Lady Cols defeated Heritage Christian on Thursday night to secure the region title and earn a berth into the upcoming state tournament.
In the match, Henderson won in straight sets, 25-17, 26-24, 25-12. Kylee Lyons led the offensive attack with 12 kills. Evangeline Loffland added 10 kills, 16 digs and an ace. Emmy Sword contributed eight kills, 15 digs and four aces. Kamryn Raley and Addi Kirtley set their teammates up all night with 16 and 15 assists respectively. Defensive specialist Ella Whitledge came up with 29 digs, while Caeson Hargitt collected five blocks at the net.
The win moved the Lady Cols to 28-9 on the season.
Loffland, Lyons, Sword and Whitledge were named to the All-Second Region Volleyball Team.
Fresh from being named the Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association (KVCA) Second Region Coach of the year, Kelli Harris could hardly believe it, having to pinch her assistant coach Brooklyn Glasscock to make sure it was real.
“You plan for it and never know if all the hard work will pay off or if you’re ever going to come out and reap those benefits,” said Harris. “It’s just been so exciting to be a part of.”
Harris also credited her players for their perseverance in keeping their goal in mind and the extraordinary effort they put forth throughout the season and the tournament.
“There’s probably too many words that could be said,” Harris added. “They kept the goal in their heart and continued to play. Surviving that semifinal game and even the second set (in the final) where we got down. They just kept fighting and listening to the adjustments that we needed to make. The buy-in has been really good.”
The semifinals Harris referred to provided HCHS with its most stressful match, one that took them five sets (24-26, 25-18, 19-25, 25-13, 15-13) to claim victory over the champions from the Eighth District in Christian County. That match saw Henderson lose its first and third sets, while winning the second. On its heels, Henderson was able to rally and win the final two sets to move onto the championship match.
The Lady Cols will begin state tournament play on Monday evening at 6 p.m. in Owensboro. They will face a familiar foe in the Apollo E-gals (30-10), a team the Lady Cols have beaten twice already in the regular season. Beating a team for a third time is difficult in any sport, especially when going up against one that boasts the Third Region Player of the Year in Avery Gray. The senior hitter leads the E-gals with 554 kills, while also collecting 386 digs and 78 aces on the season.
Harris knows that she cannot underestimate Apollo despite the success her team has had against them so far this season. She knows E-gals head coach Mary Howard well and is prepared for a major battle.
“With some of the changes we’ve made now, it’s going to be a fight. I respect Mary Howard a great deal. I know she’s going to be ready for me and I’m going to have my girls ready for them,” said Harris of Apollo.
Should Henderson County advance to the second round of the state tournament, a daunting matchup with either North Oldham or Elizabethtown awaits them at the host site at George Rogers Clark High School in Winchester.
In its most recent Top 25 poll, the KVCA ranked Elizabethtown (29-9) ninth and North Oldham (24-11) 13th in the state. Back-to-back reigning state champion Assumption was ranked number one. Neither Henderson nor Apollo were ranked in that poll. Henderson lost to E-Town in early October, but has not faced North Oldham this season. “The support of Henderson County, the school system and administrators has been exciting,” said Harris. “Community support has been great. Come out and support these girls and appreciate the hard work that no one can see. They see us during game times, but there’s so much behind the scenes. To know that these girls have truly committed to this has been a great thing to witness.”