Lady Dragons getting valuable experience early in the season
Lady Dragon Zavie Ford celebrates after Clinton won the 2023 season opener at Grace Christian. (photo:Ken Leinart )
The elite event features top teams from Tennessee and Kentucky, and it’s played at the Knoxville Convention Center.
The Lady Dragons were highly competitive but lost all four of their matches. Clinton (3-4) also lost the services of middle blocker Ellie Murrell, who suffered an ankle injury.
CHS Coach Lorri Johnson kept things in their proper place after a tough patch.
“We lost one of our (middle blockers),” she said. “Ellie rolled her ankle and we’re hoping to have her back soon.
“We hung tough,” Johnson said. “We had matches where we came back from four, five, or six points down and then we had (sets) where we got out to a lead and had to hang on.
“That was a tough tournament. We played teams with girls that were 6-4 or 6-5. We were pretty evenly matched, but we just couldn’t finish, and that’s going to be one of the things that we’re going to have to work on.”
The Lady Dragons, who opened their 2023 campaign with a non-district win at home over Grace Christian Academy and followed that up with back-to-back District 3-AAA victories over Campbell County and Karns, dropped a three-setter to Jonesborough, 23-25, 25-13, 18-16 Saturday despite a solid overall team effort.
Josie Moody had 10 kills, one block, four digs and 16 assists.
McKenzie Crisp and Zavie Ford had nine digs each. Keagan Skaggs dished out 11 assists and Darbi Brummett had three aces.
Clinton also fell to Soddy-Daisy in three sets, 26-28, 25-21, 15-11.
Against the Lady Trojans, Lanee Carmichael had nine kills. Brummett added four aces and a block. Parker McGhee chipped in with two blocks. Moody and Skaggs had five digs each and Crisp had 15 digs. Moody also finished with 15 assists.
On Friday, the Lady Dragons lost to Holy Cross (Kentucky) (16-25, 25-18, 15-13) and Nashville’s Christ Presbyterian Academy (16-25-18, 15-13).
Against Holy Cross, Moody came up with five kills, one ace, one block and six digs, while Riley Owens added five kills, four digs and one ace, and Crisp had 15 digs. Skaggs finished with six digs.
Crisp also had five digs against the Lady Lions, and Brummett finished with five kills, three digs and one ace.