Clinton Volleyball battles tough competition at Baylor
A busy week filled with mixed results for the Clinton High School volleyball team ended Saturday at the Baylor Invitational in Chattanooga, a two-day tournament featuring some of Tennessee’s top teams as well as elite programs from the Southeast.
The Lady Dragons (22-7) closed out tournament play with a 25-17, 28-26 loss to Chattanooga Christian School. Clinton was without starting libero McKenzie Crisp on Saturday due to a family commitment.
Against the Lady Chargers, Josie Moody had nine kills, one block, five digs, four assists, and two aces for Clinton. Parker McGhee added three aces and two blocks. Keagan Skaggs contributed seven assists and five digs, while Lanee Carmichael finished with eight digs.
“We hung in there against Chattanooga Christian, and that second set was 28-26,” Clinton coach Lorri Johnson said. “But when you play those private schools and big schools from Alabama, those kids on the front row are all at least six feet tall. We don’t have the height, and we haven’t seen that kind of speed with the ball.”
Clinton also faced Spain Park and was swept, 2-0, on Saturday. Moody had eight kills, six digs, and one block, while Hanna Harvey finished with eight digs. Skaggs dished out 10 assists.
The Lady Dragons opened tournament play Friday night with a sweep of Bradley Central, defeating the Bearettes 25-22, 25-16. Crisp had 13 digs, and Skaggs recorded 11 assists. Moody finished with 10 kills, five assists, four digs, two aces, and one block.
“We beat Bradley Central, swept them, and we played well,” Johnson said. “Then we lost to Baylor, 25-10, 25-8.” Crisp had 10 digs against the Lady Raiders before departing for a family wedding in Indiana.
The Lady Dragons also played Harris County (Alabama) in Chattanooga, winning in straight sets, 25-16, 25-11. Ellie Murrell and Carmichael had six kills each. Murrell added two blocks, and McGhee had four blocks.
On Thursday, the Lady Dragons won their District 3-AAA match at Campbell County, 25-17, 25-14, 27-25. McGhee had seven kills, three blocks, one ace, and one dig, while Moody had six kills, 11 digs, and 11 assists.
Clinton opened the week on Monday, Sept. 9, with a four-set win over Bearden, one of the top teams in Region 2-AAA. The Lady Dragons prevailed 20-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-21.
“That was some good volleyball,” Johnson said. “That was some of the best volleyball we’ve played. Everything just came together for us.”
On Tuesday, Sept. 10, however, things didn’t go well for the Lady Dragons as they were swept at Cumberland County, 25-15, 25-18, 25-23.
“We beat Bearden, and then the next night, we didn’t play well,” Johnson said. “We just lack that consistency.”