Lady Dragons make waves at Splashdown
Clinton High School’s volleyball team packed plenty of action — and victories — into a busy week on the court.
The Lady Dragons capped the week by reaching the semifinals of their own Splashdown tournament Saturday before falling to the Knoxville Trailblazers in three sets, 25-21, 19-25, 15-8.
Parker McGhee finished the semifinal with seven kills and one block for Clinton. Anslee Carmichael and Jailie Rodd had six kills apiece. Rodd added 13 assists and two blocks, while Carmichael came up with five digs. Alaina Stoudenmaier also dished out 13 assists.
The Lady Dragons swept Cumberland County 25-15, 25-18 as Rodd recorded four kills, seven assists and seven digs. Maggie Moke added four kills.
Clinton rolled past Knoxville Christian School 25-11, 25-0. McGhee led the attack with 10 kills and one block, while Rodd served up 10 aces to go with 10 assists and five digs.
Against Apostolic Christian Academy, Clinton cruised to a 25-12, 25-11 victory behind McGhee’s 11 aces, two kills and two blocks. Rodd had three kills, two aces and 10 assists. Maggie Turbyville, Brooke Pebley and Moke added three kills apiece.
Clinton opened tournament play with a 2-0 sweep of Sequoyah as McGhee had seven kills and six aces. Rodd and Stoudenmaier finished with eight assists each.
The tournament run capped a productive week for Clinton (9-6 overall, 2-2 in District 3-AAA).
The Lady Dragons swept Campbell County 25-9, 25-14, 25-16 on Tuesday, Aug. 25, before outlasting Powell in four sets, 26-24, 20-25, 25-22, 25-8.
For coach Lorri Johnson, however, Clinton’s growing win total is less important than what she is seeing on the court.
“We’re coming along,” Johnson said. “We’re 9-6 if that matters.
“The record really doesn’t matter to me. One year, I had a team that went to the state tournament and we were 23-20. We just want to be one of the top two teams at the end. We’re coming along and we’re continuing to get better, and that’s the important thing right now.”