Clinton’s season ends, future looks bright
Scrappy to the end, Clinton High School’s volleyball team saw its season come to a close with a hard-fought loss to Maryville in the Region 2-AAA tournament semifinals Tuesday, Oct. 13, at Maryville High School.
The Lady Dragons battled throughout but fell in three close sets, 25-20, 25-20 and 25-21.
“Yeah, we were competitive,” CHS Coach Lorri Johnson said.
Senior middle blocker Parker McGhee led the Lady Dragons at the net with nine kills on 12 attempts.
“Like I said before, if we could get her the ball, she’ll put it down,” Johnson said. “But you know, we just again came up short.
“And (Knox) Central ended up losing to them in three (games) as well in the region finals,” she added. “Maryville only has one senior.”
Despite the loss, Johnson was pleased with her team’s determination, particularly after a rocky start.
“Yeah, we were in it. And we actually got off to a slow start,” she said. “I think the first set we were down 0-7 and came back and went ahead even.
“We don’t lack for hustle. I wasn’t displeased with our total performance. Our serve receive, we knew, had to be on point, and unfortunately it wasn’t.”
Johnson said one weak spot in Clinton’s serve-receive defense proved costly, resulting in seven Maryville aces.
Looking back on a season that saw Clinton finish 25-13, Johnson said she deliberately loaded the schedule with some of the toughest competition available to prepare her players for postseason challenges.
“You know, I went looking for the biggest and the best this year,” she said. “We played some of the top teams. Baylor, we went to Chattanooga and played them. And we played Webb in the Knoxville tournament. They’re one of the top teams.”
Despite the season-ending disappointment, Johnson sees plenty of promise in the Lady Dragons’ returning players.
Freshman middle blocker Brooke Peebly, who earned District Newcomer of the Year honors, is among those expected to play a major role next season.
“Brooke led us sometimes in blocks as a middle blocker. And offensively, she scores,” Johnson said. “She’s not a big middle — but she got better and better.”
Johnson also praised two juniors who will return to anchor Clinton’s defense.
“We’ve got two solid juniors that are good little defensive players: Addyson Powell and Maggie Turbyville,” she said.
The Lady Dragons also will return experienced talent at setter and outside hitter.
“Sophomore Alena Staudenmaier has been a starter for two years, and as a setter, I look for her to come back and lead,” Johnson said. “Sophomore Anslee Carmichael started all season as a quality outside hitter.”