By Stephen Dawkins

JEMISON – It wasn’t a storybook season for Kasi Wells but a memorable one nonetheless.
Wells missed three matches during the regular season with stress reactions in her shins, and Jemison’s season ended with a sub-state playoff round loss (at home, no less) with Wells playing at only about 75 percent.
But the junior setter—and The Clanton Advertiser’s Volleyball Player of the Year—kept plugging, something coach Leighsa Robinson would expect nothing less of from the most crucial component of a team Robinson said set itself apart with hard work.
“I really felt like this year our team worked harder than any team I’ve coached,” Robinson said. “They set a standard.”
And the Panthers won 34 matches, more than any other Robinson-coached team has won.
“This year was different than last year just in how hard we worked and how bad we wanted it,” Wells said. “And we were close this year.”
Robinson raved about a team that would beat her to practice and stay afterward for extra work, but the setter, which Robinson described as quarterback of a team, became limited in how much she could do.
Wells’ shin problems began in September. She would be held out of matches (“It was torture trying to sit there,” she said) and practices and wear a protective boot for two months. Even now, Wells has a stretching routine she must perform, pads she must wear in all her shoes and a support sleeve to wear over her legs during practice.
Robinson credits Wells’ teammates for being good passers because the setter couldn’t run as far for balls because of the pain.
Wells was still able to record 415 assists—and that wasn’t all. Showing her ability as an all-around player, Wells also had 111 kills, 83 aces, 45 digs and 35 blocks.
Wells was named the Most Valuable Player of five tournaments.
“A lot of Kasi’s success is her hard work and the fact that she had good teammates,” Robinson said. “She’s good for our program and good for our team.
“I’m glad I have her for one more year.”
Also see last Weekend’s edition of The Clanton Advertiser for the all-area team.

By Stephen Dawkins

JEMISON – Both Jemison’s and Thorsby’s volleyball programs were knocked out of the sub-state round of the playoffs last week, but that was about the only similarity.
Jemison was a veteran team playing and home and expecting to advance to the Elite Eight state tournament this week at the Pelham Civic Complex. Thorsby, meanwhile, had never before made it so far in the playoffs and was playing at Leroy.
The Panthers fell to visiting Andalusia 3-1 (25-20, 22-25, 25-8, 25-18) on Oct. 22.
“When you get to this level, you’ve got to play more consistent,” Jemison coach Leighsa Robinson said. “We made too many errors back-to-back and didn’t correct ourselves.
“Our girls have played hard all year, we just didn’t come through today.”
The Panthers (34-11) dug themselves a hole in each set: They trailed 6-0 in the first set, 5-1 in the second, 15-1 in the third and 7-0 in the fourth.
Still, the hosts looked to be a match for Andalusia (25-13) as the squads split the first two sets.
But any momentum was squandered as Jemison couldn’t get Andalusia senior Amber Anderson off the service line to begin Set 3. Anderson served for 14 consecutive points.
Anderson was also part of an imposing Bulldogs offensive attack that rained down kills seemingly from the rafters.
Jemison’s defense was solid as always-Emily Smithey and Tanya Liveoak led the effort with 14 digs and 12 digs, respectively-but its offense was too spotty. Jemison recorded 31 kills but made 25 attack errors.
Tabatha Cork recorded 11 kills to go along with four assists. Kasi Wells filled up the stat sheet to the tune of 20 assists, nine digs, four kills and two blocks.
Whitney Childress had five aces.
The Rebels, unfortunately, played like a team in unfamiliar territory—both the gymnasium and the place in history.
Thorsby fell at Leroy, 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-20).
“We played nervous, being our first time there,” coach Ginger Williams said. “We’re extremely proud of them, anyway. This team has really done a lot.”
Thorsby was put on the defensive most of the night, so there were plenty of digs to be had. Brittany Maddox had 12, Desiree Evans had 10 and Holly Smith had 8.
Maddox also had four kills.
THS finished the season with a 20-20 record.

By Stephen Dawkins

The historic seasons for Jemison’s and Thorsby’s volleyball programs continue.
Thorsby on Oct. 17 earned a berth in the sub-state round of the playoffs for the first time in school history. Jemison will host a sub-state match for the first time in coach Leighsa Robinson’s four seasons.
The Panthers (34-10) finished second in the Class 4A, Regional B tournament. Jemison was the host school but chose to play the tournament at Calera.
JHS defeated both Oak Grove and Elmore County High 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-10 and 25-22, 25-21, 25-19) but lost to Alabama Christian, 3-0 (25-11, 27-25, 25-18) in the championship match.
“We played just good enough to win, and, when we got to the championship match, that wasn’t good enough,” Robinson said.
The Panthers on Thursday play Andalusia with a berth in the Elite 8 tournament in Pelham on Oct. 28-30 on the line. The Panthers’ last Elite 8 appearance was in 2004.
The match at Alton Cobb Gymnasium will begin at 4 p.m., and admission will be $6.
In the regional tournament, statistical category leaders were: Emily Smithey with 37 digs, Whitney Childress with eight aces, Kasi Wells with 31 assists and seven blocks, and Tabatha Cork with 19 kills.
Thorsby, meanwhile finished third in the Class 2A, Regional B tournament at New Brockton. The Rebels (20-19) defeated Zion Chapel, 3-2 (18-25, 25-15, 26-24, 24-26, 15-9) and lost to No. 3 Ohatchee, 3-0 (25-11, 25-8, 25-3) and Isabella, 3-1 (25-18, 17-25, 25-19, 25-15).
“At the end of last season, [assistant coach Keith Williams] and I began telling the returning seniors every chance we got that it was up to them to start a tradition,” coach Ginger Williams said. “We wanted them to leave a legacy for future teams.
This year, we have a great group of seniors. They are wonderful leaders on and off the court. They have become very competitive, and they continue to want more out of themselves and their teammates. For these seniors and this team, I hope that they are very proud of everything they have accomplished this year, but I hope that they are not satisfied. They have the potential and the chance to do more.
“For the program, this season sets a precedent for next year’s team and the teams after that, hopefully starting a tradition for Thorsby volleyball.”
The Rebels visit Leroy at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
During the regional tournament, statistical category leaders were: Brittany Maddox with 23 digs, 15 kills and six blocks; and Holly Smith with 43 assists. Both Smith and Kendra Dawson had five aces.

By Stephen Dawkins

Jemison on Saturday won its fifth county volleyball tournament in seven tries since the tournament’s renewal in 2003.

The Panthers defeated defending champion Isabella in what amounted to a championship match, 25-13, 25-16. It was the last contest of a round robin tournament, and both teams came in unbeaten on the day.

“They wanted to prove a point,” coach Leighsa Robinson said. “Thorsby is the most dangerous team in the county, they beat us twice, we lost to Isabella once and Clanton took a set from us.

“Our whole county has just grown. The skill level has improved across the whole county. It’s good to see.”

The Panthers broke a huddle following the tournament with the cry, “The plaque is back!” The winner of each tournament has its name and year inscribed on a plaque, which is kept by the winning school until the next tournament.

Jemison also defeated host Chilton County High (25-22, 25-18) and Thorsby (25-21, 25-15). The Mustangs also defeated both CCHS (25-18, 27-25) and Thorsby (25-18, 21-25, 15-4).

Thorsby topped the Tigers to earn third place in the tournament.

Jemison’s Kasi Wells was the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Wells recorded 38 assists, nine kills and six digs in three matches. She did not miss a single serve in 36 attempts and had six aces.

Tabatha Cork (21 kills, 12 assists and no missed serves) and Whitney Childress (10 kills and eight aces) also made the all-tournament team.

The Panthers were good on 138 of 147 serve attempts on the day, or about 94 percent.

Michelle Hendrix was Thorsby’s all-tournament selection. She finished with 14 digs and three aces and passed the volleyball exceptionally well, coach Ginger Williams said.

Brittany Maddox accounted for 23 digs, 11 kills and five blocks, and Stephanie Moore had 10 digs, seven blocks and six kills.

By Stephen Dawkins

JEMISON – The Jemison and Thorsby volleyball teams will have much different tasks in front of them next week at their area tournaments.

Jemison will host its tournament because it finished area play unbeaten with wins over Calera and Holt on Monday. The Panthers have hosted in each of Leighsa Robinson’s five seasons as coach.

The Rebels, meanwhile, will try to advance in the state playoffs though playing their area tournament at county rival Isabella, which has won 11 consecutive area championships.

Jemison (26-8, 5-0 area) on Monday tuned up for the playoffs with a 3-1 (25-16, 26-24, 23-25, 25-17) win over Calera and a 3-0 (25-11, 25-17, 25-20) win over Holt.

Jemison seniors Whitney Childress, Codi Mims and Dallis Vanderslice—playing in their final regular season home matches—said they didn’t feel pressure to continue the streak of hosting area tournaments but instead are focused on the team’s postseason potential.

“We work well together,” Mims said, and Childress added “We have faith in each other to pull through.”

Vanderslice may have summed it up best when she said that, though they have been a part of successful squads in the past, “this has been the best season so far.”

The Class 4A, Area 7 tournament will begin at 3 p.m. on Oct. 13, with Calera, Bibb County High and Holt visiting Alton Cobb Gymnasium.

The other Jemison seniors recognized Monday between the two matches were Holly Barton and Tabatha Cork.

Robinson said the group’s willingness to work has set it apart.

“Our seniors have provided great leadership and played hard,” Robinson said. “They’ve been fun to coach.”

Against Calera, the seniors were productive as always: Vanderslice had 12 digs, Cork had eight kills and five digs, and Mims had six kills.

Emily Smithey posted nine digs and five aces. Kasi Wells contributed eight assists, seven kills, four digs and three aces. Shelby Griffin had four blocks.

The Class 2A, Area 6 tournament—which will include Isabella, Thorsby, R.C. Hatch and St. Jude—will begin at 5 p.m. on Oct. 12.

In what coach Ginger Williams called one of her teams’ best performances of the season, the Thorsby volleyball team on Sept. 3 defeated Holtville, 25-20, 26-24, and was nipped by Marbury, 25-19, 19-25, 13-15.

In the first match, Brittany Maddox recorded six kills, nine aces and three digs for the Rebels (6-4). Teammate Michelle Hendrix added two kills and three digs, Holly Smith had 13 assists and two aces and Desiree Evans had two kills and three aces.

In the second match, Maddox was good for four digs and 10 kills, Evans had three kills and seven digs, Hendrix had three aces and 16 digs, Stephanie Moore had eight digs, Smith had seven digs and 19 assists, and Kendra Dawson had 12 digs.

Also on Sept. 3, Jemison won its 10th consecutive match with a 25-15, 25-16, 25-17 win at Chilton County High.

Jemison coach Leighsa Robinson, whose team hasn’t lost since Aug. 24, said the Panthers didn’t started out sluggish.

“We got better in the second game, and then the third game was pretty good,” Robinson said.

Jemison (13-4) rode the serving of setter Kasi Wells, who was on the line for 12 points in Game 1 and 22 points total.

Wells recorded 11 aces to go along with 19 assists, nine kills and two blocks.

Teammate Tabatha Cork had three assists and eight kills, and Dallis Vanderslice added five digs.

– From staff reports

By Stephen Dawkins

Two thousand nine is shaping up to be an interesting year in local high school volleyball.

Storylines abound. Long dominated by Isabella or Jemison, whoever happened to have the better team that particular season, a third county team appears poised to threaten the traditional hierarchy, and it’s not the team one might think.

Chilton County High, the county’s largest school, is still a year or two away from being a legitimate championship contender. Because the Tigers have no seniors on the roster, though, they have time to develop.

Most of the stalwarts off last year’s team graduated, leaving several new faces in starting spots. With some time to gain size, strength and experience, though, the Tigers will be good team. In fact, their progress could remind local fans of the strides made by another county team, Thorsby.

The Rebels, in fact, are the team that could loosen the stranglehold Isabella and Jemison have had on the annual county tournament. Now in the fourth year of coach Ginger Williams’ tenure, Thorsby is seeing the results of all the hard work it has put in. The squad already has six wins this year, one shy of its win total from 2008.

Don’t think the Mustangs and the Panthers have slipped, though. Isabella lost most of the starters off last year’s team, but coach Glen Graham is still high on his team’s potential. The Mustangs haven’t played up to that potential yet, but, like Graham has pointed out, it’s better for a team to be at its best at the end of October than at the end of August.

If Jemison takes that same approach, the Panthers will be scary good come playoff time. Jemison was an average team only one year ago and this year is composed mostly of the same players. Goes to show what an offseason with coach Leighsa Robinson can do. The Panthers have won 10 straight matches, and who knows how much more the team will improve with more game experience.

So far, at least, it appears the road to the county championship will go through Jemison.

– Dawkins is the sports editor for The North Chilton Advertiser.