RINGGOLD, Ga. – Apparently all the Ringgold High School volleyball team needed was to see a few examples of what a good team looks like.
The Lady Tigers opened their season Aug. 14 in a tournament at Sequoyah (Ga.) and against some stiff competition came away with a 1-3 record that day.
“We didn’t finish very well, but we figured out what we needed to work on,” outside hitter Kendall Williams said. “It kind of brought us all together. We knew then what we had to do to get to the next level.”
Proving that lessons were learned, the last time they lost was Aug. 26 against Area 6-A/AA champion Gordon Lee. Now Area 7-AAA champion Ringgold (29-7) is ready to host Eagle’s Landing in a first-round match in the state tournament today at 11 a.m.
The path the Lady Tigers have taken to this point hasn’t been an easy one. Ringgold is the No. 7-ranked team in the PrepCountry.com/Georgia Athletic Coaches Association state poll, but area opponents Southeast Whitfield, Dalton and LaFayette occupy the eighth, ninth and 10th spots. Heritage also has been ranked this season.
Yet counting regular season and postseason, the Lady Tigers are 11-0 against league competion and lost two games – one to Dalton and one to Heritage.
“We haven’t been able to win just on talent,” said Ringgold coach John Gaston, who’s in his first year back after guiding the program from 2001 and its first state-tournament appearance through ’04 and its second consecutive semifinal berth. “We’ve had to go at it and work hard to beat people. We’ve been in some tight situations, and they’ve never turned on each other.”
Gaston has senior leadership to thank for that. The 6-foot Williams leads the team with 253 kills and 78 blocks, but Gaston commends her and the other three seniors as much for their leadership as their play.
Williams said she felt like last year everyone was just teammates. This year, they’re a team.
“We treat our freshmen the same way we treat each other,” said 5-7 senior setter Michala Askew, whose 497 assists and 44 aces are team highs and who also has contributed 109 kills. “We want to show the others what they’re going to have to take on once they become seniors.”
Gaston said junior Libero Kelly Jones, who hadn’t played volleyball since middle school, has provided a defensive spark. Additonally she’s among the top servers and has 42 aces.
The other seniors are hitters Carly Grant (94 kills) and Britany Goldsmith (62 kills, 26 blocks). Juniors Anna Dykes (116 kills, 57 blocks) and Jazmine Hill (26 kills) also get playing time at the net, which Gaston thinks will be an area of great importance if Ringgold is to move forward.
“Our defense has been pretty steady,” he said. “Our offense, at given times, slows down. It’s tough to beat us when we’re hitting well.”
The Lady Tigers are hoping Eagle’s Landing finds that out, along with today’s winner between West Hall and Troup. If RInggold wins today, that’s the team it would host Tuesday with a quarterfinal berth in the balance.
“We can definitely make it further than in the past,” Askew said. “Teamwork and playing together, I really think that can take us where we need to be.”
n Class A/AA: Top-seeded Gordon Lee (33-4) recently won its area championship and will be hosting fourth-seeded Callaway (10-16) in the first round of the GHSA state volleyball tournament today at 2 p.m.
Two days ago the Lady Trojans had their final practice in preparation for today’s match against the Lady Cavaliers, who are making their first state-playoff appearance. Gordon Lee coach Ed Clendenen admitted that front-line blocking has not been a team strength this year but said his girls looked as good in that area Thursday as they have all season.
“We just want to keep getting better,” Clendenen said. “I think we can still keep improving with our execution.”
Should Gordon Lee win today, on Tuesday it will host the winner between Our Lady of Mercy, ranked No. 9 in the state, and The Walker School with a quarterfinal spot at stake.