2024 Volleyball State Championship Guide

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NOVEMBER 2 & 4,

2025 VOLLEYBALL COLLECTION

GREETINGS GHSA VOLLEYBALL FANS

Greetings GHSA Volleyball Fans: Welcome to the 2024 GHSA Volleyball State Championships! The games are sure to be exciting as all of the schools represented are looking forward to their team achieving the title of “Champion”. However we all know that all of our teams are outstanding and are definitely winners. This has been an outstanding season and this year’s championship games will include familiar faces as well as teams that have worked hard and peaked at just the right time. Our congratulations are in order for all of the teams, coaches, administrators, students and parents who have supported the athletes through this year’s journey to the final games. I know you will enjoy and appreciate the games and all of the work leading up to this exciting event.

I would also like to thank you for your support of high school volleyball

throughout the season. Your attendance and support is integral to the success of high school athletics and for the team you are here to cheer on. Good sportsmanship is expected from our athletes and I urge you to be positive in your support of all of our teams. Let’s work together to make today’s games a great experience for all involved.

To put on an event of this magnitude takes many volunteers who have worked tirelessly to provide a “first class” event. Many hours of work from this group will enhance the experience of our players, students and fans. The GHSA staff has been working for weeks as well to ensure a special event for all involved.

Finally I would like to thank our corporate sponsors who make it possible to put on these championships. Their advertisements can be seen throughout this venue and I encourage you to support them whenever possible. The GHSA wants to thank these exemplary companies for their involvement, we appreciate their support.

Thank you for your attendance and I know you are going to enjoy the best high school volleyball anywhere!

Sincerely,

VOLLEYBALL WILL STREAM LIVE AGAIN

Championship matches are available to watch LIVE and On Demand on the NFHS Network to any device. An all-access pass is $11.99 per month per (30 days) for unlimited viewing. Streaming rights are exclusive to the GHSA and the NFHS Network. NO other live broadcasts are permitted on social media or any other online platform!

2024 GHSA VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

NOVEMBER 2 & 4, 2024

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 4

PAST CHAMPIONS

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CAPTIVATING MATCHUPS AND STATE TITLE HOPEFULS PREPARE CHAMPIONSHIP STAGE

The GHSA Volleyball State Championships return to the LakePoint Sports Complex for two days (Nov. 2, 4) of captivating championship showdowns. Class 2A, 6A, 3A, A-3A Private and 5A will compete in a five-match Saturday marathon that gets underway at 9:30 a.m. and Monday will close out the season with Class 1A at 5 p.m. and Class 4A in the nightcap to conclude Monday’s championship doubleheader. Class 2A will get the slate started at 9:30 a.m. on Friday with Savannah Arts Academy and Morgan County. Savannah Arts sits one win away from its first-ever title, while Morgan County is looking for its second crown since 2022. No. 1 seed Morgan County has swept its way through the first four rounds, while No. 2 seed Savannah Arts has dropped just one set and is coming off a 3-1 win over Columbus. Savannah Arts senior Torrin Higginbotham had a career-high 32 kills in the semifinal win over the Blue Devils. Morgan County dominated Ringgold in the semifinals 25-7, 25-16, 25-9 and seniors Quinn Butler and Haedyn Crumbley combined for 21 of the team’s 36 kills in the quarterfinals against Jackson.

BATTLE OF CHAMPIONS

Class 6A offers a unique showdown between defending state champions that are each searching for a third all-time state title (North Cobb 2014, Alpharetta 2020). North Cobb—which captured the Class 7A title last season returned to the finals in Georgia’s highest classification as the No. 4 seed out of Area 5. As for Alpharetta, the undefeated Raiders took the Class 6A state title last season

and are looking to secure their first state title in Georgia’s highest classification since 2020. Alpharetta is a perfect 35-0 with a 40-match win-streak that dates back to last year and has dropped just six sets all season. One of the sets that the Raiders’ surrendered came in their 2-1 win over North Cobb back on Aug. 17. North Cobb avenged its two regular season losses to Walton in last weekend’s 3-2 semifinal victory. Walton grabbed a 2-0 lead before North Cobb rallied with a season-saving 26-24 win in the third set, a 25-21 win in the fourth and a 15-11 fifth-set victory. Seniors Sarah (21) and Olivia Boyle (12) combined for 33 of North Cobb’s 57 total kills. Alpharetta’s lineup stars Brooke Boyles—a senior that played in her 400th career set last round. Boyles notched a team-high 21 kills in the 3-1 semifinal win over Norcross and has 198 career aces, 1,145 career kills and 1,011 career digs. Senior Madison McLin added 15 kills and five blocks against Norcross and Abigail Li tallied eight blocks and 42 assists with just one ball handling error. Junior Kailey Leonard tallied a team-high 15 digs in the semifinal win and Alpharetta’s roster has many more key contributors returning from last year’s championship run such as Kennedi White, Audrey Simpson and Caitlin Kilkelly.

MAKING HISTORY

Class 3A and Class 1A are the only two finals that are guaranteed to crown a first- ever state champ with Calhoun and Jefferson clashing in Class 3A and Gordon Lee facing Elite Scholar’s Academy in Class A. Jefferson scored a 3-2 win over Chestatee in the quarterfinals

and then punched its finals berth with a 3-0 win over White County. Calhoun—which opened its season with six-straight losses, has now won six-straight matches. The Yellow Jackets are coming off a 3-1 win over Richmond Academy in the semifinals. Following the Class 3A finals on Saturday, defending Class A state champion Mt. Pisgah will take on Hebron Christian in the Class A-3A Private finals. Hebron Christian is riding a 21-match win-streak and is one win away from its third all-time title and first since 2019. As for Mt. Pisgah, the Patriots outlasted rival Mount Paran 3-2 in the semifinals.

Saturday’s fifth and final match—Class 5A— will pair 10-time state champion Woodward Academy and last year’s Class 6A staterunner up and five-time state champion Pope in the most decorated showdown of all the finals. Pope’s last state title came in 2022, while Woodward Academy is on the cusp of snapping a championship-drought that dates back to 2010.

Class A finalist Gordon Lee carries a 19-match win-streak into the finals and a 41-5 overall record and the Trojans’ opponent Elite Scholar’s Academy is 27-7 with an eight-match win-streak and a flawless record within Class A competition this season.

Monday’s final matchup will stage seventime defending state champion Pace Academy against Cartersville—which sits one win away from its first-ever state title. The Knights defeated Marist 3-1 in the semifinals and juniors Lawson Monroe (27) and Rebecca McCloskey (23) combined for 50 of the team’s 60 kills.

CLASS 6A

Alpharetta and North Cobb will both be attempting to repeat as state champions after making history at LakePoint last season. Alpharetta was 38-3 last year with its only losses coming to Pace Academy, Pope and North Cobb. The Raiders avenged their 3-1 Oct. 14 loss to Pope with a 3-0 sweep over the Greyhounds in the state championship and were also able to defeat North Cobb 2-1 just eight days after their loss to the Warriors earlier that month. North Cobb went on to finish last year 42-9 and avenged its loss to Walton right before the playoffs with a championship-clinching 3-1 victory. Both Alpharetta and North Cobb have returned the core of their teams from last year’s title run and will be meeting for the second time this season. When they faced on Aug. 17, Alpharetta was able to score a 2-1 victory. Alpharetta senior Abigail Li came up huge in the Raiders’ win with a match-high 27 assists to go with her two blocks.

CLASS 5A

Woodward Academy (10) and Pope (5) have a combined 15 all-time state titles—giving this classification the most decorated finals matchup of the 2024 championship slate. Pope fell to Alpharetta in last year’s finals and has battled its way back to take on Woodward following the statewide reclassification that shook-up the landscape. While the classifications look different, the two teams did meet this season and Woodward Academy emerged victorious with a 2-0 sweep on Sept. 14. The War Eagles took the first set 2516 and closed out a 25-22 win in the second. Woodward’s sophomore duo of Ave’ Perkins (5) and Marissa Jones (4) combined for nine blocks in the victory and lead a very young War Eagles team that has gone 40-2 this season. Woodward Academy avenged one of those losses in the last round with a 3-1 win over Sequoyah. As for Pope, the Greyhounds carry a 14-match win-streak into the finals and have not dropped a match since the loss to Woodward.

CLASS 4A

The Pace Academy Knights and the Cartersville Purple Hurricanes are facing off for the second time this season, this time for the GHSA Class 4A volleyball state title. The first time around saw the Knights come out on top 2-0 (25-18, 25-19) in straight sets. Pace Academy juniors Lawson Monroe and Rebecca McCloskey combined for 23 kills in the Knights' victory in September. Amara Ejieke led the way for Cartersville with nine kills on the night along with Holly Dufrene’s six kills of her own in the loss to Pace Academy. The Knights are coming off of a record-breaking seventh-straight state championship dating back to 2017 and are looking to break their own record with their eighth-straight on Monday. Meanwhile, the Purple Hurricanes from Cartersville are seeking their first-ever state championship in volleyball, going up against a young Pace Academy roster looking to make history. The Knights only have two seniors on the roster, showcasing their talent with young stars all over the court.

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CLASS 3A

The Calhoun Yellow Jackets and the Jefferson Dragons have played once this season already before they will meet each other this weekend in the GHSA Class 3A State Championship. In the first meeting between the two schools this season, the Dragons grounded the Yellow Jackets 2-0 (25-15, 25-16) as Kaytlin Johnson and Jolie Guenther combined for 17 kills and Eva Claire Nelson aced four serves against the Yellow Jackets back in August. Calhoun combined for 21 kills with junior Gracison Saylors having 11 of her own, while the team combined for three aces in their previous matchup against the Purple Hurricanes. Neither Calhoun nor Jefferson have been crowned as state champions in their program history and are both looking to do so this weekend. The Yellow Jackets are 8-1 in the month of October, defeating Richmond Academy 3-1 in the semifinals to move onto the state championship. Jefferson has won 12 games in the month of October, only losing one of its 13 matchups, and defeated White County 3-0 in the semifinals on the way to the state championship.

CLASS 2A

MorganCounty and Savannah Arts Academy face off in a battle of dominant playoff runs. The two teams have combined to lose only one set through the first four rounds of the playoffs. Savannah Arts is seeking its first-ever state title, while the Bulldogs are aiming for their second title in three years. Morgan County has been dominant to close the season, not dropping a set since a loss to Lovett on October 1. On the other side, Savannah Arts has been nearly as strong in the playoffs, losing only one set. They are led by Torrin Higginbotham, who recorded 32 kills in their semifinal match, the most in any single game in the state this season. Morgan County will be led by Quinn Butler and Haedyn Crumbley, who combined for 35 kills in their semifinals victory over Ringgold. Both teams have faced three common opponents: Jackson, Columbus, and Savannah Country Day. Morgan County is 4-0 in those matches, while Savannah Arts is 3-1, with the one loss coming to Savannah Country Day.

CLASS A

Class A will be one of only two classifications guaranteed to crown a first-time champion in 2024 when Gordon Lee and Elite Scholars Academy face off. Gordon Lee is on an 18-game win streak, during which they’ve dropped a total of six sets. The Trojans finished the season 41-5 making them the number one overall seed in the playoffs. Across the court is Elite Scholars, which has not lost a game in Class A this season with none of the Royal Knights’ losses having come against teams that didn’t reach at least the quarterfinals, securing them the number two overall seed in the playoffs. Gordon Lee is led by Kaighan Cassell and Emma Young, both of whom have over 300 kills, the only players on the team with more than 200. Elite Scholars is led in kills by sophomore Isabel Harden, who has recorded 275 kills over the 65 sets she’s played this season. This will be the first meeting between the two teams this season and should produce a competitive five set match.

Tori Harris

Jade Brown

Amalie Lang

Malia Felder

MB

PRIVATE

The 1A-3A Private classification will feature a championship match-up between the top two seeds and two of the most dominant teams in the state this season as Hebron Christian and Mount Pisgah fight for the state title. Hebron enters the championship on a 21-game winning streak, having lost only four sets during this stretch, which helped them secure the number one overall seed. Mount Pisgah is a defending state champion, winning last year's Class A state title, and is looking to defend its spot at the top for the school’s second volleyball title. Hebron is seeking its third volleyball title in school history, having previously won championships in 2014 and 2019, both in Class A. Mount Pisgah is led by Adrianna Figurilli and Sophia Nasieku, who both have over 420 kills, with Figurilli totaling an impressive 579 kills which is the second highest in the state across all classifications only behind Chestatee’s Valiree Schmus. Hebron is led by sophomores Ashley Troxell and Addison Griffin, with each having over 200 kills on the season while having a kill percentage above 44 percent.

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