High School Volleyball

6A-Central

Southside def. Northside, 25-12, 26-24, 25-17

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Southside volleyball coach Steve Haaser isn’t ready to proclaim his team is the team to beat in the 6A-Central. Not yet, anyway.

Northside coach Matt Waack might disagree.

The Mavericks overcame 17 errors in the second set to finish off a 25-12, 26-24, 25-17 win over the scrappy Northside Lady Bears on Thursday night at Southside Gym.

Playing before a packed house, which even included the Southside band, the stage wasn’t too big for Mavericks sophomore Avery Fitzgerald.

She finished with 18 kills and, every time Southside needed a point, or to sway the momentum, she answered with a thunderous kill.


“She had a lot of kills and a good hitting percentage,” Haaser said. “She had a good night.”

So did Hannah Hogue. She finished with 14 assists and 16 digs. Emily Bass had 17 digs and three key aces.

The Mavericks (17-2, 7-0) rolled to a quick 25-12 win in the first set, with senior Reagan Scifres finishing off the win with back-to-back aces.

The Mavericks led 21-17 in the second set before a series of hitting errors helped the Lady Bears run off six straight points for a 23-21 advantage.

Southside’s Hannah Holland, who finished with nine kills, broke a 24-24 tie with a kill, and the Mavericks’ Hayley Hall finished the victory with an ace.

“We had six service errors and 11 hitting errors — it’s a modern day miracle that we won that game,” Haaser said. “We gave them 17 points. Really, we were lucky to win it.”

Southside jumped in front, 21-12, in the third game before the Lady Bears rattled off four straight points, including kills by Nicole Medlin, Quineisha Tillery and Lexie Mosby.


Just a junior, Medlin led Northside (17-8, 4-3) with a team-high six kills. She only had 13 chances but finished with no hitting errors.

“We still haven’t learned to let the nerves go, relax, and play,” Waack said. “Obviously, Southside is very good, but by the same token I expect my kids to make that pass.”

Thea Bishop, who Waack moved to libero following an injury, had 12 digs. Mosby finished with 21 assists and K’zaria Fisher added eight digs.

For Southside, Sarah Tolbert had 15 assists. Aleigha Johnson had seven kills, and Hall added four aces.
