Over the past couple of weeks, Morgan County’s volleyball team has solidified itself as the Area 8-AAA champions..
With dominant wins over Harlem and Academy of Richmond County to end their region schedule, the Spike Dogs claimed their fourth straight region championship.
Morgan County is currently on a 42-match unbeaten region streak, and head coach Kat Goodwin told the Lake Oconee News that the girls are just now starting to play efficiently with each other.
“At this point in the year, they’ve really figured one another out,” Goodwin said. “The issues of where the ball is going or the timing of plays have really faded as the girls have played with each other. They aren’t there yet, but the girls are starting to figure out their level of play and are continuing to work towards it, so we’ve seen more connections at the net and better movement on assignments.”
On top of the program’s recent accomplishments, members of the team recently hit personal milestones as well.
Last week, Emily Hilsman and Allie Cox were honored on Senior Night for their hard work and dedication to the Spike Dogs program. Cox was further recognized for surpassing the 2,000 assist mark, which she hit a few weeks ago in a match.
Goodwin acknowledged how important having a consistent setter is, and stated that Cox is one of the best she’s ever coached.
“[Cox] crossed the 2,000-point threshold during the Sandy Creek match last week. It’s a huge accomplishment, especially seeing as how she only played a handful of matches her freshman year,” Goodwin said. “We have girls that would be setting for almost any other school in the state, but Allie is just that commanding on the court. She’s had great hitters, but to her credit, she has the cleanest hands I’ve ever seen on a high school setter, and you can expect little to no mistakes when she’s on the court.”
The Spike Dogs final area match went just like all of their previous region games – ending in straight sets.
Morgan County got out in front of the Academy of Richmond County early in the first set and never let up. Goodwin’s team outscored the Musketeers 25-17 in the first and 25-14 in the second to clinch the top seed for the state playoffs.
ARC was also not a team Morgan County could overlook. The Musketeers came into last Thursday’s match with a 23-5 record.
Not only have the Spike Dogs beaten tough competition throughout the regular season, but also they have quality opponents still left on their schedule. Goodwin stressed the importance of playing competitive teams ahead of the state playoffs.
“We intentionally set up our after-fall-break schedule with some hard competition, because I think it will prepare us for the state playoffs,” Goodwin said. “I still expect them to win every match, but we need to just continue to take advantage of our time on the court together and play up to our standards.”
The Spike Dogs have five more matches left before the postseason begins with the last one coming Oct. 12.