Two area schools hosted state semifinal playoff matches on Monday.
Newton County hosted New Albany in a bid for back-to-back state championships and fell 3-1 to the Lady Bulldogs.
In Union, the Lady Yellowjackets hosted Ingomar and fell 3-1 to the Lady Falcons.
In other action, Lake traveled to Jackson and beat St. Andrew’s 3-1 to advance to the Class 2A championship series.
Union
The Union Lady Yellowjackets had their hands full on Monday night against defending state champion Ingomar.
The Lady Yellowjackets fell 3-1 on Monday night as Ingomar advanced to the 2A title game.
“They have a great team with great, great players,” Union coach Jacob Casey said. “We played them about as well as anybody could. I’m super proud of our girls and their effort. They made Ingomar earn every point. They have two really good player and one of them is a phenom. They have four players bigger than anybody on our team. They are 40-2 for a reason. We did manage to take a set from them and I think that was just the fifth or sixth set they have lost all season. I’m just super proud of my girls. They fought hard and made them earn every point.”
Union, playing before a packed house, won the first set 25-20 to take an early lead. But Ingomar bounced back and took the second set 25-21 to even the match.
“We kind of let the second set slip away from us,” Casey said. “They didn’t play very well in the first two sets. But we didn’t take advantage of that and let them get setting in. The second set was probably the difference in the match. When good teams give you opportunities, you have to take advantage of them. I’m just proud of our community. We had a huge turnout. It was packed and it was an electric atmosphere.”
After evening the match up, Ingomar took the third and fourth sets to win 3-1.
“We had an amazing year,” Casey said. “We finished 34-9 and won our district. We didn’t drop a set in district play. We beat a lot of really good teams this year. I could’t be more proud of the kids. Ingomar is probably one of the top five teams in the state and would probably win several other classes.”
In the second round, Union beat Water Valley 3-0, winning 25-6, 25-6 and 25-12.
In the third round, the Lady Yellowjackets won 3-0 again, beating Walnut in straight sets. Union won 25-12, 25-18 and 25-21 to advance to the Class 2A semifinals.
Newton County
Newton County’s attempt to win back-to-back state championships came to an end on Monday night.
The Lady Cougars lost 3-1 in the Class 4A semifinals to New Albany.
“New Albany brought it from the beginning to the end,” County coach Matthew Beasley said. “They look a lot like we did last year. It seems like they have all of the momentum. We just couldn’t get momentum going our way. But give New Albany credit, they played great defense and made some great swings.”
The first set was a tight one with New Albany winning 30-28 to grab an early lead.
“When they took that first set, the momentum was all on their side,” Beasley said. “In a tight match, you have to get some lucky points and the ball never fell our way. I’m really proud of the way they played. They battled all night. We certainly weren’t overlooking them. It’s hard to beat us at home and if they can do that, I think they will go on to win a state championship.”
After winning the first set 30-28, New Albany took the second set 25-22 to take a 2-0 lead. Newton County bounced back and took the third set 25-17 to cut the lead to 2-1. New Albany then took the fourth set 25-15 to take the match.
“We were never able to get our feet under us and get a big run,” Beasley said. “I’m proud of community for the support. It was a great atmosphere. And I’m thankful for my seniors (Anna Grace Armstrong, Cadence Hoover and Olivia Embry) and what they have done for our our program. They certainly left it better than they found it.”
Newton County finished the season with a 32-5-1 record.
In second-round action, County beat North Pontotoc 3-0, winning 25-13, 25-9 and 25-14.
In third-round action, County had a tight contest with Tishomingo County. Newton County won the first two sets, 25-12 and 25-22 to take a 2-0 lead. But Tishomingo County win the next two sets, 25-21 and 25-19 to tie the match at 2-2. County then won the third-set tiebreaker 15-11 to advance to the Class 4A North State championship match.
Lake
The Lady Hornets took a big step on Monday as they advanced to the Class 2A championship series by beating homestanding St. Andrew’s 3-1.
Lake had a tight contest with Pisgah on Tuesday, winning 3-0. The Lady Hornets won 25-21, 25-20 and 25-21 to take the win.
On Thursday, Lake took a straight-set win over Mize. Lake won 25-14, 25-15 and 25-13.
Lake improved to 20-9 on the season and will face Ingomar on Thursday at noon at Mississippi College.
