RUSSELLVILLE — Just call it the Sweet 16.
Logan County’s volleyball squad could not be stopped as it rolled to a 3-0 (25-12, 25-9, 25-11) win over Franklin-Simpson to claim its 16th-straight 13th District Volleyball title on Tuesday evening at Russellville High School.
Coming out aggressive and putting points up early and often, the Lady Cougars dominated the match as soon as they stepped on the floor.
“[Aggressiveness] is one thing we focus on,” Logan County head coach Steven Lyne said. “We know what we’re getting into as far as having to play someone like Greenwood or South Warren. We know that we have to stay aggressive in order to keep up with those teams. We’ve seen in the past that if you aren’t aggressive, you won’t be able to hang with those teams.”
The Lady Cougars (24-12) jumped out to massive leads in each set and left the 12-19 Lady Wildcats with hardly an answer, even when Franklin-Simpson showed spurts of aggressiveness to match Logan County.
“We start slow sometimes,” Franklin-Simpson head coach Megan Vincent said. “As a coach I’m still trying to get through to them that they have to go full throttle from the first serve. We’ll usually dig ourselves into about an eight-point hole, and they we have to dig ourselves out of that. For [the 4th Region Tournament], we will definitely have to play strong the moment our feet touch the floor.”
Logan County sprinted out to a 12-3 lead in the first set and ballooned that lead to 24-10 before the Lady Wildcats called a timeout. Franklin-Simpson strung together a pair of points before the Lady Cougars took the first game, 25-12.
MORE COVERAGE:
- VIDEO: Logan County’s Steven Lyne
- VIDEO: Logan County’s Hannah Cron
- VIDEO: Franklin-Simpson’s Megan Vincent (Part 1) (Part 2)
The Lady Cougars did much of the same in the next two sets as they took the second and third sets 25-9 and 25-11, respectfully.
Despite coming up short against Logan County, Vincent earned her second 4th Region Tournament berth in just her second season at the helm of the Lady Wildcats’ program. Last season, she led Franklin-Simpson to its first 4th Region Tournament win in program history.
“The girls all try to help one another. As long as they keep up that togetherness, we will be in a perfect position for [the 4th Region Tournament],” Vincent said.
Lyne’s squad advances to the 4th Region Tournament for the 16th year in a row. The Lady Cougars are looking to make a deep run with a mature roster that features six seniors.
“Knowing that we want to keep the district wins going for the six of us really keeps our confidence up,” senior Hannah Cron said. “Having all of our family members at every game is what keeps us going.”
Logan County defeated Russellville (0-18) on Tuesday evening to advance to the championship round, while Franklin-Simpson defeated Todd County Central (4-17).
The 4th Region Volleyball Tournament draw will take place on Saturday morning at Franklin-Simpson High School, which will also be the host site for the tournament.
The official pool for the Tournament will feature Logan County and Franklin-Simpson from the 13th District, South Warren and Greenwood from the 14th District, Allen County-Scottsville and Glasgow from the 15th District and Clinton County and Russell County from the 16th District.
Clay Manlove; @ctmanlove58
