Bob Jones volleyball team punches ticket for Elite Eight in Pelham

BJHS Alexis Howell tries to get a ball over Huntsville defenders

The good news for the Bob Jones volleyball team is that they will be making a return trip to the AHSAA Elite Eight State Volleyball Championship Tournament a year after reaching the championship game. The bad news is they are the fourth and final qualifier out of the north division and will face top ranked and #1 seed out of the south division McGill-Toolen in Pelham on Wednesday at 1 p.m.

The Lady Patriots fell to Huntsville Saturday afternoon in a semifinal match then to Grissom in a consolation match. Huntsville ultimately won the North Division Super Regional held at the Von Braun Center South Hall and will go in as a number 1 seed.

On Friday night Bob Jones won a tough 4 set match over Mountain Brook who had beaten the Patriots in a tournament earlier this season.

“Our kids came out and they were ready and were intense and we got after it and focused on getting past the elimination round. They were a tough team,” said Bob Jones volleyball coach April Marsh.

Then Saturday afternoon they swept Austin in a quarterfinal match to secure a spot in the semifinals and a trip to Pelham.

The match with Huntsville was for seeding only but that didn’t matter to Marsh as her team tried to take down the second-ranked team in the state.

“I’m proud of making the state tournament but you always hate to lose,” Marsh said “You try to put yourself in a better position in the bracket when you get there.”

Bob Jones ultimately fell to Huntsville, 25-18, 25-20, and 25-17. But still the Lady Patriots had their moments. In the second game, the Patriots led in the early part of the game and built their biggest lead at 14-10 as Emily Hatcher had a block against Huntsville’s Jessica Lewis who is one of the top prep volleyball players in the state.

Ultimately Huntsville came storming back to tie the game at 18 and behind the towering figures of Lewis and Bre Sandifer closed out the match.

Marsh will depend on key players such as setter Erin Shockey and hitters Jeneva Salter and Alexis Howell.

“They are playing well. We have one rule and that is that they play hard on every point. If they do that I’m always satisfied,” Marsh said.

The state tournament “is a lot of fun and a good experience for the players,” said Marsh.

Nine of the twelve girls on the roster are underclassmen including Erin Shockey who leads the team in assists and Alexis Howell who leads in kills.