Bob Jones Volleyball Advances To State Tournament For Third Consecutive Season
The Patriots, who lost in the state finals the past two seasons to McGill-Toolen, faced top-ranked Mountain Brook in the finals of the Class 7A North Super Regional Tournament held at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. Mountain Brook defeated Bob Jones 25-13, 25-13, 25-16 as both teams advanced to the State Tournament along with two similar squads from the South Super Regional.
Bob Jones (32-14) will face Baker High in a quarterfinal match Wednesday at 11:00 a.m.
In the Super Regionals, fourth ranked Bob Jones defeated Vestavia Hills 19-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-16 and No. 6 Thompson 12-15, 25-20, 25-23, 25-16 before facing Mountain Brook in the finals. Meanwhile, No. 8 Sparkman (36-14) lost in the first round against Thompson 19-25, 25-22, 25-16, 25-22. James Clemens (15-28) also fell in the opening round of action by scores of 25-14, 25-14, 25-10 against Mountain Brook.
In Class 5A, Area 16 champion Madison Academy defeated Parker High 25-9, 25-7 25-11 before losing to No. 1 ranked Jasper 25-18, 25-22, 25-16 ending its season with a 42-19 record.
The post-season began with the four local teams making it to the Super Regionals through their play in Area Tournaments. In the Class 7A Area 8 Tournament, Bob Jones defeated both Florence and James Clemens held on the home court of the Patriots. In the finals against the crosstown Jets, the Patriots posted a three-game match win by defeating the Jets 25-15, 25-12, 25-15.
In the Class 7A Area 7 Tournament held at Sparkman High, the host Senators defeated both Gadsden City and Huntsville to advance to the Super Regional. In the Area 7 finals, the Senators went the distance in a five-game match against arch rival Huntsville and came out the victors with a 25-18, 22-25, 26-16, 23-25, 15-7 win over the Panthers.
In Class 5A, the No. 4 ranked Mustangs of Madison Academy cruised to an Area 16 Tournament title after they posted wins over Madison Academy and East Limestone. In the finals held at Madison Academy, the Mustangs defeated East Limestone (30-20) by scores of 25-9, 25-14, 25-22 to advance to the Super Regional.
The AHSAA State Tournament will be held at the Birmingham Crossplex with the finals in each division held at the Bill Harris Arena.