For the 13th consecutive year and since the school’s inception in 2013, the McCracken County Lady Mustangs are Second District Volleyball Champions. They defeated Community Christian Academy for the title on Tuesday night, and once again showed they are a premier team in the state with another 3-0 sweep.
“I think the girls did amazing tonight,” McCracken head coach Chancie Coleman said. “When we get into the postseason, people have the tendencies to think we jump ahead to regionals and state, but we try to take this postseason day-by-day. Anything can happen. We’re not skipping over any opponents.”
Despite the final outcome, the Lady Warriors came out firing, and were neck and neck with McCracken for the early points of the match. Senior Millie Midkiff did a great job negating strong McCracken attacks with some nice digs, which kept CCA even to start the match.
From there the Lady Mustangs’ front line was too powerful for CCA to handle fully. A theme throughout the season and in the championship game were the duo of Emily Hatfield and Reagan Hill. Those two powered their way through the rest of the set with McCracken taking the opener 25-8.
“Emily and Raegan in the middle are powerhouses,” Coleman said. “Their blocking has been fantastic all season, but they’ve really found a rhythm in the last week or two as an offensive threat. When they’re up there and Taylor is giving them the ball like she has all season, it’s magical to watch.”
The second set didn’t consist of any crazy runs, but the Lady Mustangs kept chipping away by scoring five points at a time, consistently extending their lead throughout. Junior Neely Nyberg picked up a few forceful spikes during the set, with her name being called for a majority of the kills in the heart of the match.
After the 25-10 set win, the momentum carried McCracken to the finish line. A run of 16 straight points, all served by Caroline Presswood, clinched the match and the district title for the Lady Mustangs, finishing the match and set 25-5.
The road does not end here for CCA and the Lady Warriors. They clinched a spot in the First Region tournament as well with their semifinal win over Tilghman. Both teams will find out who they play on Thursday when the tournament draw takes place.
Looking back at the history, McCracken has won every district and region tournament for the past 13 years. There are many factors to success to be said about the dynasty they have created, but according to Coach Coleman, the driving force is now the pressure to succeed as a program.
“I think part of it is the constant pressure of knowing that the first time they lose is going to be an epic deal in the volleyball community. So when we get started in late April, they know the pressure is already on them, and a target on on their back, and rather than letting that crush them, they thrive under pressure. We put them in high pressure situations in practice every day, and they never break. they just keep powering through.”
Coach Coleman said the mindset will continue to be one game at a time in the region tournament. McCracken has only played seven region games this years, so there is a chance they will see some new faces when it matters the most.
“Everyone knows we don’t play around here a lot. There are things we don’t know about some of the teams, but we’re eager to watch some game film and figure out what’s going on in the region. We’ll prepare for whoever we play first in whatever way is best for us to advance in the postseason.”
As mentioned, the draw on Thursday will decide who both Second District teams match up against in the region tournament, with games for that starting at the beginning of next week.
In addition to the conclusion of the tournament, the All-District Tournament team was announced, recognizing players from all four schools for their standout performances during the postseason. Raegan Hill, Addie Arnett, Kynnlee Brummett, Naarah White, Taylor Dugan, Millie Midkiff, Hailyn Hughes, Lilly Hamilton, Riley Arnett, and Emily Hatfield were all honored with the award.