We Speak Volleyball

Morgan County Sweeps Coahulla Creek for Third Straight State Title

Published

55 minutes ago

November 2, 2026

The Morgan County volleyball team poses with the GHSA Champions sign, the trophy and the gold ball.

Photo courtesy of Morgan County Volleyball.

The Morgan County Spike Dogs own October in Madison. Morgan County swept Coahulla Creek 3-0 on Saturday in the GHSA Class AAA state final at LakePoint Sports Champions Center in Cartersville, winning a third straight state championship.

The Bulldogs left no doubt, taking the three sets 25-15, 25-12 and 25-16. Morgan County piled up 38 kills, 37 assists, 65 digs and 8 service aces in a complete performance on the biggest stage of the season.

Davidson led the way with 18 kills for the Bulldogs. Coahulla Creek was paced by A. Norton, who finished with 11 kills, but the Colts could not slow Morgan County at the net or in the back row.

The final came three days after a much harder fight. Morgan County survived LaFayette in five sets in the semifinals on Wednesday, then rode through Main Street in Madison with a police escort as the town celebrated the Final Four win. Coahulla Creek reached the final by beating Union County in five sets in its semifinal, after earlier playoff wins over Jackson, Sonoraville and Pierce County.

The three straight titles have come in three different classifications. Morgan County won the Class 2A title in 2024 and the Class AA title in 2025 before adding the Class AAA crown this fall. Each time, the Spike Dogs finished the season posing with the GHSA Champions sign.

Coahulla Creek, out of Dalton, closed a strong season as the Class AAA runner up. For Morgan County, the standard stays exactly where it was. The Spike Dogs are state champions again.

We Speak Volleyball

Cardinal Newman Rallies From Two Sets Down to Beat Saint Mary’s 3-2 and Reach the NCS Semifinals

Published

3 minutes ago

November 2, 2026

We Speak Media

A Cardinal Newman player attacks against the Saint Mary's block during the NCS quarterfinal.

Photo courtesy of Cardinal Newman Athletics.

For the second time in four days, Cardinal Newman erased a two-set deficit on the road to keep its season alive, rallying past Saint Mary’s 3-2 on Saturday afternoon in the North Coast Section Division 2 quarterfinals. The Cardinals dropped the first two sets 25-22 and 25-23, then stormed back to win 25-18, 25-20 and 15-7 at Saint Mary’s in Albany.

Newman actually built a 20-15 lead in the second set before Saint Mary’s rallied to take it, leaving the Cardinals one set from elimination for the second straight match. On Wednesday, the fifth seeded Cardinals had done the same thing to Granada, winning 3-2 after trailing 2-0 in the first round.

Junior outside hitter Emma Donnelly led the comeback with a team high 21 kills after a slow start in the first two sets. Freshman Kensi Grover delivered 18 kills and 18 digs, and junior Gracie Acosta added 13 kills. Junior setter Addison Smith ran the offense with 55 assists and 12 digs, while Sabina Walsh had nine digs and three aces and senior Jordan Espinosa served five aces.

Head coach Daryl Kapis credited the serve receive passing of Adeline Brockett, Walsh, Teneli Galli and Grover for turning the match. “The four of them were the main stars of the game because of how well they passed in serve receive,” Kapis said.

The win improved Newman to 19-10 and avenged two losses to Saint Mary’s over the past year, including last season’s section semifinal. Across their first two playoff matches, the Cardinals have won all six sets they have played while facing elimination. Newman now travels to face top seeded Branson in the semifinals on Wednesday, November 4.