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Oconee County Outlasts Columbus in Five Sets for First State Title

Published

51 minutes ago

November 2, 2026

The Oconee County state championship trophy with its gold ball in front of the Warriors backdrop.

Photo courtesy of Oconee County Athletics.

Oconee County waited a long time for a night like Thursday. The Warriors beat Columbus 3-2 in the GHSA Class AAAA state final at LakePoint Sports Champions Center in Cartersville, winning the first state championship in program history.

The match swung back and forth all afternoon. Columbus took the first set 25-22 and the third set 25-18. Oconee County answered with a 25-17 win in the second set, then forced a fifth set by taking the fourth 26-24. In the fifth, Columbus served into the net on the opening point, and the Warriors grabbed the lead and held it, closing the title out 15-11.

Head coach Mark Oglesby said his team had pictured this exact moment since the first day of practice, when the Warriors talked about playing in the fifth set of the championship match. Junior middle hitter Kiera Benning was named a Player of the Game, and she earned it with her older sister back home in Watkinsville. Senior Jill Benning missed the semifinals and the final because of illness.

Junior setter Fendley Kimbro was also named a Player of the Game and was honored as the GVCA Class 4A Player of the Year. Kimbro set a school record this season with 1,081 assists in the rally scoring era. A. Fuller led Oconee County with 12 kills in the final. Lila Fowler and Benning added 9 kills each, Benning posted 5 blocks, and the Warriors piled up 18 service aces as a team.

Katie Shearer led Columbus with 12 kills, Leah Richardson recorded 8 blocks, and Emma Cicora added 5 kills. Columbus had beaten Oconee County back on August 15, and the Blue Devils were playing for the fourth state title in program history. Oconee County finished the season 38-12. Columbus closed the year at 34-15.

We Speak Volleyball

Newbury Park Survives Thousand Oaks in Five Sets to Reach the Division 3 Semifinals

Published

1 minute ago

November 2, 2026

We Speak Media

Newbury Park players celebrate during the Division 3 quarterfinal against Thousand Oaks.

Photo courtesy of Newbury Park Athletics.

A crosstown rivalry got one more postseason chapter on Wednesday night, and it needed all five sets. Host Newbury Park held off Thousand Oaks 3-2 in a CIF Southern Section Division 3 quarterfinal, winning 25-16, 25-20, 21-25, 22-25 and 15-6 to reach the semifinals.

Newbury Park controlled the first two sets behind strong serving that kept the Lancers out of system. Thousand Oaks refused to fold. The Lancers took the third set, then won the fourth on a set point ace from junior Sam Caenepeel to force a fifth.

The Panthers owned the deciding set. Laney Knopp drilled five kills with an ace in the fifth, and setter Keira Overbeck served a pair of clutch aces as Newbury Park pulled away 15-6. Charley Knupp put down the final kill of the night, off an Overbeck back set, to end it.

Knopp finished with a match high 24 kills. Knupp added 17 and sophomore Emmery Reynolds 15, as the Panthers’ three pin hitters combined for 56 kills. Thousand Oaks was led by Halle Bryce with 17 kills and 12 digs and Saylor Halvorsen with 12 kills and 13 digs.

The match was the final one of Thousand Oaks head coach James Park’s career; he had announced before the season that he would retire at the end of it. Newbury Park, coached by Chris Forrest, improved to 33-9 and moved on to play Valley Christian in the Division 3 semifinals in Cerritos on Saturday, October 31.