By Scott Nickerson
Elmore/Autauga News
The Prattville Christian Academy Panthers opened the season in defense of their 2022 Class 3A State Championship in a mid-week road contest against Class 7A Auburn High School, winning a thrilling 5 set match (25-22, 16-25, 29-27, 24-26, and 15-13).
Over the weekend, PCA hosted the Panther Classic Varsity Volleyball Tournament. The tournament hosted eight different teams, with four teams in two different pools. Pool A consisted of Prattville Christian Academy, Marbury, Isabella, and Demopolis. Pool B consisted of Pike Road, Stanhope Elmore, Westminster OM, and Brewbaker Tech. The top two teams from each Pool qualified for the semi-finals.
In Pool A, PCA defeated Marbury (2-0), Demopolis (2-0), and Isabella (2-0). The Panthers advanced to the semi-finals and defeated Stanhope Elmore (2-0). In the championship match, the Panthers fell to Pike Road, dropping two close sets (23-25, 23-25).
“I am really proud of how the girls played this weekend,” said Panthers Coach Kaylon Cantrell. “We are starting to figure each other out a little better and playing better as a team. This tournament pointed out some things that are working well for us and showed us some areas that we need to improve on. Pike Road is a great program and I expect them to go far this season! I thought we competed well with them in the championship match, so I’m proud of that!”
PCA Volleyball had the following tournament stats:
Natalee Wheeler had 21 digs, 2 assists, and 9 aces.
Emma Cate Carter had 21 kills, 4 blocks, 3 digs, and 2 aces.
Baylee Rogers had 65 assists, 7 kills, 7 digs, and 2 aces.
Jenna McClendon had 12 kills, 14 blocks, and 1 dig.
Baileigh Seale had 3 kills, 6 assists, 14 digs, and 9 aces.
Leah Cate Wilson had 27 kills, 5 blocks, and 2 digs.
Maren Diefenderfer had 6 kills and 1 block.
Kyra Sims had 11 kills and 7 blocks.
Aiden Williams had 2 assists and 8 digs.
Brylee Byrd had 10 digs and 3 aces.
Morgan Fowler had 1 assist, 4 aces, and 5 digs.
Olivia Rossi had 2 kills.
Dakotah Zimbelman and Paysley Bayer each had 1 dig.
The Panthers are 5-1 and will play next at home on Tuesday against Trinity, the 2022 Class 4A Runner-Up.
