Only two weeks remain in regular-season play before the first round of the MHSAA State Volleyball Tournament, and local teams are still pressing to put themselves in favorable position for a successful playoff run.
For East Marion (18-6), a large part of that quest has already been accomplished. They claimed the Region 7-2A crown Sept. 22 with a resounding 3-0 victory over Amite County, which earned them a first-round bye in postseason play. Tuesday night they hosted Richton for Senior Night, for which results were unavailable at press time. On Thursday they'll travel to Forrest County Agricultural, and they'll wrap up the regular season Oct. 4 with a home game against Sumrall. Head coach Mandell Echols believes his young team is in prime position to make another strong run in the playoffs if they continue to build on the momentum they've acquired.
"I think one of our biggest strengths is that we've got a lot of young girls who have stepped up and played really well for us this year. We've got four 10th graders in our starting lineup," Echols shared. "That's also one of our biggest weaknesses because sometimes they wait for someone else to step up and make plays instead just grabbing the bull by the horns and doing it themselves. But we feel like if things unfold the way we expect them to, we could be looking at an opportunity to play Sacred Heart for South State this year."
As for West Marion (14-10), the Lady Trojans currently sit in third place among Region 8-3A teams behind Our Lady Academy and St. Patrick. They hosted their final district game of the regular season Tuesday, for which results were unavailable at press time. Next week they'll wrap up the regular season with a Sept. 29 road game against Brookhaven, Senior Night at home against Sacred Heart on Oct. 4 and one last road game at Wesson on Oct. 6.
Columbia (9-14) currently sits in fourth place among Region 7-4A teams with a 2-4 record against district foes, but they'll have an opportunity to climb higher in the standings with two important region matchups this week. Tuesday they traveled to Purvis, and on Thursday they'll host third-place Sumrall in their final region contest of the regular season for a chance to leap ahead of them and claim a spot in the Class 4A playoffs.
"We still have a slim shot," head coach Ryan Loftin said. "We need to win both district games this week, and it won't be easy, but if we do that I think it'll be enough to get us in."
