MAYOR'S CUP VOLLEYBALL: MA faces top competition in annual tourney

Julie Gordon and the Montgomery Academy volleyball team faced stiff competition in this year’s Mayor’s Cup tournament at the Cramton Bowl Multiplex. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

There was some quiet praise and a few words of encouragement, but there were no group pictures taken, no runner-up trophy to put in the back of an already-filled case.

Montgomery Academy would play in the Gold bracket against three of the four Class 6A semifinalists from a year ago, beating semifinalist Pelham in the first match and defending state champion Bayside Academy in the second before finally falling to 2023 finalist Spanish Fort in three sets in the championship of the 2023 Mayor’s Cup at the Multiplex on Saturday evening.

“I’m proud of my girls and what they accomplished today,” Montgomery Academy coach Julie Gordon said. “They were so tired. We’ve been here for 12 and a half hours. They dug deep. I’m proud of them.

“All of those teams are 6A and they’re all ranked. Competition, that’s what we want. It’s the best volleyball we’ve played this season and they (MA players) rose to the occasion. When the competition got tough, they picked it up.”

The annual volleyball tournament, featuring 20 of the best teams in the southern part of the state, showcased a Montgomery Academy team that is elevated to 5A by Competitive Balance and defeated every team in its pool (Houston Academy, John Carroll, Trinity and Prattville) in two sets. 

The top eight teams advanced to the Gold Bracket (with another eight advancing to the Silver Bracket) and Montgomery Academy swept through its first two opponents and appeared on its way to doing the same with Spanish Fort when the Toros scored seven consecutive points and won the second set to force a third set, which they also won. 

“They went on a blocking spree in that second set, just blocking everything we were putting across,” Gordon said. “We were trying to run different things, but they’re good. They’ve got some hitters that were going over our blocks and running a little faster offense than we’re used to seeing. That’s why we want to play (them) and get challenged. It’ll make us better.”

Counting a tri-match earlier in the week with St. Luke’s and Catholic, the Eagles went 8-1 for the week, with Addi Vinson recording 160 assists, 63 digs, 12 aces and six blocks. Elle McBride had 74 kills, 46 digs, eight blocks and six aces, with the junior recording her 1000th career kill against St. Luke’s. Caroline McDaniel had 57 kills, 40 digs, eight aces and six blocks and libero Emmy Sorrell had 92 digs and seven aces.

And while the Eagles would have loved to win the Mayor’s Cup, the semifinal win over Bayside Academy helped ease the sting of a runner-up finish. Montgomery Academy and the Admirals have clashed many times over the years and Saturday’s victory was the first for MA since 2001.

“Last year, it was us and Bayside in the (Mayor’s Cup) finals and we lost 13-15,” Gordon said. “We’ve been knocking on the door for a long time, but I’ve had a lot of these girls since the ninth grade and they’re used to playing with each other. But everybody contributed. I’ve got two freshmen that were playing like seniors.”

Montgomery Academy (20-4) will play LAMP on Tuesday and Prattville Christian on Thursday.

While the Eagles fell short of the Gold Bracket championship, St. James was able to defeat St. Luke’s 25-19 and 25-10 to win the Silver Bracket.

The Trojans (16-3) lost the tournament opener to Spanish Fort and lost their third match to Pelham, but defeated Brew Tech 22-25, 27-25 and 15-12 and G.W. Carver 25-1 and 25-9 to earn a spot in the Silver Bracket. From there, St. James beat Houston Academy 25-17 and 25-14 and LAMP 25-15 and 25-16 to reach the finals.

“This tournament is a terrific tournament to see other teams in your classification that you might see down the road in the playoffs,” St. James coach Karen Lee said. “There is always great competition that will help you get better and prepare you for later on in the season. I’m so proud of the girls and how hard they played. They had an early start at 8 a.m. and played until the end of the day. They kept their composure, their energy up, and in the Silver Bracket championship defeated a solid St. Luke’s team.”

St. James travels to Russell County on Tuesday and Pike Road on Thursday in a pair of 6A Area 4 matches.  

Trinity (5-4) went 3-2 in the tournament, beating Prattville before losing to Montgomery Academy, then rebounding with wins over Houston Academy and John Carroll. The Wildcats were second in their pool and advanced to Gold Bracket play, where they lost to Spanish Fort in the quarterfinals. 

Maddie Smith had 95 assists, along with four blocks, five kills and 17 digs. Anna Moore had 56 kills, five blocks and 10 digs and Holland Williams had 32 kills and 11 blocks.

Trinity will play host to UMS-Wright on Thursday before traveling to Bayside Academy for a tournament on Friday.

Pike Road (15-4) went 4-2 in the tournament, beating Providence Christian before losing to Bayside Academy, then rebounding with wins over Alabama Christian and St. Luke’s to finish second in pool play. The Patriots defeated Catholic in the quarterfinals of the Gold Bracket before losing to Spanish Fort. In matches with Bayside and ACA, Rylie Fureigh had 16 assists, three digs and six aces, Allie Lovrich had 11 kills and seven digs, Taylor Robinson had 12 kills, three digs and a block, Caroline Davis had five digs, 10 assists and three aces, Kat Wilson had six kills and a block, Lola Gorman had four aces and six digs, Brely Dees had five aces, 17 digs and four assists, Emma Davis had seven kills and a block, Jada Gresham had three kills and a block, Talynn Coleman had two kills and a block and Marley Gorman had three aces, four kills and three digs. 

The Patriots play a pair of 6A Area 4 matches this week, traveling to Park Crossing on Tuesday before hosting St. James on Thursday.

Prattville Christian (8-8) went 1-4 in the tournament, beating Wetumpka before losing in three sets to LAMP, Catholic and Briarwood Christian in pool play. In the Silver Bracket, the Panthers lost in the quarterfinals to St. Luke’s. PCA plays host to Alabama Christian in a 3A Area 6 match on Tuesday, then plays host to Montgomery Academy on Thursday.

LAMP (12-5) went 3-3 in the tournament, losing to Catholic, beating PCA, losing to Briarwood and beating Wetumpka. In the Silver Bracket quarterfinals, the Golden Tigers defeated Providence Christian, but then lost to St. James in the semifinals. LAMP plays Montgomery Academy on Tuesday, then travels to Dallas County for a 4A Area 4 match on Thursday.

Catholic (12-3) went 4-0 in pool play with wins over LAMP, Briarwood Christian, PCA and Wetumpka, then lost to Pike Road in the quarterfinals of the Gold Bracket. The Knights travel to Brew Tech on Tuesday and Auburn on Thursday.