Cindy Edwards of Carroll County is one of the most consistent and successful coaches in all of Southwest Virginia athletics.
Edwards added another page to her resume Saturday.
The top-seeded Carroll County Cavaliers earned the Southwest District tournament volleyball title with a 25-23, 25-14, 25-15 decision over No. 2 seed Abingdon at Carroll County High School. Both teams advance to the expanded Region IV playoff system, which begins Monday.
Carroll County, which did not lose a SWD regular season match, has advanced to the regional playoffs at least 13 straight years with one championship and two runnerup finishes. Several former Cavaliers have also played volleyball at the collegiate level.
"When you have success and consistency, it builds confidence," Edwards said. "These kids have been through our program and watched the older players win. Winning breeds winning.
"I think having Marion and Abingdon join our district has helped to make things more competitive, and it forces teams to push harder."
The Cavaliers (20-2) flashed aggression and balance Saturday.
"We brought our A game," said Edwards, who relies on five seniors and two juniors.
Athletic junior Kim Caudill earned the top grade for the Cavs with 11 kills, while 5-foot-4 senior Jessi Watts (7 kills, 10 assists), Sierra Taylor (7 digs) and Kelly Coulson (9 assists) also played well.
Carroll County, which lost to Tunstall in last year’s regional semis, will host the winner of Monday’s Salem at Tazewell match Tuesday. The regional finals will also be held in Hillsville beginning Thursday.
Meanwhile, Abingdon travels to Tunstall Tuesday. The Falcons played without middle hitters Jill Perdue (mono) and Kendra Hooker (sprained ankle) Saturday.
"We’ve had some bad luck in losing Kendra and Jill," AHS coach Sarah Beth Mathesius said. "Jill has been out for a month, while Kendra injured her ankle in the last game of Thursday’s match. We’ve had to adjust our lineup, but we’re hoping to get Kendra back on Tuesday."
Leaders for AHS included Morgan Grant (8 kills, 9 digs), Lucy Law (6 kills, 8 digs), Courtney Coe (8 digs) and Sami Mitchell ( 8 assists, 7 digs).
"I walked into a great program this season and I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished in the new district," Mathesius said. "I just told my girls that if we’re going to lose, I’m glad it was against Carroll County," "They have a good and classy program for years.
According to the versatile Watts, there is no secret to the success story of CC volleyball
"We start playing the game when we’re young and we work hard at it," said Watts, a four-year starter "We go to team camps, we lift weights and we work hard every day in the summer. My sister played volleyball here, so I knew what the expectations were. We lost a lot of seniors last season, but our new players have filled the spots."
In Saturday’s consolation match, Marion (14-9) held off Tazewell by a 24-26, 21-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-13 margin behind the play of Tabby Minton (17 kills), Brittany Snavely (29 digs), 6-1 Candice Moore (12 kills, 8 blocks), Jessi Shuler (9 kills) and Laura Pappas (46 assists). Marion, which earned its first regional berth in at least six years, travels to Bassett Monday night at 6.
Marion also won the SWD JV title in three games over Carroll County.
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