Lady Canes sweep past Madison County into second round

The Cartersville volleyball team opened the 2018 Class 4A State Tournament at home Saturday with a 25-19, 25-16, 25-11 win over Madison County. With the straight sets victory, Cartersville advances to the Round of 16 to face Lafayette Wednesday night at 6 p.m. at The Storm Center.

Lafayette also swept on Saturday, defeating White County 25-22, 25-18, and 25-23.

“Madison came out and played a tough match,” said Lady Canes’ head coach Dutch Cothran. “They are relatively young, so I expect them to be a solid team into the future.”

Cartersville took early leads in each set and was able to build leads throughout the day. “We did a good job keeping ourselves out of high-stress situations,” noted Cothran. “We were able to sustain a three or four point lead most of the match before pulling away near the end of each set.”

Cothran was pleased with his team’s overall performance. Nedu Evans had 14 kills, eight digs, and two service aces. Bekah Stevens contributed nine kills and six digs. Grace Hunter (photo above) had 32 assists and three aces. Anna Mathis added 10 digs, while Anna Grace Brock (photo below) had six kills, seven digs, and three aces.

“Our serve receive could be better, but I am happy with a win and the opportunity to extend our season.” Cothran added.

Following the victory, Cothran briefly looked ahead at his Lady Canes’ second round opponent. “I feel like we match up well with Lafayette. They are a good team, so I would expect Wednesday to be a tightly contested battle.”