NEWBERRY — School is officially back in session and that means fall sports season is as well. Newberry Academy hosted a preseason volleyball tournament on Saturday, August 8 that featured all four of local high schools. Newberry, Mid-Carolina, Whitmire and of course the host school Newberry Academy.
The preseason tournament featured 12 schools and each team played two games each. The games were just one hour with only two sets being played. It wasn’t about the wins and losses, but more so about team bonding and getting some live reps against competition. The tournament started at 8:00 a.m. and finished at 8:00 p.m.
The Lady Bulldogs played the early games in the day against King Academy at 8:00 a.m. and Richard Winn at 10:00 a.m. The Lady Rebels also played a pair of games early in the day against Greenwood Christian at 11:00 a.m. and Cambridge High School at 1:00 p.m.
The Observer was in attendance for the afternoon slate of games that featured Whitmire and Newberry Academy.
Newberry Academy 1, Whitmire 1
The Lady Wolverines and Lady Eagles met at 5:00 p.m. for both of their first games on the day. The two teams went back-and-forth and you couldn’t tell the young ladies that is was just preseason.
The first set went to Whitmire with a 25-21 win the set. The Lady Wolverines jumped out to an early lead in the set,3-0, but Newberry Academy was able to storm back to take a 5-3 lead. The two teams continued exchange points, but Whitmire held onto a 17-16 lead late in the set before going on a 8-5 run to close out the set with a win.
The second set was all Newberry Academy after a disappointing end to the first set. They were in control from start to finish after Whitmire jumped out to another good start. The Lady Wolverines led 6-4 before the Lady Eagles outscored them 21-10 for the remainder of the set. The two teams will meet twice in the regular season, home-and-home, with the first match set for August 25 at Whitmire.
Newberry Academy 2, Sandhills 0
The Lady Eagles took a short break and returned right back to the court for the second match of the tournament. They showed no signs of fatigue and jumped out to early lead against Lady Bucks and didn’t look back. The started the set with a 5-0 run and led 20-9 at one point before closing the set out with a 25-15 win.
The second set was a strong start by Sandhills as they jumped out to an early 4-1 lead and forced Newberry Academy to call timeout to regroup. Newberry Academy would rip off four straight points in the set to get their first lead, 5-4, and never look back. They would go on to dominate the set with a 25-9 win and take three of the four sets played in the tournament.
The Lady Eagles looked strong and poised to maybe make some noise this season as they look to get their program back on the right track in 2026.
Whitmire 2, Sandhills 0
The Lady Wolverines and Lady Bucks would close out the tournament with the final match of the evening. Whitmire would get off to a dominating start with a 8-1 lead in the early parts of the first set. They were to able to get five aces as a team and only allowed four points in the set. The Lady Wolverines would win the first set 25-4.
The second set would be another shocker as the Lady Bucks found a way to take the early lead, 3-0, in the set. Whitmire would quickly regroup and take the lead by going on a 10-2 run.
Sandhills would show some grit and fight, but they were completely over matched due to their lack of depth and would fall again in four straight sets. Whitmire took the second set 25-11 and got a chance to play some of their younger talent. The Lady Wolverines looked very strong as well in their preseason debut and will be lead by veteran players such as Chloe Hix, Alleigh Corley and Raylin Vicars. They will open the season on August 20 at home against Columbia High School.