Let’s start with young Ryan McCafferty of The Carroll News ! Ryan was in the gym last night in Abingdon, and he did a tremendous job covering our Lady Cavaliers like a Homer should. Extra kudos for coloring outside the lines by making the trip up to Glenvar for the big regular season showdown with the Highlanders. That was a special night for the program on a number of fronts !
The second one goes to our Head Coach Cindy Edwards, pictured above in one of her two post-match interviews, the first one being from the Bristol newspaper. This was our sixth year together, and this season might have been her best season of coaching. At least during my time alongside the lady, I like to call a coaching legend.
I joked with Travis Osborne yesterday afternoon before making the drive over to Abingdon, telling him that I didn’t want to go. We were both watching 👀 Maryland versus South Carolina, who were playing over in Paris, France 🇫🇷.
Both clubs are ranked in the Top 20, but the Gamecocks are #1, and Maryland is #20. It doesn’t hurt the heart to watch players that you have no personal relationship with fight a battle against a GIANT.
There were two events taking place last night that mattered to me, and I was 99.9% sure that neither would end well but that doesn’t mean that you pass on the opportunity to support folks that you believe in !
Alyssa Ervin and Furman University played last night down in Tampa, Florida, against a talented University of South Florida Bulls team. 12 months ago, I was in that same gym and watched that team dismantle a Kira Lawson coached team that reached the Elite Eight. Duke could not match the athletic ability of a team that most aren’t familiar with.
Furman University was in for a very long night, but Ervin did what she does, playing a full speed right up till the clock said stop ✋️. The team will play some more tough games, including one down at Auburn University of the SEC, but quite possibly none as tough as last night.
At 6 p.m., the Furman game reached halftime, and the outcome was no longer in doubt ( but we did win the second quarter, 20-19), so the focus shifted over to the volleyball.
I will pause long enough to sneak in a third thank you to EVERYONE, who sat in our section last night ! It was a solid turnout for an early start at a school over 60 minutes away. It was neat to see 👀 that much support for our Lady Cavalier Volleyball program.
Back to the match and the part of the story where I compare Abingdon VB to Dawn Staley and South Carolina Hoops.
The team is the defending Class 3 State Champions, and that squad returned seven seniors.
The only reason why they are the #2 seed behind Christiansburg is the same reason why we were #7 despite winning 19 matches, the size of the schools we compete with. Your district determines most of your regular season schedules, and Abingdon High doesn’t have access to the same level of opponents that the teams in the Roanoke Valley do.
If the Regional tournament plays out as it should, the Championship match should be Must See 👀, with popcorn 🍿.
10, 11, and 13 points were the totals for us in the straight set outcome. But just like her former player was doing down in Tampa against a superior opposition, Edwards continued to coach up our team and they were still swinging, right up until the clock said stop ✋️.
Edwards is as proud of her program as anyone that I have worked with over the years, and it was easy to see the pain in her eyes after the match. After a brief moment with her team in the lockeroom, she returned to the court for two very different interviews and then a brief conversation with her biggest fan.
Pain yes but equally composed and incredibly proud of her / our team, and it showed.
Runner-up in two regular season tournaments.
Runner-up to Glenvar in the Three Rivers District regular season.
7-1 when it came to protecting The Hill
The junior varsity team claimed the district crown 👑 and the majority of those kiddos will look to lace them up next season on the Big Club.
The fourth thank you goes to Michelle Nicholson for all of her assistance this season with my efforts to make things as memorable as possible for the team and their families !
Next, thank you to the players who quite simply have played a great deal of volleyball 🏐 over the past three months. The level of dedication you have shown helped pave the road to success !
To the families for their unconditional love and support, from start to finish !
Big Props to every single former Lady Cavalier Volleyball player who worked the sidelines for any of our three programs. Not counting the two fellas, we had SEVEN former players back to work alongside their / our Coach !
Thanks to our athletic director, Kevin DeHaven, for the honor of hosting his 10 volleyball nights on The Hill. If I’m going to note that we went 9-1 on the season when you add in the two scrimmages, I must add that Ryan McCafferty is 9-0 while covering Seth Greer and the 🏈🏈🏈 Cavaliers ! Please 🙏 make it 10-0 on Friday night.
In a couple of hours, it will be time to make one final trek over to Ferrum College. Another former Lady Cavalier Volleyball player is set to play her final match of her freshman season. Naturally, they will be playing the best team in the Conference Carolinas as UNC – Pembroke comes to town.
There are many that hope Coach Edwards keeps going until she needs help chewing her food. From my point of view, she doesn’t appear to be slowing down much….
Congratulations on an outstanding team and program, Coach !
Psalm 3:5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the Lord sustained me.
Howard Mayo and his Motovational Nugget for the Day :
Last night was the final night of Carroll County High School volleyball 🏐 season, and tonight will be the same for Half Pint Harris and Ferrum College. The Lady Panthers are set ( volleyball term ) to host UNC – Pembroke in the season finale.
The team will have to dig (VB term) deep against a very talented UNC-P team if they hope to close out the year on a three game winning streak.
During the nearly two decades of working closely with Lawrence Nesselrodt and WVU-T baseball, we have played a “home ” game in more than a few places. Heck, we even packed up and moved the campus itself from Montgomery to its current location in Beckley.
The scoreboard shown above is from the original ballpark in East Bank, West Virginia. While the diamond was located at a middle school, it came with an artificial turf infield !
Inside the city of Beckley, we play the bulk of our games at the beautiful Linda K Epling Stadium but have also used the facilities at Wilson High School along the way.
Another next level park is Go – Mart up in Charleston, just blocks away from the Golden Dome of the State Capital building. The Charleston Charlies of the International League back in the day and the modern-day Charleston Dirty Birds are the main tenants.
If you are a fan of the Appalachian League, we have hosted numerous games in both Princeton and Bluefield over the years. Both of those parks have a great deal of history in them, and it was an honor to hold a microphone in them.
We even went down to Kingsport to squeeze in a three game set one spring, bringing the App total to three.
Shawnee Sports Complex up in Dunbar, WV, and the impressive diggs over at Marshall University with the second one hosting the only triple header in my 50+ years.
Salem International University is part of a solid trivia question because it hosted a game for us, and the very next day, the same two teams packed up and moved three hours down the road for the balance of the home series.
The level of commitment to the line, the show must go on, is very serious to Ness and protecting the integrity of the game sometimes requires you to switch up the venue. Especially when you’re playing baseball in the mountains of West Virginia starting in the middle of February.
Dodgertown in Florida is another preferred location where we have hosted a ballgame or two.
Just like the mailman, who works in the rain, sleet, snow, Golden Bears baseball will go the extra mile or two or …..
