Wallace State sophomore MaKenzie Bearden celebrates a point against Faulkner State on Thursday.
HANCEVILLE – Wallace State’s volleyball team clinched its ninth consecutive Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) regular season title on Thursday, beating the Faulkner State Sun Chiefs 25-19, 25-18, 25-16 at Tom Drake Coliseum.
Wallace State (30-2, 13-0 ACCC) also notched its 30th victory of the season and extended its conference winning streak to 41 matches, spanning the past three seasons.
“We didn’t play our best, but you have to be happy anytime you win. Clinching a ninth straight regular season championship is a feat in itself. It gets harder and harder to do,” said Wallace State coach Randy Daniel. “Faulkner State is good and has improved a lot. We hadn’t played them since August, so I knew they were going to give us a test.”
Sophomore Cierra Davis led the way with 14 kills and 10 digs for Wallace State, Kaylee Maddox had eight kills and four digs, Kelsea Bivins had seven kills and five digs, Emily Wilson finished with 17 digs and Abby Borden, the ACCC Player of the Week, racked up 31 assists.
Faulkner State forced three ties in the first set, including notching things at 13-all. Wallace State closed the opening set on a 12-6 run.
The teams were tied at 16-all in the second set before the Lions closed the match with a 9-2 surge.
Wallace State jumped out to a 15-6 advantage in the final set.
With Thursday’s victory, Wallace State clinched the top seed in the ACCC tournament, which the Lions will host on Oct. 28-30. Wallace State will seek its eighth straight conference title.
“I feel this team has a lot of potential to have a memorable postseason. It was important to get the No. 1 seed under our belt. We have great chemistry on this team and have a lot of fun,” said Bearden, who entered the match second in the ACCC in kills and blocks and first in hitting percentage.
The Lions are hosting the Wallace State Fall Bash on Friday and Saturday at Tom Drake Coliseum. Wallace State has an opportunity to avenge its only two losses of the season, both to non-conference opponents Vincennes (Ind.) University and Catawba Valley (N.C.) CC. On Friday, the Lions play Vincennes at noon and Catawba Valley at 6 p.m. On Saturday, Wallace State squares off against Spartanburg Methodist (S.C.) at 10 a.m. and Martin Methodist at 2 p.m.
Faulkner State and Gadsden State are also participating in the Wallace State Fall Bash.
Willoughby earns low medalist for Wallace State men’s golf at Calhoun Invitational
Wallace State freshman Cole Willoughby made a big splash earlier this week by earning low medalist honors for the men’s golf team at the Calhoun Invitational at Point Mallard Golf Course.
Willoughby, an Albertville native, shot a 3-over par 219, winning the tournament by six strokes. After opening the tournament with a 73, Willoughby shot a 1-under 71, marking the best score over those 18 holes. He closed the tournament with a 75.
Willoughby helped the Lions finish tied for second with Calhoun, shooting a 917. Central Alabama won the tournament with a 48-over 912.
Wallace State’s Charley Parvin finished tied for third in Decatur with an 11-over 227 (73-81-73).
Trey Hanvey tied for eighth for the Lions, shooting a 232 (80-80-72).
B.J Scott carded a 240 for Wallace State and Braxton Lemley a 244.
Wallace State’s next tournament is at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College on Oct. 16-18.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit http://athletics.wallacestate.edu/.
