HANCEVILLE – Wallace State’s volleyball team need three wins, beginning Saturday, to secure its ninth consecutive Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) tournament championship.
Once again, the Lions are the tournament’s top seed after navigating through the regular season with a 31-8 record and a perfect 16-0 mark in conference action.
The 2017 tournament is being hosted by Snead State at Plunkett Wallace Gymnasium in Boaz. After a bye on Friday, Wallace State’s first match is Saturday at 11 a.m., against the Gadsden State-Southern Union winner. Second-seeded Coastal Alabama-South also has a tournament bye.
At the outset of the season, Wallace State coach Randy Daniel predicted his team could develop into one of his more balanced units, and he was right on the money.
Three Wallace State players racked up more than 200 kills during the regular season, and four Lions amassed more than 200 digs.
Wallace State sophomores Abby Borden, Kaylee Maddox, Emily Wilson led the ACCC in separate categories.
Borden racked up 1,285 assists during the regular season, earning NJCAA Player of the Week recognition in October and ACCC Player of the Week honors on three occasions. She’s contributed 260 digs.
Maddox, a Good Hope graduate, led the conference and team with 451 kills and added 302 digs.
Wilson, a libero from Jasper, finished the regular season with 651 digs, leading the conference for the second consecutive season.
Freshman Lexie Riggins is second on the team with 343 kills, Alex Wiggins has added 266 kills and 255 digs and Maya Jones has contributed 149 kills.
Daniel, in his 11th season at Wallace State, surpassed the 400-win mark with the Lions late in the regular season. He’s also guided the Lions to 10 consecutive regular season ACCC titles.
The tournament championship is set for Sunday at 2 p.m. All matches are streamed live at www.jockjive.com.
Wallace State is also seeking a ninth straight trip to the NJCAA Division I national championship, set for Nov. 16-18 in Hutchinson, Kan.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit http://athletics.wallacestate.edu.
