Briarwood, Chelsea advance to Super Regionals

At their respective area volleyball tournaments on Tuesday, Briarwood Christian School and Chelsea High School each placed in the top two to advance to the super regional round later this week.

Briarwood competed in the Class 5A, Area 8 tournament with Moody, Sylacauga and Shelby County. The Lions came out on top by way of wins over Shelby County in the opening round and Moody in the final.

The opening round win (3-0; 25-10, 25-16, 25-21) was enough to qualify the Lions for the Class 5A Super Regionals, but they improved their seeding by winning the final 3-1 (25-20, 17-25, 25-20, 25-15).

Over the two matches, Alex O'Brien registered 37 assists, two aces and 22 digs. Grace Patterson finished with 21 kills and 12 blocks. Anna Donohue registered team highs with six aces and 50 digs. Natalie Crumpler played well, finishing with 24 kills, 35 digs and six blocks. Carlie Foust wrapped up her evening with 18 digs and 10 blocks.

Chelsea entered the Class 6A, Area 8 tournament knowing it had already qualified for the super regional round, thanks to being the No. 1 seed in a three-team area. Helena defeated Pelham in the opening match to set up the final against the Hornets.

Head coach Jessica Pickett called the match against Helena an "absolute fight," one that Helena managed to win in a tight fifth set. The teams exchanged sets the whole way, with the final tally ending up 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 15-25, 15-13 in favor of the Huskies.

To qualify for the state tournament, both teams will have to win two games in the super regional round. Briarwood will be in the 5A South bracket, where the Lions will face Carroll-Ozark at 12:45 p.m. Thursday at the Cramton Bowl Multiplex in Montgomery. Should they win, they would advance to face the winner between Calera and Jackson at 5 p.m.

Chelsea will also be in Montgomery as part of the 6A South bracket. The Hornets play first on Friday at 12:45 p.m., against Dothan. Should they win, they would play the winner between Benjamin Russell and Daphne at 6:30 p.m.

For teams that win their first two matches, they advance to the next day to play for seeding in the state tournament, to be held next week at the Birmingham CrossPlex.