Jefferson Davis' Owens believes volleyball team has room for improvement
Raiders football team opens with a 4-2 record
Blackville – The Jefferson Davis Academy volleyball team owned a 9-7 record through its first 16 matches However, it was 7-0 in SCISA Region 1-Class A as it tries to defend its region title.
For Lady Raiders head coach Bart Owens though, he’s expected more from his team.
“We’ve played below my expectations in my opinion,” said Owens, who said his team has played a tough non-region schedule. “I expected us to be a lot better. We did have to replace a lot of seniors due to graduation, but we have some outstanding players back. I just think we should be a better team because of the potential they’ve got.”
Owens believes Jefferson Davis needs to do a better job communicating.
“I feel like a lack of communication is No. 1,” Owens said. “And that’s surprising. They’re all friends and I’ve been coaching them since they were in the fifth grade.
“These girls are always together. We've got to learn to talk, communicate with each other and play defense.”
The Lady Raiders have three returning starters in senior outside hitter Rynn Fickling, junior setter Abby Deering and junior outside hitter Mattie Morris.
Fickling was leading the team in kills with 147, to go with 39 aces and 79 digs. Morris had 116 kills, 28 aces and 91 digs, while Deering led the way in assists with 297 to go with 67 kills, 36 aces and 86 digs.
The other key performers are senior libero Avery Yongue, junior middle hitter Kaylee Crouch, sophomore middle hitter Rileigh York and sophomore rightside hitter Riley Williams.
York was leading the team with 58 aces and 14 blocked shots to go with 38 kills and 30 digs. Crouch has 37 kills, 19 aces, nine blocks and 29 digs, Williams has 37 kills, 16 aces and 53 digs, and Yongue led the team in digs with 152 to go with 10 kills.
Other members of the team are sophomore Olivia Reitenour, junior Jillian Johnson, junior Natalie Black and sophomore Lily Carrigg.
Jefferson Davis has been dominant in its seven region matches, losing only two sets. The Lady Raiders had a chance to wrap up the region crown with a victory over Curtis Baptist on October 6. They won the first meeting 3-0 by the scores of 25-20, 25-14, 25-21.
JDA FOOTBALL TEAM STARTS 4-2
The Jefferson Davis football team won four of its first six games, including three of its first four Region 2-8-man contests.
The Raiders lost three standout offensive performers to graduation in quarterback Colson Loadholt and running backs Nasir Void and James Grubbs. They haven’t found the firepower lost even though they’re getting contributions from several people.
There are six players who had rushed for over 100 yards. Junior Reece Still was the leading rusher with 395 yards and six touchdowns on just 26 carries. Senior quarterback Dalton Nix had 248 yards and four scores on 42 carries.
Senior Gregory Lihan had 170 yards and two TDs on just 12 carries in two games before being injured. Senior Keegan Fanning was also out with an injury after rushing for 129 yards and two scores in the first three games.
Junior Harrison Ray had 115 yards and a TD on 19 carries, and junior Judson Bowers had 110 yards and two scores on 21 carries.
Still is the defensive leader at cornerback. He was the leading tackler with 31 and led in interceptions with five. Junior outside linebacker Ray had 25 carries, while sophomore middle linebacker Jake Harrington had 23. Senior defensive end Nolan Craig had 19 tackles, and junior defensive lineman Stanse Youngblood had 17.
