EAST JACKSON endured a tough opening night, and put itself in an early hole in the area volleyball standings in the process.
Playing at North Oconee Tuesday, the Eagles (0-2, 0-2) lost to both Morgan County (25-14, 25-22) and the host Titans (25-10, 25-14) as East Jackson falls to 0-2 in 6-AAA play.
“We played really sloppy (Tuesday),” fifth-year Eagle coach Tim Thomas said. “There are several things we need to work on if we’re going to be competitive — passing being the first. Yeah, it was our first night of competition, but they were both area matches so we needed to play way better than we did.”
Thomas pointed specifically to the second set against Morgan County, one that East Jackson lost due to mental errors.
“The bright spot was that we hit the ball better than we ever have, but we just couldn’t pass well enough to get the ball to those hitters often enough to win,” Thomas said. “If we can get our passing where it needs to be, we could be a pretty decent ball team.”
Madison Mealor led the Eagles with six kills and four blocks on the night. Angela Hulsey finished with seven assists.
East Jackson didn’t go home totally empty-handed, however. The junior varsity squad beat Morgan County in two sets. It also lost to North Oconee in two sets, dropping the second in very close fashion.
“This is the best JV group we’ve ever had,” Thomas said. “Coach Rainwater has done a fantastic job with them, and we’re looking for big things out of that group this year and in the years to come.”
