CHAPEL HILL — There was no waiting to see “if” the Richmond Senior High School volleyball team would make the state playoffs this year. Rather, it was a matter of where the Lady Raiders would play.
The North Carolina High School Athletic Association released its official volleyball playoff brackets Thursday shortly before 11 a.m.
Richmond and head coach Ashleigh Larsen punched their ticket back to the postseason for the fourth straight year.
Unlike last season, when Richmond was a bubble team, this year’s campaign helped the team earn the No. 17 seed in the 7A West bracket.
Nestled toward the middle of the standings this season, the Lady Raiders will travel in the first round and play No. 16 Davie County High School.
The No. 17 seed is the highest Richmond has been since starting its four-year playoff run. Last year the Lady Raiders were the No. 30 seed, preceded by back-to-back No. 29 seeds in 2023 and 2022 in the former four-classification format.
In the new eight-classification format, only 24 teams from the East and West (48 total) made the playoffs.
“I’m proud of the girls for reaching the playoffs again this year,” Larsen said. “This was a goal that we set out to achieve at the start of the season and we did it. This season has had its mix of high and lows, but I think it’s made the girls better and more prepared for whatever we might see.”
Richmond finished the regular season with a 12-8 overall record and placed fourth in the Mid-South Conference standings. Davie County, coached by Amber Brandon, went 10-10 and finished fourth in the North Piedmont Conference.
On paper, Richmond and Davie County are fairly similar programs. The Lady Raiders have won 44 of their 78 sets played (56.4%) and the Lady War Eagles have won 36 of their 74 sets (48.6%).
Both teams enter the postseason on a one-match skid, but Richmond hasn’t played since its regular season ended last Thursday. Davie County played its finale Monday.
On the road this season, the Lady Raiders have a 6-4 record, while the Lady War Eagles have defended their home court with a matching 6-4 record.
Larsen admitted that there is much to learn and plan for in the limited time frame between Thursday’s bracket release and Saturday’s playoff match.
“We haven’t had any common opponents between us and Davie County, so I will try hard to do some research today,” Larsen said. “I’m hoping for a battle and for our girls to come out with the grit I know they have in them.
“I know they can accomplish big things and they’ve proven that this season. The big hope is that we can come together and play our best match of the season to get past our first-round slump.”
The slump Larsen referred to is Richmond’s inability to make it past the first round of the state playoffs in the five appearances the team has made since she took over the program in 2018.
The last time the Lady Raiders made it to the second round was during the 2017 season, which ended that same round against Lake Norman High School.
Richmond will need to come together and rely on its top hitters — junior Riley McDonald (3.6 kills per set) and seniors J’Nasia Neal (1.9 KPS) and Ka’mora Watkins (1.2 KPS) — to lead the offensive attack.
Defensively, the weight will fall to junior libero Kenley Smith, who leads the team with 3.9 digs per set. Neal (3.0 DPS) and junior setter Lillian Hill (2.7 DPS) are also defensive staples.
Smith is Richmond’s leader in aces this season, totaling 71 aces and nearly one ace per set. Hill’s work as the setter comes with her dishing out over 500 assists this season.
Leading Davie County’s attack are Carly Crouch (3.0 KPS) and Gracie Goodman (2.7 KPS). Ella Shea is the mirror of Smith, leading Davie County in aces (32) and digs per set (4.3).
The No. 17 Lady Raiders (12-8) and No. 16 Lady War Eagles (10-10) will play the first round of the playoffs Saturday in Mocksville. The start time for the match is set for 1 p.m.
The winner of Saturday’s first round match will face No. 1 Marvin Ridge High School (27-2), which has a first-round bye, in the second round Tuesday.
