Reveling in
Volley Hounds elated to host in program’s state tournament debut
It’s one thing to make history. It’s another to do it with impact.
Back during offseason workouts, the belief was there that Jones County’s volleyball program could do what it had never done since the modern version of the program began in the fall of 2020 — to play in the state tournament.
Flash forward to this Saturday, where history will indeed be made for the Volley Hounds.
“It’s a first for this program and this school. It feels amazing. We’ve been talking about it since the summer. I felt like this group of girls could do it, and they did,” Lady Greyhounds head coach Leah Bodnarchuk said. “These girls came together and they wanted to win.
“They really love playing with each other and they saw an opportunity.”
Jones County is not just in the state tournament by way of sneaking in. It’ll be in as one of the field’s roughly top 10 teams thanks in part to winning six of seven matches to close out the regular season.
“It’s so awesome. Praise the Lord, I am so excited,” the Lady Greyhounds’ Isabella Bodnarchuk said. “This program has come so far, and I am just so ecstatic.
It’s such a big deal.”
Of the late-season wins by JCHS, two of them boosted the Lady Hounds in the overall rankings as they came against Ola, seeded 10th in the latest PSR rankings as well as Perry, seeded 26th. It all adds up to the Lady Greyhounds being the region’s highest-ranked team in PSR at eighth, figures that were finalized in the middle of this week to set the postseason bracket. It’s part of a journey that began well before August for Jones County.
“After last season ended, we started going back into the gym and working together,” Volley Hounds senior Zakeena Sturgeon said. “We wanted to make history.”
For most of the Volley Hounds, Saturday will mark uncharted territory.
When the ball is served up, it’ll begin the first GHSA postseason competition for many of them.
JCHS senior Isabella Bodnarchuk is an exception to that. She was part of the Lady Greyhounds’ soccer program as a sophomore when it played in the state tournament, giving the Volley Hounds some postseason experience, even if it is in a different sport.
“It helps just having a player out there who is a leader on the team who knows how to push to the postseason and just lead by example,” coach Bodnarchuk said. “She’s been doing it since her freshman year; that’s just who she is.”
