Macon Middle School has built a volleyball dynasty.
For the past three years the Panthers have controlled the Blue Ridge Athletic Conference, racking up a 48-2 record and three conference titles. With another unbeaten season this fall they entered rarified air.
“That’s four conference titles in a row for volleyball,” said head coach Brooke Southard. “[MMS is] the very first team, really, in middle school history to have done it consecutively. There have been teams who have won like Rugby, and I believe Brevard have won five championships, but there has never been a team to win it back-to-back four times.”
Since taking over in 2022, Southard has guided her teams to BRAC titles in each of her four years at the helm. With plenty of returning talent, she knew from the beginning that this year’s squad had a chance at history.
“I figured we would have a very strong season because I only lost three out of my rotation from last year,” she said. “I guess you could say our middle hitting position was one big weakness that we really had to work on, because I had lost my middles from last year and I had to train two new middles for this year. I knew hitting-wise we were going to be very strong, and defensively I knew we were going to be very strong because obviously we were strong in that aspect last year. … I knew serving-wise we were going to be good in that aspect too, so all the way around I knew we were pretty strong.”
From the team’s first preseason workouts this summer, Southard knew they’d have the talent to compete. By the start of the regular season, the Panthers were ready for all comers.
“We ended up being 16-0 this season,” she said. “We had always lost to [Cherokee] for the past three years, and this year they were our very first game. We were able to dominate them in two sets, so that was a pretty big win for us. We knew Smoky Mountain was going to be a very big team – they’re very strong, they had a new coaching staff and they have a travel volleyball team now, so we knew they were going to be a very strong and competitive team, and they definitely were. They gave us a run for our money in the second game when we went over there to play, but we ended 16-0, and we did not drop a single set to anybody this season.”
Once again the Panthers ran roughshod over their regular-season opponents, entering the BRAC playoffs as the conference’s top-ranked team. There they advanced to an intriguing title match draw.
“Last year obviously was a little different because of the hurricane, so we just took the top four teams. This year we were able to take the top six teams in three rounds,” said Southard. “Our first round was against Apple Valley [North Henderson] and our second round was against Rugby, which is West Henderson. They’re always very competitive – we look forward to that game every year. And then for the very first time ever, two West Division teams ended up in the championship. That was us and Smoky Mountain, and I do believe that it was Smoky Mountain’s very first time ever being in the championship.”
With early-round wins over Apple Valley and Rugby, the Panthers set up a Cowee Mountain title match showdown, hosting the Mustangs at MMS Oct. 13. After battling pre-match jitters, Macon settled in to make BRAC history.
“They knew that it was a big game, they knew that we were competing for a fourth title, they knew that they’d had a target on their backs all season,” said Southard. “It’s really hard to beat a team three times, so we were all a little nervous. We had a very slow first set, but once the momentum started picking up on our side I could see the fire back in the girls’ eyes. We had a parent who bought us confetti poppers, so at the end of the game there was confetti going everywhere – they were very excited. They knew that they had worked since May to make school history, so it was very special.”
With both teams tied at 13 midway through the first, Macon finally kicked into gear, going on to win 25-18, 25-17. But while making BRAC history was a milestone accomplishment, Southard said it wasn’t even her biggest challenge of the season.
“I found out that I was expecting at the end of June during our dead week. … It was such a joy to share the news with the girls,” she explained. “I shouldn’t say this was a hard season, but for me physically, I was sick and had horrible morning sickness. [From] about the time that I found out I was pregnant up until about three weeks ago, I’d be in the middle of a drill, look at the girls and go, ‘I’ve got to go to the bathroom.’ There were several times that I had to leave the coaching sidelines to go throw up, so mentally, I had to pull myself together.”
“I had a great support system. My parents were great, but the volleyball parents were fantastic. My co-worker Stacy Raby, her daughter Molly is the setter on the team, and earlier in the season she offered to help drive the bus. I drive the bus, but Stacy was there with us just in case I were to get sick and pull over, then she could take it from there. They made sure that I had the big durable fans on the bus so I wouldn’t get overheated, so the parents were great.”