Panther volleyball is locked and loaded for the regular season.
Having finalized their rosters after team tryouts July 31, on Aug. 8 Franklin’s varsity and JV teams hosted their final scrimmages before the regular season. In a JV matchup with Highlands and an intense varsity battle with Cherokee, both squads made their final preparations for the start of the regular season Aug. 12.
In the evening’s first scrimmage, Cindy Harrell’s JV Panthers took the court against their cross-county rivals, for 45 minutes of action split into two periods of 22:30. Highlands largely held their own to start the first, trailing just 11-7 despite two kills from Panther freshman Finley Moffitt. Franklin took control down the stretch however, outscoring the Highlanders 25-16 behind three points from sophomore Danni Ledford.
Franklin carried their momentum into the second period, looking sharp on offense to take an 11-4 advantage. Nine different Panthers scored to extend their lead to 28-15 at the buzzer.
Both teams looked evenly matched to start the varsity scrimmage, sitting tied at 10 points apiece despite two kills from senior Cali Queen. Slowly the Panthers pulled away however, getting four more points from Queen and two apiece from Ryan Green and Kyrah Bowles to outscore the Braves 25-22.
Franklin shot out of the gate to start the second, taking a 15-8 lead behind three points from Green. Cherokee soon regrouped however, mounting a furious rally to tie the scrimmage at 18. From there freshman Bristol Brooks turned red-hot for Franklin, posting three straight points and a superb diving dig to keep her team tied 25-25. Franklin got kills from Queen and Green on the final two points to end the scrimmage up 27-25.
After scrimmaging Cherokee and Highlands, the Panthers opened their regular season on the road, traveling to Swain County after press time Aug. 12.