From the AHSAA
MONTGOMERY – North-South All-Star squads for the upcoming 27th annual AHSAA North-South All-Star Volleyball competition have been selected. The two 15-member teams comprised of 2024 rising seniors were announced by Brandon Dean, Director of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors & Coaches Association (AHSADCA) Tuesday.
Jasper’s Alayna Hattaway, a key component for the Vikings in 2022, was named to the North All-Star team roster.
The AHSADCA, which operates under the auspices of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) will also host all-star games baseball, softball, boys’ and girls’ soccer, boys’ and girls’ basketball, cross country, tennis and golf during the All-Star Week, July 17-22. Basketball and Cross-Country teams have already been released. The remaining teams to be selected will be announced in the coming weeks.
The 64th annual North-South All-Star Football Game was played last December at Mobile with the South winning 42-7.
Coaches for the 2023 All-Star volleyball squads are: (North) Maggie Finley, Muscle Shoals, Mattie Gardner, Mountain Brook; administrative coach Sue Marshall, Randolph.: (South) Gretchen Boykin, Spanish Fort; Julie Turner, Horseshoe Bend; and administrative coach Virginia Franklin, Carver-Montgomery.
The South All-Stars feature six players who participated in the AHSAA state finals in 2022. Bayside Academy’s Blakeley Robbins and Maysie Douglas were outstanding players on Bayside Academy’s Class 6A state championship team – which captured an NFHS national record 21st consecutive state title with a tough 3-2 win over Spanish Fort. Robbins was named the 6A state tourney MVP. The Lady Admirals (53-24) of Coach Ann Schilling won their 31st state volleyball championship overall, another national record, and became the first school in AHSAA history to capture state titles in six different classifications (1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 5A, and 6A). Spanish Fort middle hitter Reese Varden, also selected for the 2023 North-South All-Star Game, earned All-State Tourney honors for the Toros (46-17) last season. McGill-Toolen Catholic all-star selections middle hitter Emma Moore and outside hitter Chelsea Daffin led the Dirty Dozen (51-8) to the 7A state championship and the program’s 22nd state title overall, and Trinity Presbyterian libero Isabel Hill helped the Wildcats (43-11) reach the Class 4A finals in 2022 and win the 2021 Class 3A state championship.
Anchoring the North All-Stars are three players who participated in the 2022 state volleyball championships. Outside hitter Dacey Baker earned All-State Tourney honors as Addison High School (46-10) captured its 14th state championship overall winning the Class 1A state title in 2022. The Bulldogs also won 2A state crown in 2021. Estelle Connell, a middle hitter for Donoho (44-14), was a key member of the Falcons’ 2022 Class 2A state championship team and its 2021 Class 1A state champions. The 2022 win was the school’s 13th state volleyball crown overall. Bob Jones High School libero and defensive specialist Megan Jarrett earned All-State Tourney honors leading the Patriots (51-6) to a Class 7A runner-up finish in 2022.
The North-South all-star competition will be live-streamed by the NFHS Network and AHSAA TV Network.
The North won the 2022 all-star competition 3-2 and improved to 15-9 in the all-star series which was first played in 1997.