The 2020 volleyball team was super exciting for the Lady Bobcats. The JV players went undefeated in their district regular season, while the Varsity players reached the regional tournament for only the third time since 1983.
In mid July, they were not sure they would have a season due to the pandemic However, TSSAA allowed Volleyball to begin the preseason in July. They began conditioning and building the team up for the games.
The players made many new changes and set their team Coach Kendall Cooley (Coach “K”) joined the Bobcat program upon completing her Collegiate Career in the Top 8 in the Nation with Carson Newman University.
As the JV Head Coach, Coach Cooley helped the younger players by bettering them with new skills. The JV team was very successful in going undefeated in the District Regular Season and Winning the District Regular Season and JV District Tournament.
Coach C developed the JV program and worked with the Varsity team too. The Varsity team was led by 4 seniors (Emma Biddle, Elena Karsten, Zyra Martin & Megan Merritt). They have experienced three coaches in four years and have led their peers to maintain a strong Bobcat program.
The Varsity teams grew with many new play sets and tough matches. The Varsity team rose up to some tough challenges and won the Regular District Season, District Tournament Runner-ups, Sting Tournament Silver Champions, and Regional Tournament qualifier. This group of Varsity players reached the Regional Tournament for the 3rd time since 1983.
Both teams committed to a tough preseason resulting in very successful regular and postseason results. They built their family of Bobcats to accomplish many challenges on and off the court. They are proud of the 2020 season and what they have accomplished. Central loses 4 seniors to graduate in 2021 but have a very strong Junior Class to lead underclassmen in a strong future for the Central Bobcat Volleyball program. Some challenges they have faced during the pandemic were traditions we all take for granted such as no more handshakes as congratulating the other team for the game, every practice or condition there was different sanitizing sessions such as Lysoling the ball and washing hands, Always temperature checks before the game, and wearing face masks 24/7.
Thank you to Coach Davidson and Coach Cooley for helping the girls have a great season and conditioning for the different games.
Read more from The Bobcat Times
2019 Volleyball Season Overview
Evolution of Women’s Beach Volleyball Uniforms
The Bobcat Times 