The Hickory volleyball team's season came to an end Thursday with a loss to No. 5 Carson in the second round of the 3A state playoffs. Hickory took Carson to the brink in the first set, but ultimately came up short and Carson got out with a 25-23 win.
From there, Carson took set two (25-18) and set three (2519) to end the Red Tornadoes season. It was the best showing for Hickory volleyball since 2018 when the Red Tornadoes finished 22-4 and reached the third round of the 3A playoffs. This year's team finished 21-4, 12-2 in conference play.
They reached the second round of the playoffs and finished with a top 10 ranking in the 3A West Region. On Tuesday, the Red Tornadoes advanced through the first round with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-22) win over St. Stephens.
It was the fourth time the two teams had faced off this season. The Red Tornadoes won all four matches. St.
Stephens kept it close. The Indians led most of the way through the third set until a Hickory rally gave the Red Tornadoes a 19-17 lead. Senior Ali Rose finally put the Indians away with a service ace on match point.
Rose said having to beat a quality opponent like St. Stephens four times in the season was a challenge for the Red Tornadoes. "Saint is a really good team," she said.
"They have some good players and we all play around each other all the time, so we know what everyone does." Senior Sage Boston said this season has been a special one for her and her teammates. "I feel like we've always had a good team, b.