Fort Mill’s volleyball team is off to a 9-5 start. What else is happening this season?

The Fort Mill Yellow Jackets are off to a good start in the 2022 volleyball season. They lead all area teams in wins and sport a 9-5 overall record.

The Yellow Jackets are coached by Makala McCrorey, who returned to the school after successfully restarting the Great Falls Red Devils’ program last year. Prior to that one year stint, she was an assistant coach with the Yellow Jackets for several campaigns.

Fort Mill picked up four wins without a loss in claiming the title in the Chesnee Invitational Tournament to highlight their early season success. They added five other victories in non-region matches and tournaments.

“This team has come in every day since we started, and worked really hard,” said McCrorey. “They want to get better, and their work ethic shows it.”

The Jackets also have had excellent leadership from senior Co-Captains Grace Duey and Gracie Johnson.

“They are both very vocal leaders,” McCrorey said. “They lead by example every day on and off the court. I could not ask for better leadership.”

Despite the fact that McCrorey is a first-year head coach, she is not in the same position as other first year coaches.

“Coming back to Fort Mill gave me the chance to coach players I had coached in past seasons,” she said. “They know me and what I expect from them, and I know them and their overall capabilities. We knew we could trust each other. That made the transition much easier.”

The year at Great Falls as a head coach also gave her the opportunity to grow.

“I enjoyed my time at Great Falls,” she said. “However, I am very glad to be back at Fort Mill. The experience that I got as a head coach at Great Falls has really helped me.”

The Yellow Jackets have been led offensively by Duey, Johnson, and sophomore Katelyn Rutledge. Duey leads the team with 3.2 kills per set, while Rutledge averages 2.5 per set, and Johnson contributes 1.9.

Junior Brenna Ainsley leads the Jackets with 14.7 digs per match, while Johnson has recorded 8.6 per match. Senior Brenna Stackelhouse adds 5.3 digs per match. Rutledge, junior Gabi Garabedian, and junior Nyla Snipes are the top three on the team in blocks.

McCrorey is using three setters. Senior Ella Martinez is handing out 4.5 assists per set, while junior Mia Scott has 3.2 per set, and junior Kylie Bick has recorded 1.3.

Duey leads the team in aces with 15, while Martinez has 14, and Ainsley has 13.

The excellent start has the team hoping they can have a great season.

“We talk every day about getting better individually and as a team,” said McCrorey. “They know their abilities, and they want to improve with each practice and match.”

The key for making that happen is simple.

“We need to stay focused on what we need to do in every match,” the coach said. “The players know the challenge in this very tough region. They also know that we need to work together and improve every day.”

What’s next?

The Yellow Jackets begin their Region 3-5A campaign on Tuesday when they travel to Blythewood. Other 3-5A matches on Tuesday find Rock Hill at Spring Valley and Nation Ford at Clover.

In the 4A ranks the Northwestern Trojans and the Catawba Ridge Copperheads are off to 2-0 starts in Region 3-4A. Tuesday night’s slate in that region shows York traveling to Northwestern, Lancaster at Catawba Ridge, and Indian Land at South Pointe.

The Chester Cyclones are 4-5 overall, and they dropped their opening Region 4-3A match. The Cyclones continue region play on Tuesday when they travel to Union County.

In class 2A the Buford Yellow Jackets, the Andrew Jackson Volunteers, and the York Prep Patriots have all opened Region 5-2A play. On Tuesday two of the three will see more action in the region. Buford goes to Pageland Central, while Andrew Jackson travels to North Central.

The Lewisville Lions and the Great Falls Red Devils both play in Region 3-1A matches on Tuesday. Lewisville travels to play Governor’s School, while Great Falls will host CA Johnson.

Here are the current region standings for The Herald area teams.

Region 3-5A: 1. Fort Mill 9-5; 2. Clover 6-2; 3. Blythewood 9-4; 4. Nation Ford 6-6; 5. Spring Valley 4-4; 6. Rock Hill 2-7.

Region 3-4A: 1. Northwestern 2-0/5-2-2; 2. Catawba Ridge 2-0/8-5; 3. Indian Land 1-1/2-8; 4. South Pointe 1-1/2-4; 5. York 0-2/4-3; 6. Lancaster 0-2/0-4.

Region 4-3A: 1. Union County 1-0/2-6; 2. Woodruff 1-0/3-10; 3. Emerald 0-0/6-3; 4. Clinton 0-1/6-1; 5. Chester 0-1/4-5.

Region 5-2A: 1. North Central 3-0/5-0; 2. Buford 2-0/4-0; 3. Andrew Jackson 2-1/3-2: 4. Chesterfield 2-2/3-4; 5. Cheraw 1-1/1-3; 6. Pageland Central 0-3/1-6; 7. York Prep 0-3/0-7.

Region 3-1A: 1.McBee 1-0/2-1; 2. Lewisville 1-0/2-2; 3. Governor’s School 0-0/0-0; 4. Great Falls 0-1/2-3; 5. CA Johnson 0-1/0-5.