2026 local high school volleyball preview

August 3, 2026

Charles Wilson / BartowSportsZone.com

Bartow Sports Zone asked local high school volleyball coaches to answer a series of questions as a preview of the 2026 season.

Adairsville Tigers, head coach Clint Decker (1st season as head coach at Adairsville)

Adairsville finished 10-29 last season and was sixth in their region. The Tigers seek their first winning season since going 24-16-1 in 2021. Adairsville went 12-30 in 2024, 10-25 in 2023, and 16-23-2 in 2022.

What are some of the biggest improvements you’ve seen for your team during summer and preseason workouts?

A majority of our girls attended each of our weight/conditioning sessions this summer, and we also had the University of Alabama at Huntsville head coach (Jon Moseley), who brought players to the high school to run a personal team camp. Our girls have been learning from each other and becoming more comfortable together.  We have had three scrimmages, and we have gotten better each match.

Who are a few of your “Players to Watch” in 2026?

We have 4 players returning with varsity experience.  Leading the way is senior Alexis Scott.  She will be playing Outside Hitter for us, and we will rely heavily on her experience and leadership.  Also returning will be Junior Setter Teaghan Myers.  Teaghan will have the ball in her hand every rally, and she is a good decision-maker who will do a good job running our offense.  Also returning is Junior Sadie Brownlow, who will be our other outside hitter.  Sadie brings a lot of skill and value to our team and will be relied on heavily.  Our final returning varsity player is sophomore Nadelyn Dodson.  Nadelyn will be our Libero.  Nadelyn started on the varsity team as a freshman last year.  She brings valuable varsity experience and leadership to our defense.  We also have several other players we have added this year that will help us this season: Sam Gough, Blaire Fuller, Regan Purvis, Kenzie Griffin, Anna Joslin, and Katelyn Bowley.

Are there other coaches on your staff?

Clay Heath will be helping our varsity and JV teams.

What do you anticipate will be the strengths for this year’s team?

I believe we will be a fundamentally sound team this season.  We should be a strong serving team and a solid defensive team.  As the season progresses, I feel that we will continue to improve offensively.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for this year’s team?

Learning a new coach and how we expect things to be done (which they have adjusted well already), but becoming more comfortable with each other, being a star in the role, and playing where we believe they best help our team. 

Which teams in your region do you expect to challenge for state playoff berths? Did the new Postseason Ratings impact the way you have scheduled this year?

Coming from Armuchee, we played some of the teams in our region, so I have a sense of our opponents. Our region also changed this upcoming season, so we will have new region opponents as well.  I have coached many years against Scott Carter (the new Calhoun coach), so I know he will have Calhoun playing good ball this season. Looking through last year’s film and other teams’ rosters, I believe NW Whitfield is returning quite a few good players.  If we continue to improve at each match, I believe we will be a team others do not want to face.  

As far as the new playoff rankings go, I have been dealing with this for over 4 years now (coming from Armuchee).  The biggest thing affecting the rankings is just going out and winning.  The previous coach had set the schedule before I accepted the job, but we pretty much kept it, feeling it was one we could compete in and, hopefully, help us gain a playoff position.

Are there any other comments you would like to include heading into this season?

We are excited about the challenge laid before us and about beginning our season.

Cartersville Hurricanes, head coach Kyle Lundberg

Cartersville was 44-7 last season and finished second in Region 7-AAAA before advancing to the state semifinals. The Lady Canes had straight-set playoff wins over Drew, Wayne County, and Blessed Trinity. Pace Academy defeated Cartersville in four sets in the semifinals.  Cartersville was 33-12 in 2024, 28-18 in 2023, and 29-17 in 2022.

What are some of the biggest improvements you’ve seen for your team during summer and preseason workouts?

We are focusing on becoming more scrappy and aggressive in pursuing balls that we may not have reached over the past two years. With less height than we've had in recent seasons, we're also adopting a stronger defensive mindset and emphasizing effort, positioning, and team defense.

Who are a few of your “Players to Watch” in 2026?

Mckenzie Wilkie, senior, libero, and committed to Coastal Carolina

Amara Ejieke, senior, 6 - rotation outside hitter

Adelynn England, senior, 6 - rotation outside hitter and committed to East Texas Baptist

Holly Dufrene, senior, middle

Blakely Morris, junior, middle

Emma Wall, junior, setter

Brooke Belarmino, sophomore, setter

Sammie Camper, freshman, right-side/outside hitter

Are there other coaches on your staff?

Var Asst - Abbey Rogers, stats and Hudl

Var Asst - Hallie Matthews, working with hitters/blockers

JV Head/ Var Asst - Daniel Vaughn

JV Asst/ Var Asst - Macey Vaughn

What do you anticipate will be the strengths for this year’s team?

Team chemistry and strong leadership will be among our greatest assets this season. Our veteran leaders set the tone with their work ethic, communication, and commitment to team success, helping create a positive and competitive culture. Combined with our ability to serve aggressively and play disciplined defense, those qualities provide a strong foundation for our team. Offensively, our hitters bring a balanced attack, mixing power with smart shot selection and strategic placement to keep opponents off balance and create scoring opportunities.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for this year’s team?

While our starting group brings valuable experience, our biggest challenge will be the youth and inexperience of our bench. As the season progresses, their growth and confidence will play an important role in strengthening our overall team performance.

Which teams in your region do you expect to challenge for state playoff berths? Did the new Postseason Ratings impact the way you have scheduled this year?

Dalton and Allatoona should be our biggest regional challengers and will undoubtedly push us throughout the season.

As for PSR, it did not impact how I approached scheduling. Last year, we competed against some of the top programs in the country and climbed into the national Top 50 early in the season. With that in mind, I intentionally made our schedule even more challenging this year.

At the end of the day, I'm not overly concerned with our overall record. Our primary goal is to win the region championship. By playing a demanding schedule against high-level competition, our girls will be battle-tested, prepared for the intensity of the state playoffs, and positioned to make another deep postseason run.

Are there any other comments you would like to include heading into this season?

In the two years as the head coach at Cartersville, my mission has been to grow the program, and I feel like our girls have done that. We have seen more fans attend each year, and we would love to keep the attendance growing. Please come out and support the Lady Canes.

Cass Colonels, head coach Amanda Manson

Cass was 2-30 last season and winless in Region 7-AAAA. The program is still seeking its first winning season. The Colonels’ best year was 2022, when they were 13-26-1.

What are some of the biggest improvements you’ve seen for your team during summer and preseason workouts?

Work ethic and attitude.

Who are a few of your “Players to Watch” in 2026?

With so many new faces on this year's roster, it's hard to single out just a few players to watch. We're excited to see how this group develops and competes throughout the season. We have several athletes stepping into bigger roles, along with newcomers who have already shown great potential. We're looking forward to watching them grow, contribute, and help make the 2026 season a special one for Lady Colonels Volleyball.

Are there other coaches on your staff?

Johanna Jewell

What do you anticipate will be the strengths for this year’s team?

One of our biggest strengths this season will be our willingness to learn and grow together. With so many new faces on the team, we have a fresh group of athletes who are eager to compete and improve every day. While we're still building chemistry and experience, this team's work ethic, positive attitude, and commitment to one another have already stood out. We're excited to see them develop throughout the season and believe their growth and teamwork will become our greatest strengths.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for this year’s team?

Our biggest challenge this season will be gaining experience and building chemistry. With so many new faces on the roster, we're asking many players to step into new roles and adjust to the speed and expectations of varsity volleyball. That takes time. Our focus will be on improving every day, learning to trust one another, and growing as a team. If we continue to work hard and embrace the process, we believe this group has the potential to make significant progress throughout the season.

Which teams in your region do you expect to challenge for state playoff berths? Did the new Postseason Ratings impact the way you have scheduled this year?

Our region is very competitive, and we expect every team to be capable of competing for a state playoff spot. There are several well-coached programs with talented players, so we know we'll have to be ready every night. Our focus is less on who we're playing and more on continuing to improve as a team throughout the season. As for the new post-season ratings, we were mindful of them during the scheduling process. We wanted to put together a schedule that would challenge our team, help us gain valuable experience, and prepare us for region play. Ultimately, our goal is to play quality competition that helps us grow and be at our best when it matters most.

Woodland Wildcats, head coach David Condon

The Wildcats were 10-29 last season, after going 4-25 in 2024, 13-27 in 2023, 5-29-1 in 2022, 10-23 in 2021, and 13-25-1 in 2020. The Wildcats seek their first winning season since 2019, when they went 21-18.

What are some of the biggest improvements you’ve seen for your team during summer and preseason workouts?

The attendance has been good.

Who are a few of your “Players to Watch” in 2026?

Aby Childs, senior, outside hitter, has significantly improved her passing and is ready to play. 

Emily Guin, senior, defensive specialist, a great teammate who has gotten better every season. 

Bella King, senior, middle hitter, works hard and has improved every season. 

Reese Martinak, senior, outside hitter, great teammate and has also gotten better every year. 

Dayana Jaimes, junior, Libero. She can do everything well, and she is anxious to play after missing last season.

Are there other coaches on your staff?

Alicen Pearson and Jordan Michael. Both have been my assistants before. They both help with player development and in-game strategies.

What do you anticipate will be the strengths for this year’s team?

We have 4 returning varsity players who saw significant playing time last season, but 5 total players with significant varsity experience.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for this year’s team?

We lost our top Outside Hitter (Alex Williams) to a season-ending injury right before tryouts. We are developing some players in new positions.

Which teams in your region do you expect to challenge for state playoff berths? Did the new Postseason Ratings impact the way you have scheduled this year?

Cartersville, Allatoona, and Dalton. But Villa Rica and Cedartown could, too. The change didn't really affect how we scheduled; we were just looking to balance our schedule to get better.