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SEHS Volleyball Scores Historic Win, Splits Savannah Road Test
South Effingham Volleyball
Paige Heverly (13) delivers a deep kill from the left side in the third set against St. Vincent’s with the match tied 1-1. (Gilbert Miller / Effingham Herald)

SAVANNAH, Ga. – South Effingham tested itself against two of Savannah’s elite volleyball programs Thursday night — and nobody ran away from the Mustangs.

 SEHS defeated St. Vincent’s 2-1 (18-25, 25-19, 15-13) before dropping two close sets to Savannah Christian, 2-0 (25-22, 25-22), in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the SVA gym.

“I thought we grew up tonight in that first match,” Mustangs coach Haywood Ellison said. “I think they know what they can do.”

It was an early-season measuring stick for SEHS. Last year, St. Vincent’s went 33-6 and Savannah Christian finished 31-10. Both reached the Elite Eight in the GHSA private school A-3A classification.

South’s win in the opener snapped a 15-match losing streak against the Saints dating to 2015. It was also the first set the Mustangs had taken from St. Vincent’s in nine years.

Middle blocker Clara Vorel, who has verbally committed to Towson, powered the victory with 15 kills and delivered a timely service ace on match point.

“We started slowly. We couldn’t pass the ball,” Ellison said. “I told them if we can pass the ball better, we can beat these teams. In the second set, we started playing faster and with energy, and we got the ball to the frontline. We were getting the ball to Clara — and Clara is a game changer.”

South Volleyball
South Effingham head coach Heyward Ellison, left, and assistants Tiffany Inzer and Analynn Bringer cheer from the sidelines during Thursday’s match against St. Vincent’s. (Gilbert Miller / Effingham Herald)

Thrilling tiebreaker
Despite Vorel’s best efforts, SVA went on a 10-3 run midway through the first set to take a 1-0 lead.

Lauren Olson opened the second set with five service points, and the Mustangs never trailed to force a tiebreaker.

The deciding set to 15 was a thriller. With the crowd engaged on every point, the score was tied at 9-9, 10-10, 11-11, 12-12 and 13-13 before Morgan Stringer’s kill gave South the lead. Vorel’s match-ending ace pinballed off diving defenders to seal it.

“Everyone was trying to do their best, but we slipped up a little at the start,” said Stringer, who had six kills. “We knew we had to come out even stronger.”

South Volleyball
South Effingham’s Morgan Stringer (6) elevates for a kill attempt late in the third set against St. Vincent’s with the Mustangs leading 14-12. Stringer’s kill moments later helped set up the match-winning ace that ended a nine-year skid against the Saints. (Gilbert Miller / Effingham Herald)

Valuable court time
SEHS (4-5) started strong in both sets against Savannah Christian, but the Raiders claimed the key points down the stretch.

The first set was tied 22-22 before Savannah Christian scored the last three points. In the second, South led 22-21 before the Raiders closed with four straight.

The Mustangs have now lost all 18 meetings with SCPS since 2007, according to MaxPreps.

Ellison, though, was pleased with the day’s split. His team elevated its play against St. Vincent’s, and he used the Savannah Christian match to give younger players valuable court time.

South’s second set with the Raiders featured 12 ties and five lead changes.

A win-loss might as well have been a win-win.

“Every game means something, but these don’t hurt us, and we wanted to get the younger girls some playing time,” Ellison said. “You don’t know what they can do until you put them on the floor.”

SEHS opens its home schedule Tuesday with a trimatch against St. Andrew’s and Southeast Bulloch. On Thursday, the Mustangs travel to Springfield for a trimatch with rival Effingham County and Richmond Hill.