Challenger

The Apollo E-gals had high hopes entering the state tournament Friday, October 29th in Frankfort. The E-gals were crowned their first ever third regional crown a week before and were anticipating an even matchup with Highlands. The team’s season was cut shorter than expected by the northern Kentucky team.

The E-gals started fired up and fresh at the beginning of the match. With adrenaline pumping through their blood, the girls came out intimidating the other team. However, the precision hitting of the Highland squad proved too much for Apollo. The girls dropped the first game 25 to 19.

In the second game, the team moral was boosted with excellent passes by back row players Katie Cecil, Katie Thompson, and Amber Spurrier. The pinpoint passes made it easier for setter, Emilee Duvall, to put up good balls for the E-gal front line hitters Natalie Hardesty, Chasity Thomas, and Alex Headley.

The second game came down to the wire. The E-gals battled hard against an energized Highlands team. Highlands was able to hit the ball in spots the E-gals’ defense was not. Within the final painful points, the E-gals ended their run with an error on the game point. The game concluded 25-23.

The team’s star middle hitter, Chasity Thomas, was named to the State All-Tournament team. This is a monumental accomplishment seeing as Chasity is only a junior, and the judges of the award were only able to watch her play in one game of the tournament.
It was a colassal year for the 2004 squad. The team ended with a record of 35-7. This broke the school’s record for most wins in a season.

“We proved a lot of people wrong this season. We whooped up on other teams and had fun doing it,” commented Amber Spurrier on the team, “ In the end, we made it to state, because we worked the hardest and we wanted it the most. Our fans were great coming to Frankfort to be loud and intimidate other teams. They were a big part of what made this season special.”

The E-gals will return five juniors and two sophomores to lead the team next year.