COURTLAND
Several members of the Southampton High School varsity volleyball team received all-district and all-conference awards this past Saturday. The awards were given out based on their stats over the season, as well as their academic standing.

Junior Sarah Williams received Second Team All-District and Honorable Mention All-Conference.

“I am so honored and thankful to win an award like this. I feel this season went really well. We made a lot of improvements over the season and worked great as a team,” Williams said.

She said that her goal for next year is to finish strong as a team and individual and she hopes that they will go even further in the conference tournament and ultimately go into regionals.

“I want to give a big thanks to both Coach Davis and Coach Jack for all the hard work they put into our season and our team. I am super excited for next season,” Williams added.

Senior Peyton Bunn received First Team All-District Libero.

“I am so very honored. I made it my goal this season to walk away from team proud and with no regrets, and this award made that possible,” Bunn said. “I am so blessed to have been a part of this team. It has been a long five years together, and we all put in so much time, effort and emotion and I feel that you can really tell from our success this season.”

She said that although it will be difficult to manage with a college schedule, she plans on play club volleyball next year.

“Playing volleyball has been such a huge part of my life and it is a bittersweet feeling for the season to have ended. I love our team because we all share an amazing bond that could never be replaced or replicated. These girls are among my favorite in the world and next year will be not be the same without them and volleyball. Home is where your team is,” Bunn added.

Sophomore Emma Drake received First Team All-District, First Team All-Conference and All-Academic.

“I am so excited to have achieved first team for district and conference,” Drake said. “When my coach called me that day I could not stop smiling. Just to know that all that I work I did this year finally paid off. I was also so excited that I achieved all academic for conference.”

She said her goals for next season are to start being more of leader and getting herself out there. She is hoping to play volleyball in college so she would like to become more of a consistent all-around player.

“This season was very big for us; we will be losing a lot of seniors. It’s going to be hard not having them but, we have a lot of talent that will be returning and moving up,” Drake added.

Senior Morgan Bunn received Second Team All-District.

“It’s a privilege to be recognized and nominated by other coaches and this has just made my senior year even more spectacular,” Bunn said. “I’m extremely happy by the way my team came together as one and always encouraged each other. I am going to miss being a part of them, but I’m confident in the underclassman’s ability to continue our legacy.”

Senior Courtney Vinson received Honorable Mention All-District and Honorable Mention All-Conference.

“It feels amazing to have been nominated and chosen by the coaches in the district and conference,” Vinson said.

She also said that she feels this has been by far the best season and that as a team they came further in conference tournament and beat more teams than they did last year.

“I thought it was special that I received this award because my dad also received honorable mention when he was a senior in high school in football,” she added.

Senior Danielle Moore received Honorable Mention All-District.

“Winning this award means so much to me. I’ve been playing volleyball since seventh grade and have never gotten anything like this,” Moore said. “This season I was very proud of the teams. We beat two teams that we hadn’t beaten the year before and that was my goal at the beginning of the season. I can’t wait to come watch them play next year and hopefully go undefeated.”

Senior Jenna Billups received First Team All-District, Second Team All-Conference and All-Academic Conference.

“I was very happy when Coach Davis called to congratulate me on my award. I worked extremely hard this season to improve my skills and to make myself eligible for those accomplishments,” Billups said. “I had a really great senior season. I’m very grateful that I got to share so many memories with all of my girls. We’ve grown so close over the years and I’m truly going to miss every single one of them.”

She said that if she attends Old Dominion University in the fall that she plans on playing on the club volleyball team there.

“I wanted to thank everyone that has supported me in my volleyball career and pushed me to work hard and strive to do my best,” Billups added.

Senior Allie Holt received Honorable Mention All-District.

“I feel honored to be picked for this award. It’s a big confidence booster and I definitely didn’t expect it. A huge thank you to Coach Davis for nominating me,” Holt said. “I have absolutely loved every minute of my senior year. Overall, we had a winning record and we became more than just teammates; we were like a family.”

She said that she hates to see her time on the court end so she has debated playing volleyball at the intramural level in college, but if she does it would just be for fun.

“Thank you to my entire team for making my last season to the most memorable. Southampton High School volleyball will be something I remember for the rest of my life,” Holt added.

Coach Amy Davis said she was very proud of the girls for their season and everything they accomplished. All the seniors said how much they will miss this team next year and all the underclassman are already ready to start preparing for next year’s season.