Columbia — For the second straight year, Dorman High School battled Carolina Forest for
the AAAAA state championship. And for the second straight year, the Cavaliers held off the Panthers,
this time in a 3-1 victory on Thursday at the Dreher High School gymnasium.
Because the South Carolina High School League has officially sanctioned boys volleyball as a
high school sport rather than something relative to a club activity, this year’s title takes on a
higher meaning.
“It means the world to me,” Dorman head coach Drew Copeland said. “These guys have been
working so hard. People doubted us this year because we graduated so many, but we had some
new guys show up, and some guys who had been in our program who truly stepped up and
became true role players for us and helped us out.”
Dorman (29-2) won the first set 25-16, but Carolina Forest fought hard in the second set. The
Panthers (33-5-4) rallied from a 15-11 deficit to even the score at 15, then battle with the Cavaliers
the rest of the way.
Carolina Forest even had a 24-22 lead with Wyatt Turner serving the possible deciding point.
Dorman won that point, then held off the Panthers to win the second set 26-24.
Carolina Forest did win the third set, overcoming a couple of deficits to win 25-22 on Blake
Goodwin’s ace on the deciding point.
Carolina Forest head coach Chase Altman said it was the first time in five matches with the
Cavaliers that his team had taken a set against them.
“We knew we were underdogs, and to think that we were so close to taking two sets, that’s the
best I’ve ever seen them play,” Alfman said. “The first set we played a little sloppy, but after that we
had the fight. We fought every single point, and my seniors were out there fighting.”
The Panthers coming on strong in the second and third sets was a concern, but Copeland rallied
his team in the break before the fourth set.
“I told our guys that they still have to beat us two more times, and that’s the first time they’ve
taken a set off of us in the last two years,” Copeland said. “All we have to do is play Dorman volleyball.
We don’t have to be extraordinary, we just have to be ordinary.”
“Ordinary,” perhaps relative to boys volleyball teams clashing hard at the net and keeping their
wits about them in volleys. Throughout the fourth set, Dorman’s Lucas Helley and Tyler Jenkins,
among others, exchanged blocks and kills at the net with Carolina Forest’s Blake Goodwin, Cody
Harrison and Caleb Harrison, Tyson Little and Nick Machado.
Dorman battled to a 24-19 advantage, and when Carolina Forest’s Goodwin tried to return a
Logan Washer serve, the ball hit the net, fell to the floor, and Dorman clinched the win.
“We kept it simple and we came out in the fourth set and finished the job,” Copeland said. “This
is a true team moment and to have it be the first official one means the world to me. I cannot be
more proud of these guys, truly.”
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