There’s no such thing as “less is more” in volleyball.
If anything, the decree is “more is more.”
The last time many people from Hillsborough saw Cameron Lloyd in action, she sent a spike that banged off the floor of Kay Yow Court against North Iredell in the fourth set for match point in the 3A State Championship match. It ensured Cedar Ridge’s first state title in volleyball and triggered a roar from the Red Wolves fans in attendance at Reynolds Coliseum that could have been heard in Garner.
It was the first state championship by any female team in Cedar Ridge history. It also set the tone for what has been the Year of the Woman in high school sports locally.
At Cedar Ridge, senior Caroline Fowlkes won the state championship in the pole vault on May 20 at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro. In February, Orange’s Katie Belle Sikes won the 3A State Championship in the 50-yard freestyle, becoming the first female swimmer in school history to win a state title. As a whole, the Central Carolina Conference has had a state champion in women’s basketball with Northwood. This weekend, the Eastern Alamance softball and women’s soccer teams will also go for state championships after winning their respective Eastern Regional crowns.
After the celebration in Raleigh last November, some of Lloyd’s teammates took their talents to the basketball court. Under head coach Megan Skouby, an assistant for the volleyball team, juniors Julie Altieri and Grace Young played varsity basketball for the first time in their high school careers. Lloyd was in attendance at many games inside Red Wolves Gymnasium as she prepared for travel volleyball season.
Playing with the Chapel Hill Area Volleyball Club, Lloyd’s 17-Black team recently qualified in the Big South National Tournament in Atlanta. Starting June 30, CHAVC 17-Black will compete for the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship in Indianapolis.
Last weekend, Lloyd played in Richmond just days after receiving her trophy from the American Volleyball Coaches of North Carolina for being the 3A State Player of the Year. Last fall, as Cedar Ridge went 31-2, Lloyd set a school record for kills in a season with 360. On August 31 against Person, she became the first Red Wolf in school history to register 500 career kills. For her career, Lloyd has 817 kills, 564 digs, and 152 aces.
Lost in the midst of Cedar Ridge’s state championship win over North Iredell, Cameron Lanier became the second player in school history to reach 500 kills.
Last month, Lanier announced she would commit to play at Elon, becoming the second Cedar Ridge player to commit to a Division I school. Last fall, Young announced her intentions to play at UNC Asheville. Lloyd has yet to make an announcement regarding her college plans.
The theme “more is more” may not be the official motto for Cedar Ridge volleyball when it convenes in eight weeks to start its 2022 season, but it might as well be. The Red Wolves will return all of its rotation players, including Lloyd, Lanier, Altieri, Melissa Benkowitz (an addition from East Chapel Hill that truly made Cedar Ridge nearly impossible to defend last year), Young, Addie Reid (who played goalkeeper with the women’s soccer team this spring) and Anaya Carter (who was back in left field for Cedar Ridge softball).
More is more also describes Coach Fiona Cunningham’s nonconference scheduling philosophy. To prepare for Central Carolina Conference powerhouses Northwood, Person and Orange last year, Cunningham played D.H. Conley, the defending 3A State Champions twice, along with traditional tough neighboring foes Carrboro, Chapel Hill and East Chapel Hill.
On August 23, Cedar Ridge will face D.H. Conley again. That will be the tip of the iceberg as Cedar Ridge goes for a third straight conference championship.
It will also be the final journey together for Cedar Ridge’s Class of 2023, which may go down as the most dominant group in any sport in school history. Lloyd, Altieri, Lanier, and Carter started as freshmen (Young joined the varsity as a sophomore) when the Red Wolves were coming off a 7-15 season in 2018. Together, they have a cumulative record of 58-9. They’ve won 26 consecutive conference games, made three trips to the state playoffs, won two conference titles, a postseason conference tournament, plus the state championship.
And the goal for next fall?
Not one wants to say it out loud yet, at least publicly.
But one could assume that, well, more is more.