In no real surprise to volleyball fans, the All-State squad is dominated again by Auburn players, with senior middle hitter Avery Zuckerwar named as the Class 1 Player of the Year and the Eagle head coach Sherry Millirons wrapping up Coach of the Year honors.
A three-year starter at outside hitter, the 5-foot, 6-inch Zuckerwar never stepped off the court in 2022. She played one rotation outside, two middle, and played middle back defense leading the Eagles to three state titles. For the season, she led the team in kill attempts (1,111), kills (362), kills/set (3.4), aces (62), hitting efficiency (2.07), good serve percentage (93.4%), dig efficiency (.511), and solo blocks (48). Zuckerwar’s career totals include 623 kills, 194 aces, 531 digs, and 71 solo blocks.
Millirons guided Auburn to a 28-3 record and its fourth straight Class 1 championship and seventh overall. Millirons led the Eagles to the Class 1 state volleyball title with a 3-1 (25-18, 25-20, 24-26, 25-23) win over Patrick Henry (Glade Spring) in the state quarterfinals and a 3-0 win over Giles in the state semifinals.
Eight players + a Libero, + a defensive specialist are selected as first-team all-state and second-team all-state. Only those players selected to the first-team all-region teams are eligible for selection to the all-state team.
The youngest selection to the team came from the upstart Mountain Empire District Giles team, with freshman Sophie Taylor.
Avery Maiden, a senior at Patrick Henry, represented the Rebels and the Hogoheegee on the first team.
Chilhowie seniors Hannah Goodwin and Josie Sheets were selected for second-team honors.
