SAVANNAH, Ga. — The Savannah Arts Academy volleyball team continued its postseason run with a 3–1 victory over Hart County in the GHSA Class 2A state quarterfinals Monday night.
The Lady Panthers (18–28) controlled the early sets, winning 25–11 and 25–15 before Hart County (28–8) battled back to take the third, 27–25. Savannah Arts regrouped to close out the match 25–19 in the fourth, advancing to the state semifinals for the fourth straight year.
Savannah Arts produced a balanced attack. Ellie Ayala led the offense with 17 kills, 16 assists, 14 digs, and three aces. Natalie Lehto added 25 assists, 12 digs, and three aces, while Charlotte Browne had 11 kills, four blocks, and one ace. Samantha Lehto finished with nine kills and four digs. Maggie Allen anchored the defense with 29 digs and one ace, and Bella Jaqua contributed 13 digs, three assists, two kills, and one ace.
Up next, Savannah Arts will face Morgan County in the GHSA Class 2A state semifinals — a rematch of last year’s championship match, which Morgan County won 3–0. The match will take place at Providence Christian on Saturday, Oct. 25, at 2 p.m.
North Forsyth Ends Richmond Hill’s Historic Season
One county south, Richmond Hill’s record-setting season came to an end Tuesday night as the Wildcats fell to North Forsyth in straight sets — 25-21, 25-18, 25-23 — in the GHSA Class 6A Sweet 16.
Under first-year head coach Danielle Ennis, the Wildcats finished the season with a 40–3 record, capturing their fourth consecutive region championship behind a senior-laden roster of 10 players.
“It’s these girls, like I have said all along,” Ennis said. “They have such heart and such passion for the game of volleyball — that’s what pushed them through. Then you throw their talent on it, and that’s why we ended up 40 and 3. They truly gave it their all tonight. Unfortunately, it didn’t come out our way. We played a really good team, but the girls left it all on the court.”
Senior Talia Johnson paced Richmond Hill with 16 kills, nine digs, and three aces. Lily Ritzema added eight kills and six digs, while Kylee Gilbert posted 11 digs. Junior Alexa Anderson contributed 16 digs and five kills.
Ennis said she was most proud of how her team handled adversity throughout the season.
“We kind of had a lot of adversity with our coaching staff changes, and then just the dynamics of the team working through that and coming out on the other side and actually working together to get where we did,” Ennis said.
The Wildcats’ roster featured 10 seniors: Grace Duffie, Kylee Gilbert, Bryanna Da Silva, Talia Johnson, Naomi Jaiteh, Lily Ritzema, Samantha Beichler, Angelina Anderson, Kamryn Ostbloom, and Jade Timothy.
“These girls have built a legacy here at Richmond Hill High School,” Ennis said. “This volleyball program is where it is today because of those seniors, and that’s what I told them in that locker room. I said, ‘You’ve left your mark.’ That loss tonight doesn’t define who you are. You have such potential in the future. They have careers that are gonna be amazing — some going on to the next level to play. This isn’t who they are; what it is, is that legacy. That legacy is what they leave behind for the younger girls — those elementary girls that were out here tonight watching, the middle school girls, the JV girls — that’s who they were all watching tonight, and that’s who they want to emulate.”
According to the MaxPreps online roster, Richmond Hill will return six underclassmen next season, four juniors: Kailah King, Gabriella Mondesir, Sydney Carmichael, and Alexa Anderson, along with two sophomores: Raeden Sander and Brielle Allred — giving Ennis a solid foundation to build on for 2026.
Richmond Hill closes the book on another historic chapter, while Savannah Arts continues its postseason run toward another championship appearance.
Other GHSA Elite Eight Results
Several other Savannah-area teams also made deep playoff runs this week, reaching the GHSA Elite Eight.
In Class 5A, South Effingham saw its strong season end with a 3–0 loss to McIntosh in the state quarterfinals.
In the Class 3A–1A Private division, St. Vincent’s Academy also reached the Elite Eight but fell 3–1 to Lovett.
PHOTO: Richmond Hill and Savannah Arts Academy Athletic Departments
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