Volleyball Recruiting Blog

Calhoun volleyball is currently ranked No. 2 in Class 3A behind top-ranked Oconee County and is among the biggest contenders to take this year’s state champion. The Yellow Jackets are 15-5 this season and will be facing Class 6A No. 1 ranked Walton Thursday night. Additionally, Calhoun has split its meetings with Oconee County, winning the first head-to-head 2-1 on Aug. 5 before falling 2-0 on Aug. 16. Last season, Calhoun finished third in Area 7 with an 8-4 record and then made a run all the way to the state finals. Ultimately, Jefferson defeated Calhoun 3-0 to win its first-ever state title, but the success experienced last season has carried over this year. The two finalists met back on Aug. 16 and Jefferson was able to win 2-1, but the competitiveness of the match showcased the potential for Calhoun with the bulk of its schedule remaining.

Calhoun accomplished all of those milestones last year after opening up the season 0-5. This year is a much different story and the Yellow Jackets opened the year 5-0 before dropping their first match to Allatoona. The team is 4-0 start in Area 7 play so far with wins over Heritage-Catoosa and Northwest Whitfield—which were both ahead of Calhoun in last year’s standings.  

Leading Calhoun is one of the most accomplished seniors in the state of Georgia with Kentucky-commit Gracison Saylors. The 6-foot-3 Middle Blocker and outside hitter is a 4.0 student and the reigning Region 7-3A Player of the Year

Saylors joined a travel volleyball team for the first time last season and after participating in multiple different sports has just recently honed in on her development as a volleyball player. That decision has paid off and when Kentucky extended an offer, it was an easy decision.

“It was always my dream school. I love the coaching staff and all they have done at Kentucky,” Saylors told YourSportsEdge.com. “It’s close to home but also far enough away. When Kentucky offered, I knew it was the one place I wanted to go.”

LEADING THE WAY

Saylors is approaching several career milestones and is just 38 kills away (1,462) from reaching the 1,500 career kills mark. Additionally, she has 393 career blocks, 694 serve returns and 309 career digs. This season, she has 228 total kills in 44 sets played—resulting in a 5.2 kill per set average and her 61 total blocks is also a career-best through this point of the season. Saylors has an opportunity to help led Calhoun to its first-ever volleyball state title this year and is getting support from her teammates when it comes to the Yellow Jackets’ attack. Saylors’ 228 kills is complimented by senior Jaylan Moore’s 111 kills and then junior Karmen Morgan (50) and freshman Jersey Strickland (44) have stepped up with senior Creighton Morgan (44) as the team’s top attackers. Defensively, Saylors has accounted for 61 of the team’s 80 total blocks through the first 44 sets of play, but Moore and Kyhmora Hagood are stepping up to strengthen Calhoun’s defensive presence.

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