Tuscola junior Savannah Bryant has committed to play college volleyball for N.C. State.
WAYNESVILLE – Tuscola’s turnaround was no accident this volleyball season.
Night-in and night-out, the Mountaineers featured one of the Western North Carolina Athletic Conference’s top hitters in their lineup.
N.C. State is clearly on board with that. The Wolfpack have offered a preferred walk-on spot to junior Savannah Bryant and she has accepted.
Bryant is an outside hitter/right-side hitter/middle blocker who led Tuscola (13-8) in kills (222) and aces (42). She was second on the team with 301 digs.
“I am super-excited about what the future holds,” Bryant said.
“I really liked (N.C. State) after going to a camp over the summer. The whole coaching staff was amazing, and then we went to a game and got a chance to walk around campus. It’s beautiful and they have the major (Education) that I want.”
For now, the Wolfpack see Bryant as a utility player. She takes part in the sport year-round, not only for the Mountaineers but also with Xcel Volleyball Performance.
Bryant’s mother is Mountaineers coach Pam Bryant, a former Smoky Mountain standout who led the Mustangs to back-to-back state championships in 1991 and 1992. Later, she played volleyball for N.C. State from 1993 to 1997 and coached in college at North Carolina A&T and Troy State.
“She never pushed me to play volleyball (at a particular college),” said Savannah Bryant, who was also considering smaller regional Division I schools.
“N.C. State is where I want to go.”
Pam Bryant’s first season as Tuscola’s coach couldn’t have gone much better. The Mountaineers had only won a single set in two years and no matches in the last three before an August contest at Reynolds. Tuscola went 8-6 in the WNCAC, and among its notable nonconference wins was a 3-0 sweep of Mountain Athletic Conference 4-A champion Roberson on Sept. 26.
The team’s four seniors were Annalise Steele, Katie Fielden, McKinley Morris and Autumn Duffield.
“We were so excited about that first win and it was just the tip of the iceberg,” Pam Bryant said.
“The girls got a taste for what it was like and they wanted more, every day. They came in and worked hard. We had our team meetings (this week) and sat down individually with all the girls who are coming back next year. They’re already itching to get back at it.”
Olivia Johnson was second to Bryant in kills (171) and had 253 digs. She is expected to return in 2017 as is fellow junior Hannah Litty (378 digs) and sophomore setter Olivia Rich (322 assists).
“This group of girls is amazing,” Savannah Bryant said.
“They are awesome teammates and even better people and friends. We have worked so hard to get where we are. We’ve changed a lot of people’s minds. They don’t see us as the team that loses all the time, but a team that can go out and get a win. We’re all ready to get back in the gym and get ready for next season.”
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