MURFREESBORO – South Greene proved naysayers wrong by making it to its 17th-straight State Tournament. On Tuesday they began state tournament play with a four-set victory (25-14, 9-25, 25-10, 25-21) over Gibson County in the quarterfinals of the Class A State Tournament.
It wasn’t a smooth day in the office for the gritty Lady Rebels. They led wire-to-wire in the first set and were in control the entire time, but the second set was a different story. Gibson County jumped out to a 9-0 lead before you knew it and the Lady Rebels never found their stride. South Greene regained control in the third and led wire-to-wire again before closing the match in the fourth set.
“It was up and down. It was like a rollercoaster match. We came out swinging and took the advantage early and played well and confident in the first set. Set two I told the girls to wad it up and put it in the trash. That was just a completely different team than I’ve seen in a long time,” Lady Rebels head coach Stephen Gregg said.
Freshman Emma Padgett was the best player on the court, but it wasn’t only her offense that helped push South Greene to the finish line. Terrific offense by Kortnei Bailey, Whitney Reaves, Bailey Ricker, and Sadie Trammell helped steer the ship in the right direction.
“Everybody contributes. That’s what’s special, we tell them not one girl is bigger than the game. You wouldn’t know Emma is a freshman. She’s a true catalyst out there. She wants the ball. She wants to lead, she wants to be a leader, she wants to encourage her teammates and that’s what’s going to make her special going down the road. But I felt like I’ve had steady players all season,” Coach Gregg explained.
South Greene advanced to Wednesday’s semifinal round with a 9:30 AM CT matchup with Eagleville. Coach Gregg spoke about the importance of the contest with the Lady Eagles.
“We know tomorrow is a tougher task and a bigger glass of water in Eagleville. They look great. They look as good as anybody I’ve seen all year. We’re going to have to really hone in on some things on film tonight and mentally prepare to give our best effort. You win this one tomorrow, you’re in the championship. But that’s what Eagleville is saying too.”
The victory helps South Greene achieve a win in every state tournament appearance in its 17-year streak.
The Lady Rebels began the first set with a statement kill by Padgett. Bailey served up a pair of early aces and South Greene held an early 3-0 lead. Padgett and Trammell provided kills next and Gibson County called an early timeout with the Lady Rebels ahead 5-1.
A flurry of offense from Padgett increased their lead to 12-5 after a run of five-straight points. Bailey and Reaves joined in on the scoring next before Gibson County made a small run to cut their lead to four. Coach Gregg called a timeout up 15-11.
South Greene hammered Gibson County the rest of the set and ended on a 10-3 run. Emma Padgett had five kills in that run and was also aided by a kill from Kortnei Bailey and ace from Bailey Ricker.
The Lady Rebels took the first set 25-14, but regressed majorly in the second set. Gibson County sprinted out to the 9-0 lead and never let off the gas. South Greene trailed by as much as 19-3 and dropped the second set 25-9. “It’s one of those you don’t want to remember, but it happened,” Coach Gregg mentioned.
Emma Padgett took it upon herself to make another statement at the beginning of the third. She sent four kills crashing down to the hardwood and had South Greene in front 5-1 early. Gibson County scored four-straight to cut it to 6-5, but Kortnei Bailey and Jaelynn Fillers helped South Greene win four-straight next to hold a 10-5 advantage. Padgett turned up the heat again and helped provide four points late to cap off their wire-to-wire win in the third set, 25-10.
“We did rebound after that second set and took care of business in the third. I felt like Gibson County put together a pretty big fight in the fourth set and made us have to earn it. And that’s what you expect. You expect to come down here and be challenged and pushed,” Coach Gregg stated.
Both teams traded blows in the early stages of the fourth and sat tied 3-3. Bailey was the main source of offense in the early half and helped South Greene take a lead and keep them out front. Reaves and Padgett helped churn out some offense to lead 13-9. Gibson County tied the set 13-13 and 16-16. Reagan Arrowood had been silent on the offensive side all game, but showed up when the game mattered most and broke the tie.
Reaves stepped to the line and delivered an ace and Bailey followed with back-to-back kills to give South Greene all the momentum. Padgett helped close the set out with a late kill and South Greene claimed a 25-21 win in the fourth set.
South Greene plays bright and early at 9:30 AM CT against Eagleville on Wednesday at Siegel High School. The winner will advance to the State Championship on Friday at 1:00 PM CT. The loser will drop to Thursday’s consolation bracket.
South Greene opened up their trip to Murfreesboro with a 3-1 (25-14, 9-25, 25-10, 25-21) victory in the opening round of the Class 1A State Tournament. Hear what Coach Stephen Gregg’s thoughts were after an opening round win over Gibson County. pic.twitter.com/prcmy5ZENb
— GreeneSportsZone (@GSportsZone) October 21, 2025
