The Reset: Fall sports in full swing

Over the course of the year, Village Living will keep you up to date on the various Mountain Brook High School athletic teams. With football season three weeks old, volleyball season two weeks old and cross-country getting underway over the weekend, the fall sports season is in full swing.

FOOTBALL

The Spartans hosted Hoover in the Class 7A, Region 3 opener on Friday, with the Bucs making enough plays late to win, 31-21. Mountain Brook battled back from a 24-7 halftime deficit and had the ball with a chance to tie or take the lead, but the Hoover defense stood up to the challenge. The Bucs scored a late touchdown to put the game out of reach.

Click here for a full recap of the game. 

VOLLEYBALL

The Spartan volleyball team is off to an 8-6 start after two weeks of action. At the Juanita Boddie Tournament in Hoover Sept. 1-2, the Spartans went 2-2 in pool play, defeating St. John Paul II and Buckhorn and falling to Etowah (Ga.) and Bayside Academy. In pool play, Mountain Brook defeated Hoover before losing to Briarcrest (Tenn.).

Last week, Mountain Brook swept Vestavia Hills, 3-0, to notch a win over a local foe. Here’s the full recap from that match.

Over the weekend, the Spartans traveled to Huntsville for the Sherry Ammons Ironman Tournament.

The Spartans began pool play on Friday with a win over Hartselle (25-15, 25-10) and a loss to Bob Jones (21-25, 25-22, 9-15). On Saturday, they began with a close win over Cookeville [Tenn.] (20-25, 25-15, 17-15), before losing to Huntsville (12-25, 25-16, 13-15) and defeating Geraldine (25-19, 25-14) to finish 3-2 and second in their pool.

In bracket action, Mountain Brook knocked off Hartselle once again (25-13, 25-17), but lost to James Clemens in the quarterfinals (21-25, 25-12, 11-15).

Head coach Vickie Nichols said she was encouraged by the signs of progress her young team has shown over the first two weeks.

This week, the Spartans take the floor once, as they host James Clemens at 3:30 p.m. Thursday.

CROSS-COUNTRY

The Mountain Brook High School cross-country teams opened their 2017 seasons on Saturday at the Chickasaw Trails Invitational in Oakville. The event was held on the 5K course at Oakville Indian Mounds Park, the annual site of the state meet.

Anna Balzli, a junior, led the Spartan girls to a runner-up finish in the large school division behind Hoover. The Bucs scored 77 points to Mountain Brook’s 96.

“I’m happy with where we are. I think we can get a lot better, but I think it’s a solid start,” Mountain Brook head coach Michael McGovern said. “It gives us kind of an idea of where we are and what we need to work on the next few weeks.”

Balzli recorded a ninth-place finish in 19 minutes, 20 seconds. She was one of three Spartans to place in the top 15. Freshman Elizabeth Robertson ran 19:35 to finish 11th, and sophomore Lily Hulsey ran 19:43 to finish 16th. 

Hunter Harwell, a junior, paced the Mountain Brook boys to a fifth-place team showing in the large school division. He clocked a time of 16:11 to place 10th in his first race back from an injury that sidelined him for the 2017 outdoor track season.

“He hadn’t run a race in almost six months,” McGovern said. “For him to be out there and do that, run low 16s his first race out, I was really excited.”

The Mountain Brook cross-country teams return to action Saturday at the Scottsboro Invitational.

NOTABLE ALUMNI

A few former Spartans have made their marks over the past few weeks as well. Emmy Kilgore, a freshman at Birmingham-Southern, opened her career with a few solid performances on the volleyball court. The Panthers have started the season with a 4-3 mark under new head coach, and former Mountain Brook coach, Haven O’Quinn.

Kilgore has totaled 49 kills and 60 digs through her first seven collegiate matches, including her first double-double on Sept. 9. Against Hardin-Simmons, she registered a career-high 10 kills along with 12 digs.

After turning in a solid freshman season at Emory University, Sara Carr is also making her presence felt on the volleyball court. Through the season’s first seven matches, Emory is 6-1, while Carr is second on the team with 76 kills.

-- Who did we miss? What else would you like to see mentioned? For any suggestions, feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnespublishing.com.