The high school volleyball season begins early next week, and a few teams around Lexington County are looking to compete at a high level this season.

Lexington is seeking its second consecutive region championship after going 8-0 against conference foes in 2023. The Wildcats had their best season in over five years, finishing 35-9-2.

The Wildcats lost some key pieces from last year’s team including all-stars Sara Sykes and Kendall Vinson. Their production will be missed as Lexington tries to return to the state title game after making it in 2022 but missing out in 2023.

River Bluff competed with the Wildcats last season and is looking to do the same this year. The Gators finished second in region play last year, losing its only two region contests to Lexington.

River Bluff and Lexington actually competed three times last season, but one game was during a tournament, so it did not count toward the region record. The Wildcats won that match as well.

Like Lexington, River Bluff advanced to the third round of the playoffs last season before losing to Rock Hill. The Gators lost five seniors from what was mostly a young team filled with underclassmen in 2023.

One key returner for the Gators is Alexis Jodie. She was named All-State and 5A Region 4 Player of the Year as just a sophomore. Jodie has been on the varsity team since eighth grade and already accumulated more than 2,400 total assists in 314 sets played.

Looking to catch up to the top two teams from last year is Chapin, Dutch Fork and White Knoll. None of those teams finished better than .500 in region games, and Dutch Fork and White Knoll were under .500 for their overall records. Those have a lot of ground to make up, but anything is possible.

Joining the region this season is Irmo. The Yellow Jackets did not have an impressive 2023 outing, finishing 4-13 overall and 3-7 in region games. The team lost a handful of seniors and will have to replace their production to compete in a higher classification.

Down in 4A, this will be the first season that Airport, Brookland-Cayce, Gilbert and Gray Collegiate will compete in a region together. Brookland-Cayce, Gilbert and Gray all moved up classifications and joined Airport in a region with teams from Augusta and Aiken.

Gilbert finished first in its region last year after going 10-1. With new opponents on the schedule this season, the Indians will have to compete with teams like South Aiken, who won the 4A state title after going undefeated in region last season.

The Indians advanced to the third round of the volleyball playoffs last season before losing to Camden, the 3A state runner-up. This year, Gilbert will play without their star player Meredith McEnulty, who was named All-State and Region Player of the Year.

Gray Collegiate, Airport and Brookland-Cayce will have to turn things around following an underwhelming season last year. Airport and Brookland-Cayce failed to make the postseason and Gray Collegiate was eliminated in the second round after winning their region by forfeits.

Swansea is the only Lexington County team left in 3A play. The Tigers had a decent outing last year going over .500 overall and just below that in region play. The team qualified for the postseason but lost in the first round to Camden.

This season, instead of competing against a handful of local teams, the Tigers will play against former 2A schools, including Fox Creek, Keenan, Silver Bluff and Newberry.

Finally, out in 2A play, Batesburg-Leesville and Pelion stuck together through realignment and are preparing for a season against new region rivals. These two teams were basically opposites last season with Pelion competing for a region title and Batesburg-Leesville sitting at the bottom of the standings.

Pelion had its best season in years after going 14-4-1 last year to tie with Fox Creek at 7-1 in region games. The Panthers lost five seniors from last season’s team, including two-time All-State selection and Region Player of the Year, Maggie Northcutt. She was crucial to the Panthers’ success, recording 127 kills at a 46% rate last season.

Games to watch next week

Gilbert vs. White Knoll — Aug. 26 — 5 p.m.

Lexington vs. Aiken — Aug. 26 — 6 p.m. 

River Bluff vs. Dorman — Aug. 27 — 7:30 p.m.

Pelion vs. Swansea — Aug. 29 — 7 p.m.