By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com

LIBERTY — Nearly ten years removed from Liberty High School’s state championship loss to Bishop England, Red Devil head volleyball coach Carla Simpson and her team had a chance to make it back to the championship against fellow upper state finalist Gray Collegiate Academy and fulfill a pact made between Simpson and senior libero Kayden Elrod back in 2014.

“The last time we were at state, I have a picture of me and our libero Kayden Elrod when she was a just little thing,” Simpson said. “We’ve always said that we were going to make it back there before she graduated.”

When the final whistle blew in the Red Devil’s 3-0 upper state championship win over the War Eagles, the duo got to see their dream come true as Liberty will play in the 2A volleyball state championship for just the fifth time in school history on Saturday against Oceanside Collegiate Academy.

“It’s just so surreal,” Elrod said looking back on that moment with her coach after the Red Devil’s win. “I wasn’t even sure that I’d be playing volleyball still, but I’m here and I’m very excited.”

The Red Devils have every reason to be excited with their upper state win marking the culmination of an eight year odyssey to return to state including a rough stretch which saw the Red Devils miss the playoffs twice in a row while they were members of the 3A classification in 2018 and 2019. This year’s senior class came into Liberty High School as freshmen on that 2019 squad and Simpson is proud of the fight and determination the group showed