The Chilton County Tigers volleyball team could not have planned for a better start to area play, following a sweep (23-15, 25-18, 25-20) of Stanhope-Elmore at home on Tuesday.

A raucous student section was on hand and the Tigers provided plenty to cheer about in all three sets.

“Shout out to the student section,” said Chilton County head coach Emily Driver. “They did an excellent job of keeping the momentum in our favor. We appreciate all the support.”

The match began fairly even with both teams trading points until Johnna Robertson’s service game helped Chilton County string together some points and open up a 20-14 lead.

Dana Kelley had a pair of blocks in the first set, as the Tigers took advantage and cruised to victory in the first set.

“It was very intense out there,” Robertson said. “We knew going in that we had to win. It was a great feeling.”

Robertson is also the key to Chilton County’s defensive efforts as libero, and she showed the ability to counter whatever Stanhope-Elmore threw at the Tigers.

“Everybody expects me to take charge and set the tone,” Robertson said. “It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s my passion.”

Chilton County started slowly in both the second and third sets, but was able to rebound and erase the deficit on both occasions.

The rallies were ignited by the precision serving of several players, which included Robertson, Lesley Harton and Anna Mims.

“We’ve focused a lot of our attention on being consistent with our serving,” Driver said. “They (Stanhope-Elmore) weren’t quite sure of what was coming.”

Helping finish the deal were back-to-back plays that involved a monstrous kill by Kaley Lucas and a block by Kelley, which brought about a roar from the students in attendance.

“Dana Kelley and Kaley Lucas held strong along the net all night,” Driver said.

Five points later, the match was official and Chilton County improved to 2-4 overall and more importantly 1-0 in the area standings.

“Volleyball has brought us all together and we’ve grown up over that time,” Kelley said. “This is good start to our final year.”