Danville’s Fitzgerald area’s top player

By Staff
Todd Thompson, Hartselle Enquirer
DANVILLE - Alaina Fitzgerald fully expected to be back in Pelham this season for the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Elite Eight volleyball state tournament.
Certainly, those weren’t lofty expectations. Danville had already reached the state tournament in 2005 and 2006, so another run wasn’t an unattainable goal.
But the Lady Hawks were a different team than the past two seasons. Gone were some of the top players in school history and the lineup was filled with young players. So Fitzgerald stepped up her game, playing two key positions on the floor to lead the Lady Hawks back to Pelham.
The Danville senior is the 2007 Hartselle Enquirer All-Area player of the year after
Fitzgerald finished the season with 707 kills despite playing both middle hitter and setter for Danville this season. She played in the middle when she was in the front row, but added setting duties to her resume when she was on the back row.
Fitzgerald ranks fifth all-time in the state with 1,652 kills. She also recorded 984 digs during her three-year career at Danville.
Danville finished the season 41-28 after losing to Montevallo in the first round of the Elite Eight tournament.
Little was voted as the all-area coach of the year by her peers for leading the team to the Elite Eight for the third straight year, but Little believes its an honor she should share with assistant coach Spencer Cole, who has been with her staff since she took over the Lady Hawks’ program six years ago.
Joining Fitzgerald on the first team are Hartselle’s Chandler Orr and Dana Lacey; Brewer’s Megan Hormel; Danville’s Jordan Spinks; and Priceville’s Jessica Hopper.
Orr, a junior outside hitter, had 538 kills in 67 matches. She also had 184 digs, 41 blocks and 48 aces for Hartselle.
Lacey finished with 329 kills, 109 blocks, 119 aces and 73 digs this season. A UAH signee, Lacey was a key component to the Lady Tigers’ return to the Elite Eight tournament this year.
Hormel was a key senior outside hitter for Brewer this season. She helped the Lady Patriots advance to the regional tournament.
Spinks is a junior outside hitter for the Lady Hawks. She finished the year with 460 kills, 52 blocks, 71 aces and 173 digs. Spinks is regarded as a great hitter and a top passer.
Hopper was a middle hitter for Priceville and helped lead the Lady Bulldogs to the regional tournament this season.
Players earning second-team honors were Brewer’s Kendra Jones and Krista Hughes; Danville’s Lindsay Simmons; Hartselle’s Cerra Little; Megan Hill of Falkville; and Priceville’s Sumer Boyd.