UNIONVILLE, Tenn. – The Community Viqueens volleyball program is coming off of a 2024 campaign that saw them finish as the District 8-AA Runner-Up before losing in the Region 4-AA semifinal to Cumberland County. They recently took home the Volley Jam Championship – an 8-team preseason tournament held in Lancaster, TN – after downing Franklin Road Christian School in the final, and their 11th-year head coach, Tiffany Klages, is ready for 2025.

“I am looking forward to this season,” Klages says, “They are already excited too, and we have a lot of returning talent.”

One of the biggest changes for this season is the addition of two new teams into District 8-AA to bring the total up to eight: Spring Hill and Chapel Hill. Spring Hill parachutes down from Class AAA after finishing 25-12 (13-1) and winning the District 9-AAA regular season only to see its season end prematurely in an upset loss to Lincoln County in the district tournament semifinals. Conversely, Chapel Hill moves up from Class A following a rough 2024 season that ended at the hands of Fayetteville City in the District 6-A Tournament semifinals. 

Murfreesboro Central Magnet won the District 8-AA title last season over the Viqueens, 3-1, before falling to Stone Memorial in straight sets in the Region 4-AA semifinal. Community also saw its season end in the regional semifinal round, but at Cumberland County instead. 

In preparation for the 2025 season, Klages knew she would be having to replace two extremely important pieces – outside hitter Izzy Martinez, and Breanna Grooms. Martinez led Community by far in Kills, averaging 12.7 per match, totaling 394 on the year. Martinez was also second on the team in Digs, averaging 8.8 per match and finishing with 272 for the season. Meanwhile, Grooms by far led the team in Digs, averaging 13.1 per match for a total of 406 throughout the year. 

The good news is that the Viqueens are returning three key statistical pieces from 2024 in Brooklyn Yoes, Gracie Daniel, and Hadley Martin. Martin was second on the team in Kills behind Martinez with a much more modest 158 – an average of 5.1 per match.

Hadley Martin (15) returns for her sophomore season with the second-most kills from a season ago (158).

Community High School Viqueens Volleyball Facebook - (Ashlyn Yoes)

Meanwhile, Yoes and Daniel finished in the top four in both Digs and Kills, and led the team in assists. Daniel was third in Kills with 108 (3.5 per match), fourth in digs with 186 (6.0 per match), and second in assists with 242 (7.8 per match). Yoes finished fourth in Kills with 93 (3.0 per match), third in Digs with 235 (7.6 per match), and led the team in assists with 480 (15.5 per match). 

“She [Daniel] really improved and stepped up,” says Klages about the junior, “She just does whatever I ask her, wherever I play her, she does not care. I ask her to be a setter sometimes, I ask her to be a middle sometimes, sometimes she's outside and she's always a DS. She is just so versatile and a big asset to our team. Wherever I put her, I don't have to worry about it.”

Gracie Daniel (4) returns for her junior season after finishing 2024 with the third-most kills on the team (108), the fourth-most digs (186), and the second-most assists (242).

Community High School Viqueens Volleyball Facebook - (Ashlyn Yoes)

Klages also at least partially credits Yoes’ importance and impact to her having played since her freshman year, a strategy the Viqueens’ head coach has employed ever since she got the job to build up the program back in 2015. 

“When I first got the program, we struggled a lot,” Klages says. “It took me about two-and-a-half, maybe three years to create a really good program in one district in my third year. We were runners-up my second year, and then we went to sub-state my fourth year. So it gradually got better. Since then, I've tried to create my program where all of my girls that return are ready for varsity every single year. I believe in playing them young, so if I see potential in them, they get that playing time and that exposure to the game so they can be better at it by their senior year. Right now I have several juniors on the team that this is their third year playing varsity full time. I just believe in that early exposure to get them ready so I don't have to worry about them as much anymore. I can just worry about my younger ones to fill the holes.”

Klages says that training new setters are perhaps the most difficult position to get ready for varsity, and she’s glad to have Brooklyn Yoes returning in that spot. Even though Yoes is only a junior, she is already listed as the team captain and is the primary setter on the squad. 

“They [setters] are the ones who touch the ball all the time, they're the playmakers, they're like the quarterback of volleyball. So I don't have to train a setter this year or last year. [Yoes] is a junior now and she was probably full time her freshman year.”

Brooklyn Yoes (21) returns for her junior season as the team captain and as an instrumental setter for the Viqueens. She finished with the fourth-most kills (93), the third-most digs (235), and the most assists (480) on the team last season.

Community High School Viqueens Volleyball Facebook - (Ashlyn Yoes)

The Viqueens head coach realizes the tough road ahead in district play, but that fact doesn’t damper her enthusiasm about 2025.

“My expectations for the team is as long as they're giving 110% and they're playing with their heart, I'll always cheer them on and be happy. I want to stay positive and just believe in my girls and believe in myself to lead them to success.”

With back-to-back district runner-ups to their name coming into this season, Klages and the Viqueens are gunning to bring home the title this season in a jam-packed District 8-AA. Community opens district play at Central Magnet on Thursday, August 21st, before taking a nearly two week hiatus for The Celebration. They return to the court on September 2nd at home against Moore County before diving back into district play at home against Chapel Hill on September 4th.