RALEIGH – Mia Bradley, Sophia Overholt and Morgan Yoder arrived on Polk County’s campus in 2021 with expectations soaring about their potential impact on the Wolverine volleyball program.
Even though Overholt and Yoder didn’t play their eighth grade seasons at Polk County Middle for COVID-related reasons, community buzz didn’t diminish when the trio first put on Wolverine uniforms.
Turns out there was plenty of pressure from within as well.
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“Coach (Molly) Hill always referred to us as ‘this is the team that’s going to win me a state championship’,” Yoder said. “She never said two, so I guess we exceeded her expectations.”
“This has been a special group since we were little,” Bradley said. “I never had any doubts.”
Labeling the group as special may not do justice to all they accomplished. Bradley, Overholt and Yoder started all four seasons, the only of Polk’s six seniors to do so, and played a part in 84 wins, two conference titles, two West Regional titles and two state championships. Overholt and Yoder each earned state championship Most Valuable Player awards.
It’s a legacy that will serve as a highlight in Polk County’s athletic history from now forward.
“They’re just special,” Hill said. “They’ve been with me since they were freshmen, and they’ve contributed and played and started for me since they were freshmen.
“When you think about Polk County volleyball, you kind of think of those three. They’re just a special group. I even coached them with club in seventh and eighth grade. I’ve been through a lot with these kids, and I kind of think of them as my own.”
The trio’s senior seasons were not without adversity. Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc on Western North Carolina, halting all sports for a period and leaving the group not knowing when or if they would play again. That came after Overholt suffered what first was thought to be a season-ending knee injury, but eventually proved possible to play through with a brace.
“It was awful that I got hurt, but I’m kind of grateful for that,” Overholt said. “I felt like all of that (injury and the storm) brought us even more together and just made us that much closer.”
It’s hard to fathom a group being any closer than Polk County’s seniors. It’s rare to be on campus for an athletic event or other happening and not see at least two of the group together. Bradley called the moment after Saturday’s trophy presentation, the team huddled in a group celebrating, as “the best feeling ever.” Overholt agreed.
“It really is the best feeling ever, knowing that I’ve won this with all my best friends,” she said. “It’s also kind of sad because I’m never going to do it again.”
“We’re all so close that, win or lose, we all are going to be there for each other,” Bradley said. “We’re all going to be there to pick each other up, cheer on each other, be there for each other all the time. So I think it’s so special that we could do this as a team, and I really wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.”
“We’ve all grown up together,” Yoder said. “It’s different for other counties, because they’re spread out and they all go to different high schools. We’ve stuck together since the very beginning. I played rec ball with all of these girls. We really are a family.”
Families eventually grow and spread, and the same will be true for Polk County’s volleyball family. Overholt and Bradley already know they have college careers awaiting, and Yoder likely will as well. They’ll cross the graduation stage in May and head off into the world for the next phase of their lives.
But forever they will be two-time state champions at Polk County High School, their final moments spent together on the Reynolds Coliseum court putting a championship cap on their high school careers.
“It’s bittersweet to end this way and for this to be the last game that we all play together, on this stage,” Hill said.
“I did say that to them (the championship potential in ninth grade). I was very confident when I said it, too, that this was going to be my group. And, you know, look where we are.”
