CEDAR BLUFF — The sixth-ranked Cedar Bluff Lady Tiger (34-17) volleyball team defeated Waterloo by scores of 25-13, 25-11 and 25-16, to advance to the Class 1A state volleyball championships in Pelham next week. The last time Cedar Bluff participated in the Elite Eight tournament was 2000. 

The 2011 tournament will include the Lady Tigers, along with No. 1 Lynn, No. 2 Addison, No. 3 Donoho, No. 4 Parkway Christian, No. 7 Gaston, No. 8 Kinston and unranked Sacred Heart.   

Cedar Bluff will match up against No. 8 Kinston (17-12) at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 26 at the Pelham Civic Complex. A Cedar Bluff win against Kinston would set up a 7 p.m. game against the winner of the Lynn vs. Donoho contest.  

It’s been 11 years since Cedar Bluff traveled to the state tournament. In 2000, Cedar Bluff advanced to the Elite Eight as the runner-up from Region C. The Lady Tigers were defeated by Speake after coming out of pool play.    

Cedar Bluff Head Coach Tiffany Rieger is no stranger to the high-caliber competition on display in Pelham. Rieger was an all-state player at Cherokee County.  She teamed with current Warrior head coach Amy (Hellums) Barnes and others on dominate teams that routinely battled for state supremacy on the volleyball court.    

For the Lady Bulldogs this year marks the sixth straight year they will be a participant in the Elite Eight. Gaston takes the court against Sacred Heart at 12:30 p.m. A Lady Bulldog victory moves them on to an evening match against the winner of Addison vs. Parkway Christian.