Summit's volleyball season came down to a fifth set Tuesday, Oct. 13, at Franklin High School, and the Spartans came up three points short.

Franklin captured the Region 5-AAA championship with a 20-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-17, 15-12 win over Summit in the teams' fourth five-set match this season, the Williamson Herald reported. The loss stings, but the defending Class AAA state champions are still alive. Summit travels to Station Camp on Thursday, Oct. 15, for a 6 p.m. sectional match with a state tournament berth at stake.

Senior Emery Estep led Summit with 20 kills in the region final. Senior Everleigh DeShazo added 13.

"Our girls played all heart," Summit coach Warne Riker told the Williamson Herald after the loss. "Just a couple of minor mistakes that took the advantage away from us. Other than that, the girls played amazing."

Summit grabbed the first and third sets to take a 2-1 match lead. Franklin stormed back in the fourth, running off the first five points and holding on for a 25-17 win to force a decider. In the fifth, Franklin's Brynn Pennington opened with an early block to give the Admirals a 3-1 lead they never surrendered. Pennington also delivered the match-clinching kill at 15-12.

Riker, the 2025-26 Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) Volleyball Coach of the Year, said late errors made the difference in the deciding set.

Semifinal sweep

Earlier on Oct. 13, Summit rolled through District 9-AAA champion Lincoln County 25-10, 25-17, 25-15 to reach the region final. DeShazo paced the attack with 11 kills. Junior Nonie Yancy added nine. The Spartans served 13 aces, with seniors Burtch (four), Rowe (three) and Estep (three) leading the way.

What's next

Summit Spartans Athletics confirmed on X that the sectional matchup is set: Summit at Station Camp, 6 p.m. Thursday. Station Camp won its own Region 6 title Oct. 13, beating Green Hill 3-2.

A win sends Summit back to the TSSAA Class AAA state tournament for a second straight year. After Summit's Oct. 8 district semifinal win, Estep told the Williamson Herald, "This is really just so exciting that we get to do this again our senior year … Obviously, last year was so good … and we just want to do that again."

First serve at Station Camp is 6 p.m.