GAINESVILLE - Things went true to form Thursday at the Area 4-AAA volleyball tournament being held at North Hall and Chestatee high schools.<br>
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Top seeds Grayson and Johnson both cruised into the quarterfinals going unbeaten in the opening rounds. Both teams automatically qualified for the state tournament.<br>
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They will play each Saturday at 12:15 p.m. at North Hall for a spot in the finals.<br>
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The loser's bracket action was furious, as seeds three through six - North Hall, West Hall, Gainesville and Chestatee - all stayed alive.<br>
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But all four teams face elimination Saturday in a pair of 10:30 a.m. games at North Hall. <br>
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Chestatee and West Hall will battle while Gainesville will take on host North Hall. The winners will earn a spot in next week's state tournament.<br>
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Perhaps the best match of the day was North Hall's come-from-behind win over Chestatee in the opening round. Chestatee jumped out to a 2-0 lead in games and had three match points in Game 3 against the Lady Trojans. But North Hall fought those off and came back to win that game 30-28 and then beat the War Eagles 25-8 and 15-10 to win the match.<br>
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"After we lost that third game that kind of took the wind out of our sails," Chestatee coach Mike Paul said. "But we battled back after that win the next two matches. I think we have a shot."<br>
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The War Eagles stayed alive by beating Flowery Branch and Monroe Area.
