The Brownstown Central volleyball team begins sectional play today at Edgewood High School in Ellettsville to start what the Braves hope will jump-start a run to another Class 3A state title.

Brownstown’s opening game is versus Brown County.

Due to safety precautions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, visitor attendance is being limited to the families of the BCHS volleyball team able to buy tickets with a distributed voucher.

The upcoming tournament will set the volleyball team on the path of defending its state title from last season, starting in the morning but concluding the same night if the Braves win and qualify.

Saturday’s championship match will be at 7 p.m., and as long as Brownstown advances, coach Jennifer Shade expects the team to play against Edgewood then “just going off of the numbers,” she said.

If Edgewood does not win its way to the finals of the tournament, Brownstown could face off against West Vigo, Owen Valley or Northview, pending the day’s match results.

Regarding how the Braves are performing, Shade said despite some late-season injuries, she thinks the team is as ready for the sectional as it was last year, and she feels better after the team’s practices this week.

Since this week leading up to the sectional was fall break for Brownstown, the team practiced in the mornings to prepare.

Going into the tournament, the Braves are undefeated with a 9-0 record in the Mid-Southern Conference and 19-11 overall.

While there are some injuries, they shouldn’t represent too much of an obstacle for the team’s performance with most of the roster ready to go.

Some of the key Brownstown players are seniors Kendra McCory and Jennifer Pence. Both havemore than 200 kills on the season.