Katie Dixon joins GNTC volleyball squad
Track Golf
The LaFayette Lady Ramblers were one of the top teams in all of northwest Georgia last fall and one of that team’s two seniors will stay close to home to continue her volleyball career.
All-county forward Katie Dixon officially joined the Georgia Northwestern Lady Bobcats after signing her letter back on April 25.
“It’s very exciting,” Dixon said. “This is going to be a good experience for me and I hope to make new friends and just enjoy the experience.”
After making the AllWalker County team as an honorable mention selection her sophomore year, Dixon enjoyed a breakout junior campaign, recording 149 kills, 206 digs and 45 aces.
This past season, Dixon upped her game with 232 kills, 368 digs and 56 aces to help LaFayette finish 4013 and make the state playoffs for a second consecutive season. In four years, Dixon was part of 101 match wins with the Lady Ramblers and was a part of the allcounty first team twice.
“She’s been a bigtime player since her freshman year,” LaFayette head coach Chris Logan said. “She has an all-around game and Georgia Northwestern is getting a steal. I know there were a couple of other colleges that were interested in her.”
Lady Bobcats head coach Amber Weaver said she was excited to land Dixon.
“She was already planning to go to Georgia Northwestern, but she got in contact with me and she has come to some of our open gym workouts,” two schools who did not participate.
Heritage and LaFayette have safely qualified for the Class 4A state tournament, May 21-22 in Helen. Weaver explained. “When I saw what she could do, I was amazed at what we were going to get.”
Dixon is primarily an outside hitter, but Weaver said they would take full advantage of her versatility.
“We’ve already had her at just about every single spot on the floor except setter,” she added. “We worked on her serving and had her playing on the back row. I’ve had her hit in the middle and, obviously, I’ve had her hitting on the outside. One thing that our girls have learned very quickly is that you can’t judge whether Katie is going to hit the ball across the court or down the line. She has the awesome ability to hit the ball down the line very well, which is big for her because she’s not super, super tall.
“We’re very excited about her joining our program. She’s been to three open gym workouts and she’s jumped right in. She has just fit in with everybody like she’s been there for a long time.”
“Everyone is really friendly there and the teachers are very helpful,” Dixon said, explaining her reasons for choosing GNTC. “It’s really close to home and I just like the environment.”
“It’s been fun coaching her,” Logan continued. “She’s a great kid and she works hard. She has good leadership and being able to play all over the court is going to help her at Georgia Northwestern. She was one of the best passers in the area last year, even though she was mainly a hitter for us. I don’t see a ton of weaknesses in her game.”
Dixon says she plans to study nursing.