Boys volleyball: Hough is headed back to the state championship after defeating Ardrey Kell on Tuesday in the state semifinals behind strong play from seniors Noah Gauthier (kills), Christopher Barnes (assists) and Jaden Verhoeven (digs), as well as the powerful serve of Colten Short.

Hough won 25-10, 25-17, 25-18 and punctuated the victory with a celebratory postgame flip by senior Paul Kolacki.

Hough will play a formidable West Forsyth squad in the state championship Saturday night at Queen’s University in Charlotte. The Titans are 26-0 and ranked No. 24 nationally, according to MaxPreps. Hough lost the earlier matchup this season, 3-1, but was competitive in every set.

“If we can limit our mistakes and force them to cover the entire court, we can drag them into our style of game and beat them,” head coach Greyson Roberts said. “If we can make the game a mental battle, we have the toughness and connection to win.”

Track and field: Hough athletes qualified for 12 events at the state championship meet scheduled for Saturday at N.C. A&T University’s Truist Stadium. Qualifiers were led by Drew Johnson’s first-place finish in the 800 meters with a time of 1:53.56. The 4×400 relay team of Luke Patton, Kylin Bright, Christian Carter and Drew Johnson finished second in 3:19.14.

The full list of competitors includes Kylin Bright (400m); Drew Johnson (800m); Quinn Notte (800m); Aleksa Camodeca (1600m); Grant Collum (3200m); Aidan Malloy (3200m); Maddox Thompson (long jump); Shawn Kennedy (discus); Trace Oakley (shot put); Davion Jones, Kaiden Anderson, Christian Carter and Jackson Heath (boys 4×100); Luke Patton, Kylin Bright, Christian Carter and Drew Johnson (boys 4×400); and Addy Bamford, Juliana Mills-Zacapa, Jenna Beyerle and Aleksa Camodeca (girls 4×800).

Boys golf: Hough senior Sam Quattlebaum tied for 25th in the 8A state championship earlier this week with rounds of 76 and 81 at Pinehurst No. 8.

Girls lacrosse: The fifth-seeded Huskies knocked off 12th-seeded Providence in the first round of the playoffs, 18-5, and will travel to fourth-seeded Myers Park tonight. Seven Huskies received all-conference honors, and senior midfielder Bridget Steen was named conference player of the year.

Girls soccer: The top-seeded Huskies survived their second-round matchup against No. 9 seed South Mecklenburg with a goal in the 44th minute from freshman forward Nora Breault. Hough will host fourth-seeded Ardrey Kell on Monday. The Huskies lost 1-0 to the Knights in their previous matchup, one of only three losses this season.

Boys lacrosse: The Huskies received a first-round bye as the top seed in the 8A West Region and will host Myers Park tonight at 7 p.m.

Softball: Hough lost in the third round of the playoffs to top-seeded Providence, 4-0, despite a strong performance in the circle from senior Payton Elwell, who struck out eight batters and allowed just three hits. The Huskies finished the season 20-6.

Baseball: The season ended last Friday with a 5-4 loss to Ardrey Kell in the second round of the playoffs. The Huskies finished 18-8.