The 2018 Shore Conference B South girls volleyball race is shaping up to be a marathon.

It isn’t surprising that Pinelands and Donovan Catholic were expected to be the prime contenders for a B South title this season. After all, they were the B South co-champs in 2017 with identical divisional records of 13-1, with their only losses coming to each other. And they met in the Shore Conference Tournament final, with Pinelands winning, 26-24, 13-25, 27-25.