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Arendell Parrott comes back to beat Harrells Christian in five sets
· · · · By Junious Smith III / Sports Editor KINSTON FREE PRESS
In a matchup between two powerful teams in the Coastal Rivers Conference Wednesday, Arendell Parrott was taken to the limit and then some, playing from behind most of the way.
The Lady Patriots would not be denied.
Arendell Parrott defeated Harrells Christian 25-17, 25-27, 22-25, 25-19, 16-14 in a grueling match. The Lady Patriots (9-2) were down 2 sets to 1 and faced match point in the tiebreaking fifth set, but fought through for the victory.
At first, it seemed like the Lady Patriots had an overwhelming advantage over Harrells Christian (10-3, 1-1) in their conference opener, jumping out to an 18-7 lead behind the strength of three kills and two service aces by Scarlet Combs. Unfortunately, Combs suffered a knee injury on her second ace and was unable to play for the rest of the contest.
“When I served, I felt my knee buckle,” Combs said. “We’ll go to the hospital (Thursday) and see what happened. I won’t be able to play (against our next opponent Thursday, Cape Fear Academy) but I should be alright.”
Combs’ loss proved costly for Arendell Parrott. Although the Lady Patriots won the first set, the Lady Crusaders gave them a serious battle in the second set. Neither team had a lead of more than four points, as the set had 14 ties and eight lead changes. Still, Arendell Parrott seemed to have a grasp with a 21-17 advantage, prompting a timeout from Harrells Christian.
The timeout proved effective as the Lady Crusaders scored four straight — the last on a service ace by Abigail Blanchard — to even the score. The Lady Patriots had set point with a 25-24 lead, but Harrells Christian scored three straight, punctuated by a kill from Sierra Votaw, to tie the match at 1.
In the third set, Harrells Christian had a 17-11 advantage, but Arendell Parrott fought back. Susana Sualevai had 30 kills in the match, including consecutive spikes to tie the match at 21. The Lady Crusaders, ended the set, scoring four of the last five points to take a 2-1 advantage.
The Lady Patriots got the equalizer in the fourth set. After trailing 6-5, Arendell Parrott went on a 7-2 run — punctuated with a Sualevai kill — to maintain control. Harrells Christian would get no closer than four points, setting up a competitive tiebreaker.
In the first-to-15 final set, there were eight ties and four lead changes with no team getting more than a three-point advantage. Harrells Christian had a 14-13 advantage, but Arendell Parrott finished the match with three straight points — ending with another Sualevai kill.
Due to Combs’ injury, the senior Sualevai had to transition from outside hitter to middle hitter, but played stellar in her teammates’ absence.
“She’s a big part of the team and she’s golden, especially during that first set,” Sualevai said. “Her and Alli Grant Avery are our middle hitters and losing Scarlet is like losing an important puzzle piece.
“The team plays pretty good. We complement each other well, but we also correct each other — if one of us makes a mistake, the rest of us are there to tell them ‘this is what we need to do.’ We were able to get it done (in this game.)”
Arendell Parrott coach David Barnes had high praise for his team battling through the adversity of losing Combs while coming out victorious against a strong opponent.
“In Set 1, it looked like we had control until Scarlet went down and I think that would’ve been the way the match would’ve continued had she been healthy,” Barnes said. “She’s arguably our second-best player, but our team didn’t give up. We were down 2-1 and came all the way back. We’ve got two eighth-graders, a ninth-grader and a sophomore on the varsity team, so it’s amazing that they’ve got such resilience at a young age.
“Of course, I can’t say enough about Susana. She was playing out of position and did everything she needed to do to make sure we came out on top.”
Harrells Christian coach Wendy Crumpler said she’s waiting for the rematch on Oct. 20 where the Lady Crusaders will have the home court advantage.
“It was a great match, but we gave up too many points that we usually have teams work for,” Crumpler said. “Against a good team like Parrott, we can’t afford that. I think we gave them all they wanted and I can’t wait to get them in our place.”
For Arendell Parrott, Ally Grant Avery had 11 kills, Mackenzie Pope had 24 assists and Hannah Scott Avery added 18 assists. For Harrells Christian, Brenna King each had 15 kills and 15 blocks, Volaw had 15 kills and five blocks and Marissa Parks added nine kills with 20 assists.
Arendell Parrott comes back to beat Harrells Christian in five sets
· · · · By Junious Smith III / Sports Editor KINSTON FREE PRESS
In a matchup between two powerful teams in the Coastal Rivers Conference Wednesday, Arendell Parrott was taken to the limit and then some, playing from behind most of the way.
The Lady Patriots would not be denied.
Arendell Parrott defeated Harrells Christian 25-17, 25-27, 22-25, 25-19, 16-14 in a grueling match. The Lady Patriots (9-2) were down 2 sets to 1 and faced match point in the tiebreaking fifth set, but fought through for the victory.
At first, it seemed like the Lady Patriots had an overwhelming advantage over Harrells Christian (10-3, 1-1) in their conference opener, jumping out to an 18-7 lead behind the strength of three kills and two service aces by Scarlet Combs. Unfortunately, Combs suffered a knee injury on her second ace and was unable to play for the rest of the contest.
“When I served, I felt my knee buckle,” Combs said. “We’ll go to the hospital (Thursday) and see what happened. I won’t be able to play (against our next opponent Thursday, Cape Fear Academy) but I should be alright.”
Combs’ loss proved costly for Arendell Parrott. Although the Lady Patriots won the first set, the Lady Crusaders gave them a serious battle in the second set. Neither team had a lead of more than four points, as the set had 14 ties and eight lead changes. Still, Arendell Parrott seemed to have a grasp with a 21-17 advantage, prompting a timeout from Harrells Christian.
The timeout proved effective as the Lady Crusaders scored four straight — the last on a service ace by Abigail Blanchard — to even the score. The Lady Patriots had set point with a 25-24 lead, but Harrells Christian scored three straight, punctuated by a kill from Sierra Votaw, to tie the match at 1.
In the third set, Harrells Christian had a 17-11 advantage, but Arendell Parrott fought back. Susana Sualevai had 30 kills in the match, including consecutive spikes to tie the match at 21. The Lady Crusaders, ended the set, scoring four of the last five points to take a 2-1 advantage.
The Lady Patriots got the equalizer in the fourth set. After trailing 6-5, Arendell Parrott went on a 7-2 run — punctuated with a Sualevai kill — to maintain control. Harrells Christian would get no closer than four points, setting up a competitive tiebreaker.
In the first-to-15 final set, there were eight ties and four lead changes with no team getting more than a three-point advantage. Harrells Christian had a 14-13 advantage, but Arendell Parrott finished the match with three straight points — ending with another Sualevai kill.
Due to Combs’ injury, the senior Sualevai had to transition from outside hitter to middle hitter, but played stellar in her teammates’ absence.
“She’s a big part of the team and she’s golden, especially during that first set,” Sualevai said. “Her and Alli Grant Avery are our middle hitters and losing Scarlet is like losing an important puzzle piece.
“The team plays pretty good. We complement each other well, but we also correct each other — if one of us makes a mistake, the rest of us are there to tell them ‘this is what we need to do.’ We were able to get it done (in this game.)”
Arendell Parrott coach David Barnes had high praise for his team battling through the adversity of losing Combs while coming out victorious against a strong opponent.
“In Set 1, it looked like we had control until Scarlet went down and I think that would’ve been the way the match would’ve continued had she been healthy,” Barnes said. “She’s arguably our second-best player, but our team didn’t give up. We were down 2-1 and came all the way back. We’ve got two eighth-graders, a ninth-grader and a sophomore on the varsity team, so it’s amazing that they’ve got such resilience at a young age.
“Of course, I can’t say enough about Susana. She was playing out of position and did everything she needed to do to make sure we came out on top.”
Harrells Christian coach Wendy Crumpler said she’s waiting for the rematch on Oct. 20 where the Lady Crusaders will have the home court advantage.
“It was a great match, but we gave up too many points that we usually have teams work for,” Crumpler said. “Against a good team like Parrott, we can’t afford that. I think we gave them all they wanted and I can’t wait to get them in our place.”
For Arendell Parrott, Ally Grant Avery had 11 kills, Mackenzie Pope had 24 assists and Hannah Scott Avery added 18 assists. For Harrells Christian, Brenna King each had 15 kills and 15 blocks, Volaw had 15 kills and five blocks and Marissa Parks added nine kills with 20 assists.
