Chargers pass playoff test
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
Don’t stop.
Keep fighting because it’s not done.
Wayne Country Day head volleyball coach Haleigh Wilhide constantly reminded her team of that against unseeded Salem Baptist Christian on Tuesday afternoon.
A soon-to-be-mother for the third time, Wilhide sweated out the Chargers’ nail-biting 25-17, 17-25, 25-18, 25-21 triumph in opening-round play of the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association Class 2-A state playoffs.
“I think it’s the first time we’ve come back from being behind,” Wilhide said. “When you’re trailing, you start to get frazzled emotionally and mentally. That’s when you have to re-check them back into playing volleyball because they haven’t really experienced much of that so far this season.”
Particularly the second set.
Consecutive kills from Mia Bolechowski gave the seventh-seeded Chargers a 9-5 advantage. But they couldn’t duplicate their fast start from the opening set.
Unseeded Salem Baptist Christian (7-13) seized command with a 9-2 run that included a solo block from sophomore Emma Miller and four straight unforced errors.
The teams battled to ties at 14-14, 15-15, 16-16 and 17-17 before a string of attack errors by WCDS put the Vikings ahead for good. The Chargers committed a set-ending passing miscue, which tied the best-of-five match at 1-1.
“They were a big challenge because we haven’t played a lot of good teams, so we were not used to pulling our weight,” WCDS libero Katie Strickland said. “They did a lot of things we weren’t used to, could hit really well, especially in the corners. We learned to shift and pick them up.
“[After the set loss] we all just kind of decided we needed to pick it up and play to the best of our abilities.”
Jala Holloman’s solo block and back-to-back kills from Bolechowski enabled Wayne Country Day to gain control at 13-7 in the second set. Junior outside hitter Graysen Jeffreys pounded out four kills down the stretch as the Chargers won 25-16.
The early stages of the fourth set included six ties and two lead changes.
Strickland and her teammates started to pick up the Vikings’ tendencies offensively, and hustled to keep balls in play.
Whitney Hoskins’ kill and Jeffreys’ service ace gave WCDS a 13-10 lead. Salem Baptist pulled to within 13-12, but couldn’t get any closer the rest of the set.
Lexi Jeffreys converted two crucial off-speed kills and Cate Eagles delivered a pair of aces that extended the margin to 23-18. Strickland’s kill gave the Chargers match point at 24-18, but the Vikings rallied to within 25-21.
After a timeout, Salem Baptist dug up two off-speed shots inside the 3-meter line. The rally ended on Strickland’s attack that glanced off the net and fell out of the reach of a Viking blocker.
Set and match to WCDS.
“Oh my God,” Strickland said of the net shot. “Then it went over and I was like, ‘yes!’ I always want it because I don’t get to hit a lot.”
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
Don’t stop.
Keep fighting because it’s not done.
Wayne Country Day head volleyball coach Haleigh Wilhide constantly reminded her team of that against unseeded Salem Baptist Christian on Tuesday afternoon.
A soon-to-be-mother for the third time, Wilhide sweated out the Chargers’ nail-biting 25-17, 17-25, 25-18, 25-21 triumph in opening-round play of the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association Class 2-A state playoffs.
“I think it’s the first time we’ve come back from being behind,” Wilhide said. “When you’re trailing, you start to get frazzled emotionally and mentally. That’s when you have to re-check them back into playing volleyball because they haven’t really experienced much of that so far this season.”
Particularly the second set.
Consecutive kills from Mia Bolechowski gave the seventh-seeded Chargers a 9-5 advantage. But they couldn’t duplicate their fast start from the opening set.
Unseeded Salem Baptist Christian (7-13) seized command with a 9-2 run that included a solo block from sophomore Emma Miller and four straight unforced errors.
The teams battled to ties at 14-14, 15-15, 16-16 and 17-17 before a string of attack errors by WCDS put the Vikings ahead for good. The Chargers committed a set-ending passing miscue, which tied the best-of-five match at 1-1.
“They were a big challenge because we haven’t played a lot of good teams, so we were not used to pulling our weight,” WCDS libero Katie Strickland said. “They did a lot of things we weren’t used to, could hit really well, especially in the corners. We learned to shift and pick them up.
“[After the set loss] we all just kind of decided we needed to pick it up and play to the best of our abilities.”
Jala Holloman’s solo block and back-to-back kills from Bolechowski enabled Wayne Country Day to gain control at 13-7 in the second set. Junior outside hitter Graysen Jeffreys pounded out four kills down the stretch as the Chargers won 25-16.
The early stages of the fourth set included six ties and two lead changes.
Strickland and her teammates started to pick up the Vikings’ tendencies offensively, and hustled to keep balls in play.
Whitney Hoskins’ kill and Jeffreys’ service ace gave WCDS a 13-10 lead. Salem Baptist pulled to within 13-12, but couldn’t get any closer the rest of the set.
Lexi Jeffreys converted two crucial off-speed kills and Cate Eagles delivered a pair of aces that extended the margin to 23-18. Strickland’s kill gave the Chargers match point at 24-18, but the Vikings rallied to within 25-21.
After a timeout, Salem Baptist dug up two off-speed shots inside the 3-meter line. The rally ended on Strickland’s attack that glanced off the net and fell out of the reach of a Viking blocker.
Set and match to WCDS.
“Oh my God,” Strickland said of the net shot. “Then it went over and I was like, ‘yes!’ I always want it because I don’t get to hit a lot.”
