PV back on track
- Updated: October 17, 2015
Lady Raiders win three quality matches in final tuneup before area tournament; Oxford 2-1, Alexandria 1-2, White Plains 0-3
By East Alabama Sports Today
JACKSONVILLE — The Pleasant Valley volleyball team appears to have rediscovered the magic and it couldn’t be coming at a more perfect time.
The Lady Raiders had been in something of a funk since their dramatic run to the Calhoun County Tournament championship match, but Saturday they won three matches over three quality opponents in their final tuneup for postseason play.
They beat White Plains 25-13, 25-18; county tournament champion Oxford 20-25, 25-23,15-7; and Alexandria 27-25, 30-28. Oxford beat them in five exciting sets in the County finals.
They take a 32-11 record into the Class 3A area tournament they host Monday. The other three teams play their respective area tournaments Tuesday.
“We had to get refocused after county,” PV coach Dana Bryant said. “We came off of a high and flat lined.
“The girls knew they had to find “it” again; that’s what today was all about. They knew games were going to be intense today and those intense games were exactly what we needed to help get prepared for playoffs. I think today’s competition will help all teams.”
Cammy Cochran led the Lady Raiders with 47 kills, 5 aces, 56 digs and 8 blocks. Anna Bryant had 16 kills, 64 assists, 4 blocks, 3 aces and 30 digs. Alisa St. John had 15 kills, 5 aces, 43 digs and 2 blocks.
Leah Johnson 3 blocks, 5 kills, 1 ace, 6 digs; Blakley Malsy had 7 blocks and 8 digs: Makayla Kendrick had 8 blocks, 3 kills and 5 digs; Madi Bentley had 5 aces and 49 digs; and Taylor Williams had 32 digs.
Oxford goes 2-1
The Yellow Jackets returned to the floor for the first time in a week and in addition to the PV match, defeated Alexandria 25-15, 25-21 and White Plains 28-26, 25-21.
Breanna Nolan had 15 kills and 29 digs. Nyia Archie had 11 kills, 2 aces and 4 digs. Chloe Stone had 4 aces, 10 digs and 69 assists. Laura Davenport had 16 kills and 8 digs. Winter Taylor had 19 kills. Sara Connell had 9 kills and 6 digs. JoJo Skinner had 8 kills and 7 digs. Karagan Timmons had 32 digs.
“We were able to play everyone, including the three we moved up from JV today (Alex Gomez, Alex Hammond and Rachel Ulrhin), in every match,” assistant coach Rachel Poe said. “We’ve been off since Saturday with one practice yesterday, so we wanted to focus on getting back into the swing of things and getting everyone in because you never know who will be needed and asked to step up during post-season matches.”
Speaking of which, the Jackets (35-17) look to extend their season Tuesday with their area tournament opener against Pell City at Chelsea. The promoted players will be with them the remainder of the season.
White Plains goes 0-3
After their PV match, the Lady Wildcats lost a three-setter to Alexandria 25-15, 18-25, 15-13 and lost two tight sets to Oxford 28-26, 25-21.
M.C. Young led their day with 16 kills, 10 digs and 2 blocks. Haley Helms had 48 digs and 3 aces. Ryleigh Randall had 46 assists, 12 digs and 3 aces. Isabella Pinto had 21 digs and 2 aces.
The Lady Wildcats get back at it Tuesday in the 2-3 matchup of their area tournament, against Saks, at Jacksonville.
“This was just another opportunity to compete, a good day of competition,” coach Joi Watts said. “All three teams play at a high level; we just wanted to get some good competition going into next week. We will tweak a few things the next couple practices focusing on Tuesday.”
This story will be updated as results become available.
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