Wood Volleyball Edges Judges In Five Sets

Posted: October 14, 2015
By JERRY HOLSWORTH
Special to The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER — Regardless of sport, when Handley and James Wood square off fans can expect a spirited battle between two old rivals, and Tuesday night’s volleyball match was no exception.

In the end, the Colonels prevailed 3-2 (18-25, 25-22, 21-25, 25-22, 15-9) in a marathon contest to overcome a determined Handley team.

“This was a terrific volleyball game to watch,” Colonel coach Stephen Reaves said. “We didn’t pass the ball well at times, and we had some problems with serving for a while, but we served well in the last couple of sets. It was a tough match, but we got the win at the end, and that’s what we came in there to do.”

The final set was a back-and-forth struggle with both sides fighting desperately for the lead.

With the score tied 7-7, two miscues by Handley, blocks by Morgan Biggs and Emma Montgomery, and a kill by Megan Hillyard pushed James Wood’s lead to 13-7.

James Wood outside hitter Leilani Burch, who got the match-winner with a kill, was the hero of the Colonels’ resurgence in the final two sets. The Wood junior hammered home five kills and a block in the fourth set, and contributed three kills in the final set to finish the night with 11 kills and a block.

“I thought Handley put on a good show,” Burch said. “As the match went on, I wanted to show them what I could do. I was really happy to get the set-winner twice and then the match-winner. We play Millbrook next week, and I’m really excited about that because it’s at home.”

Taylor Heishman was also a strong presence for the Colonels at the net with 12 kills. In all, Wood got points from 12 players during the match.

Things didn’t look so promising for Wood (11-4, 3-1 Northwestern District) early in the match.

Although neither side was able to pull ahead through most of the opening set, the Judges held a narrow 14-13 lead and Handley (8-7, 2-3) slowly began to distance itself from the Colonels.

Three kills by Liza Homan and a service error by Wood put the Judges up 18-13, and Handley never looked back. The Judges middle hitter contributed four kills, a block, and an ace for Handley during the set. Catherine Love got the set-winner with a hard kill.

But with the Judges holding the lead and the momentum, Wood fought back tenaciously in the second set and tied things up.

This time, however, it was a battle to the finish as neither side built more than a two-point lead until the final exchanges.

Handley was led by Maggie Wise, who seemed to own the net through most of the set as she scored six of her 11 kills. Wood countered with superb performances by Heishman, Kirsten Mullins, Biggs, Burch, and Taylor Robinson.

Heishman and Mullins scored three kills apiece, and Biggs, Burch, and Robinson added two kills apiece for the Colonels. When Wise scored on a kill, Handley drew within one, 23-22, but a kill by Burch and a short return by the Judges gave Wood a narrow 25-23 win.

The Colonels carried their hard won momentum from the second set into the third and jumped ahead early 4-0. Undeterred, Handley kept fighting and took the lead late in the set, 19-18, when a Wood return sailed wide. Wood eventually tied the set 20-20 on a Judges service error, but kills by Mya Mintschenko and Lauren Morris followed by an ace by Wise gave Handley a 3-point victory.

Faced with elimination, the Colonels came out strong in the fourth set and took a 7-1 lead, then held off a determined Handley comeback to send the match into a fifth set. Jessica Putnam got the set-winner for Wood with a kill.

Handley was led by Wise, who also had four aces. Lauren Morris had six kills, and six aces for the Judges, and Sarah Snow contributed five kills and three blocks for Handley. Homan scored on eight kills, and a block.

“It was a well-fought game on both sides of the net,” Judges coach Lindsay Cole said. “It was disappointing to come up short, but we’ll see them again down the road. Hopefully we’ll be able to rebound against Millbrook on Thursday.”

James Wood plays at Sherando on Thursday night and Handley hosts Millbrook.