Millbrook Beats Wood For 17th Straight Volleyball Victory

Posted: October 21, 2016
By ROBERT STOCKS
The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER — When Millbrook sophomore setter Jordan Reid dove to get a hand on a surprise attack from James Wood setter Megan Hillyard in the first set, it was one of several dynamic plays from the Pioneers in Thursday night’s Northwestern District match.

Reid’s dive saved a point and her return dropped in just inside the backline to score one for the Pioneers.

Although it was just one point, Reid’s play served notice that no points were going to come easily against the Pioneers.

And it seemed like every player the Pioneers put one the court contributed.

Freshman opposite Tori Johnson had 14 kills and 12 digs, sophomore outside hitter Abigail Koeller added nine kills and eight digs, and Reid led the way with 17 assists and four aces as Millbrook swept James Wood for the second time this season, winning 25-12, 25-17 and 25-18 in front of a large crowd at Casey Gymnasium.

It was the Pioneers’ 17th consecutive victory, and Millbrook (17-1, 5-0 Northwestern) clinched the Conference 21 West regular-season title and earned a 4A West Region berth with Handley’s 3-1 victory over Woodgrove on Thursday night.

“I think our energy really pumped us up,” Johnson said. “Our teamwork was just great. I’m really happy. I’m just so happy that our team has worked together and got this win tonight. I would definitely say it was one of our better matches [this season].”

The Pioneers’ energy and execution helped the team not miss a beat with senior outside hitter Savanna Pearson sidelined for the second straight match because of an injury.

The first matchup between James Wood and Millbrook on Oct. 6 counted in the conference standings, but the Pioneers sure played like the conference tournament title was on the line.

Reid’s dive came in the middle of a 5-0 Millbrook run that turned a three-point advantage in the opening set into a commanding 12-4 lead, forcing a James Wood timeout.

The Colonels (16-2, 4-2 district) cut the lead to four at 12-8, but three errant hits by James Wood and three kills from Koeller pushed the Pioneers’ advantage to 18-8.

Millbrook maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way, and senior middle hitter Emily Cleveland’s kill closed out a 25-12 first-set victory.

“I thought we came out with a lot of energy,” Millbrook coach Carla Milton said. “Serve-receive, everything all the way around was flowing really well in that game and that really helped us take the first one.”

While the Pioneers’ hitting was strong throughout, Millbrook’s service game proved to be the difference in the second set.

James Wood cut the Pioneers’ lead to 14-13 after Cleveland (four kills, four aces and three blocks) was whistled for reaching over the net, but Millbrook answered with four aces — two from Cleveland and two from Reid — in an 8-1 run that stretched the lead to 22-14.

The Colonels cut the deficit to six after a kill by Morgan Biggs made it 23-17, but the Pioneers closed out the second set with a kill from Koeller followed by an ace from senior libero Emily Lowman.

“I definitely thought that our serving was better tonight than it was against Sherando the other night, so we picked that end up,” Milton said. “Our net play has been really good the last two [games], not that it hasn’t been before, but we’ve done a good job of getting hands on balls and slowing it down so our defense can get under them and get passes.

“... They’ve been playing good-team volleyball. We’ve been working on every aspect of the game every day in practice, and everybody works on everything, so it’s not just one person here or there. I thought they did well with [Savanna] being out.”

Milton said Pearson, who leads the Pioneers with 170 kills, should be back in the lineup next week.

Millbrook’s depth on the front line helped fill the void left by Pearson. Sophomore Erin Parker, who started with Pearson out of the lineup, contributed two kills and a block.

The third set proved to be much like the first two. The score was tied six times early, but Millbrook reeled off six straight points to pull away.

Two of those points came after a hitting error and net violation by the Colonels. From there, Reid added a pair of aces, and Johnson capped the run with a pair of kills to stake James Wood to a 20-12 lead.

The Pioneers’ lead never dipped below six the rest of the way, and Lowman, who led Millbrook with 14 digs, clinched the match with an ace to close out a 25-18 victory.

Millbrook junior Alexis Weir said it was a solid all-around team effort.

“They’re definitely tough competition, and we definitely wanted to prove to ourselves again that we could beat them,” said Weir, who had seven kills and three blocks. “It was definitely one of our best [performances].”

James Wood coach P.W. Hillyard said Thursday’s match was much like the first meeting with the Pioneers.

“They beat us up-and-down the court,” Hillyard said. “We got out-coached and out-played all the way around.

“They served better than we did, and they passed better than we did. It’s very disappointing. I thought we’d have a better effort from our team. I didn’t do my job.”

Biggs led James Wood with eight kills, and senior middle hitter Taylor Heishman added four kills and a pair of blocks.

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