Colonels take 1st district match

By Robert Stocks
The Winchester Star

Stephens City— The first battle for Frederick County bragging rights in volleyball goes to James Wood.

And if the rest of the matches between the Frederick County rivals are like Wednesday’s Northwestern District opener between the Colonels and Sherando, it’s going to be another tug-of-war season.

James Wood junior outside hitter Emily Shannon had a team-high 16 kills and carried the team in the decisive fifth game, as the Colonels survived a thriller 3-2 (15-25, 25-23, 25-23, 9-25, 15-11).

After losing both regular season games to Sherando last season, the Colonels have won the last two meetings, including last year’s 3-0 sweep in the district tournament semifinals.

“We felt like we wanted to prove what kind of game we’ve got,” James Wood coach Jill Lester said. “Tonight, it was a little hot and cold, but we’ve got something to build on.” James Wood (5-3, 1-0 Northwestern) shook off a lopsided loss in the fourth game and never trailed in Game 5.

Shannon made sure the Colonels never fell behind in the decisive game. She had four kills and then three consecutive aces, accounting for seven-straight James Wood points to give the Colonels a commanding 10-4 advantage.

Sherando battled back, cutting the deficit to three after a kill by Lauren Wilkins made it 12-9.

A service error by Brooke Schneider followed by an errant hit by Wilkins gave James Wood match point.

Sherando fought through two match points with a tip over Wood’s front row by Ashleigh Tanis and a kill by Morgan Sirbaugh, but Sirbaugh’s return on match point No. 3 hit the net to seal the victory for the Colonels.

Shannon, who also had five aces, said her teammates buckled down after some opening-game jitters on the Warriors’ home court.

“All I kept thinking and all I kept telling the girls was, ‘Who wants it more,’” said Shannon, referring to the fifth and deciding game. “We just kept pushing and pushing because Sherando is a very competitive team.”

Lester said Shannon, who hadn’t played much since last Thursday because of a back injury, struggled a bit with her back-row play Wednesday. But the coach decided to keep her in the lineup throughout Game 5.

“There’s always that question in my mind should I sub her in that back row, but Game 5, it’s one of those things where having her on the court is a good thing,” Lester said. “I just wanted to leave her in there in Game 5.”

Sherando coach Chuck Ashby said Shannon’s play, particularly on the service line, proved to be the difference.

“Emily Shannon got her jump serve down, and in that first game she was hitting them out or in the net,” Ashby said. “That’s the thing with jump serves — you’re either on or you’re off.”

Sherando took the momentum early, getting seven kills from Morgan Sirbaugh and three kills and three aces from Wilkins en route to a 25-15 victory in the opening game.

In Game 2, the Warriors jumped out to an 8-2 lead and held a 23-19 advantage before Wood answered with a stunning rally.

The Colonels scored the final six points, getting a pair of aces by Carly Mullin (38 assists) and a kill by Megan Crabtree (12 kills) to rally for a 25-23 win.

“They played tough,” Wilkins said. “They came back twice as hard the second game.”

Lester said her team had to dig deep, literally, because Sherando surprised the Colonels by attacking long and forcing Wood to set up their defense further back.

“We were expecting a shorter game from them as far as their level of attack,” Lester said. “Last year they tipped a lot and their attacks were more in the middle of the court. So this year, for them to hit deep in the majority of the match we weren’t ready for it. ... We pride ourselves in our defense, so to come out in the first game and just totally get beat on defense was a big letdown for us.”

Even though his team came up short this time, Ashby said Wednesday’s match was definitely entertaining.

“It’s just such a scrappy team,” Ashby said, of his squad. “It’s just such a fun game to watch with these guys this year.”

Ashby expects the same type of match whenever the three Frederick County teams face each other this year.

“I think the district is going to be so tight,” Ashby said. “I think it’s going to be what team shows up each night when we play Millbrook and James Wood.”

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