By Brian Eller -- This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FRONT ROYAL -- According to Emily Shannon, even high school volleyball teams sometimes suffer a "case of the Mondays." After having a few days off since their last match, James Wood's varsity squad got off to a sluggish start, but was able to rebound in a 3-1 (23-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-12) win over host Skyline.

"Of course it's a Monday and that's kind of what got us," Shannon said. "But, I think we just had to get more warmed up for the first game. The first game we were just a little shaky, but we definitely got our momentum going and then from there we carried it on."

Although the momentum would ultimately end up with the Colonels, the first set belonged entirely to Skyline. The Hawks jumped out to an 8-4 lead, then see-sawed with the Colonels over the next six points. After taking a 12-11 lead Skyline never trailed again, and despite a small rally from James Wood, was able to take the first set.

"We definitely came out a little rusty," James Wood coach Jill Lester said. "They've had a few days off and it is Monday, but no excuses, I told them. We had 16 errors in Game 1. Not to take anything away from Skyline, but you're not going to win a game with 16 errors, so we talked about what we needed to do offensively and what we needed to change defensively to get back into our rhythm."

Apparently Lester's message got through to her players. After Skyline took an early two-point lead in the second set, the Colonels battled back to take a 12-11 lead, their first since leading 11-10 in the first set. This time, however, James Wood wouldn't let this lead slip away, as they went on a 6-3 run to expand their lead to four. Their cushion would reach six at its highest, with the Colonels taking the second set by five points.

With their rocky start out of the way, James Wood had regained all of the match's momentum and carried it over into the next two sets. The Colonels jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the third set, prompting Skyline to take an early timeout to regroup. It didn't work, however, as James Wood never surrendered the lead, coasting to a 25-17 win.

The fourth set was even more lopsided than the previous one, as the Colonels again jumped out to a 7-2 lead. After going on a 10-3 rally, James Wood held its largest lead of the night, 17-6. From there it was only a matter of time, as the Colonels finished off the match.

"[After the first set] I told them that, I know it's Monday for us, but it's Monday for them too," Lester said. "We made way too many errors the first game, but that's over with. Let's look to the future and take these next three games."

Shannon finished with 17 kills in the win, with Megan Crabtree recording 11 and Hannah Tierney recording 10. Both Crabtree and Eleanor Kent led the Colonels with two blocks each, while Mullin led the way with 40 assists, and Schaffer finished with a team-high 18 digs.

"I never got scared throughout the match," Lester said. "I knew the girls would eventually click. I just was hoping it was sooner rather than later. We were a little rusty, but I believe in them the whole time. I knew they would click and pull it together. I reminded our two seniors, Cady [Schaffer] and Carly [Mullin], they're the leaders our there, and the needed to get everybody motivated and they did."