Wood beats Millbrook for district regular-season title

WINCHESTER — Earlier this week, the James Wood volleyball team spoke about how much Monday's five-set win over North Hagerstown (Md.) would help the team in the future with perseverance and handling adversity.

The Colonels didn't have to wait long to have their resolve tested again, and their fighting spirit produced a championship finish.

Millbrook captured the third set but couldn't hold on to a 21-20 advantage in the second game or a 22-20 edge in the fourth as James Wood won 3-1 at the Colonels' Shirley Gymnasium. The Colonels capped a perfect regular season and claimed their first Class 4 Northwestern District regular-season title since 2019.

James Wood improved to 20-0 (12-0 district) and also earned a Region 4C tournament berth by winning 25-19, 25-21, 20-25, 25-22, capturing the last five points in both the second and fourth sets in front of a crowd that nearly filled the bleachers.

James Wood was the only team this year to beat Millbrook (18-2, 10-2). The Colonels will be the top seed in the district tournament and will get a bye into Tuesday's semifinals, when they host the winner of Monday's first round match between No. 4 Kettle Run and No. 5 Sherando. The second-seeded Pioneers will host No. 7 Liberty on Monday in the first round.

In a change from last year, the winner of the district tournament will host a Region 4C semifinal match against the No. 2 Dulles District seed.

The Colonels began the regular season at Shirley Gymnasium by celebrating a 3-0 win over 10-time defending Class 4 state champion Loudoun County, and they ended it by defeating their biggest rival. On match point, senior middle blocker Ella Kelchner rejected a spike attempt that Millbrook scrambled to get but couldn't get back over the net.

"It's so exciting," said James Wood senior outside hitter Melia Burch, who tied the fourth set at 22-22 with a kill and had another to make it 24-22. "Especially with this team. I think we're all really close, and we all wanted it so bad. It was a good feeling to win."

James Wood third-year coach Adrienne Patrick gave credit to her entire team.

"The first two sets I was very proud of our performance," Patrick said. "I was proud of our confidence in our play. There were several things that weren't happening at the same time in the third set. And then I'm really glad that we had that determination and that perseverance to finish it in the fourth set."

Midway through the fourth set, it looked for a moment that the Pioneers might be on their way to forcing a fifth game. After leading almost the entire third set, Millbrook went on an 11-2 run to take a 13-7 lead in the fourth.

Freshman outside hitter Kennedy Spaid — who had her second huge performance against Millbrook this year with a match-high 16 kills — took a set from Paige Ahakuelo (21 assists) and drilled her spike attempt to make it 13-8.

That put the ball in the hands of junior Izzy Turner at the service line. With the Colonels badly in need of momentum, the defensive specialist provided it. Millbrook didn't get any of Turner's next five serves over the net.

Turner hit a low, dipping serve that hit the floor on the first point and dialed up another ace on the next. Millbrook appeared to have some miscommunication on the third serve, bumping the ball into the floor on the front row after the ball came from the back. A two-handed flick of the ball from the floor on the front row went into the net to make it 13-12. Turner's next serve then caught the top of the net and rolled over to tie the set at 13-13.

"I just knew that I needed to get [my serve] in, because I needed to get a point for my team," Turner said. "I had missed a couple before. That really stayed in my mind that I couldn't do that again. We were down at that point, so I knew I had to make the change."

Turner's glad to contribute what she can after a frustrating year with her health.

As a sophomore, Turner was an outside hitter for the Colonels and ranked second on the team in kills until suffering a knee injury in the team's first match against Millbrook, which ended her season. She then suffered a back injury that curtailed her travel volleyball season, so this is her first full season of volleyball since she was a freshman.

"I had to do a lot of [physical therapy] to get back to where I am today," Turner said. "But pushing through that, and pushing through when I've been sore, has been worth it for sure, because this is like home for me."

Turner's fourth-set serving wasn't the first time she seized an opportunity Thursday. She jumped up from the back row to record just her fourth kill of the season to give the Colonels a 24-19 lead in the first set. She was subbed out after that play and wrapped in a hug from Patrick as she made her way to her seat.

"I was just really proud of that effort," said Patrick of the hug. "I want everybody to be hungry and want the ball."

James Wood settled down after Turner's service run, but Millbrook refused to let the Colonels take control. Berkeley Konrady (12 kills, 10 digs) kicked off a 3-0 run with a kill to make it 16-13. James Wood responded with its own 3-0 run to make it 16-16. Millbrook battled again and eventually went up 22-20.

But Spaid once again delivered when the Colonels needed her to with a kill to start the 5-0 run that ended it. Burch leapt up for a kill to make it 22-22 when the ball popped over the net on a scramble. Burch's last kill to make it 24-22 gave her seven for the match, trailing only Spaid and Addie Pitcock (eight kills).

"[Burch] is great at tooling the blocker, where you're hitting their hands [with the ball] and it's going out," Patrick said. "And I'm proud of Kennedy and her ability to constantly find a place to put the ball down."

In between Burch's kills, Hannah McCullough (14 assists) had an ace between two Millbrook players who didn't communicate properly to receive it.

It was a mistake the Pioneers couldn't afford to make. It was second time in the match where Millbrook had sub-par execution at the wrong time.

At the end of the second set, Millbrook led 21-20. But Spaid tied the score with a kill, and Lexi Taylor served out the set as a result of Millbrook rotation error, two aces in a row to the same general right-side location in the back, and another rotation error.

"We were definitely not as sharp [as we normally are in the first two sets]," Millbrook coach Carla Milton said. "Serve receive was not very good. We didn't make adjustments when we needed to."

Millbrook gave itself a shot to win with its play in the last two sets.

"I think our defense picked up a lot," senior middle hitter Ashley Roberts said. "And our blocking and our energy in general. We were really supporting each other, and that's what our team needs a lot of the time."

Milton liked the improved play in the last two sets, but the Pioneers will need to take advantage of sizeable leads like the one they had in the fourth set to make a deep postseason run.

"When we're that far ahead, we've got to keep out foot on the gas," Milton said.

Roberts had an amazing performance for the Pioneers, recording 13 kills, six blocks and five aces. She seemingly finished every ball that came her way from Madison Koeller (42 assists, six digs, four blocks) in the third set.

"I thought [Roberts] did very well tonight at the net," Milton said. "When we we setting her, she was putting the ball down, and that's good to see from her."

Also on Thursday, Carsyn Vincent had 11 digs and four aces and Brenna Corbin had 11 digs for James Wood. Gracie Behneke added eight kills for Millbrook.

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