Wood gets to finals

November 3, 2010

By Robert Stocks
The Winchester Star       

STEPHENS CITY- Even though James Wood might have let its intensity down a bit after taking the first two sets against Skyline, the Colonels made sure they closed the Hawks out in three sets in Tuesday night's Northwestern District volleyball semifinals.

After all, the 3-0 (25-17, 25-15, 25-17) sweep delivered one of the Colonels' biggest goals for their season.

With the win, James Wood (16-5) not only advances to face top-seeded host Sherando - a 3-0 winner of Handley in Tuesday's other semifinal match - in Thursday night's district championship match at 6 p.m., but the Colonels also earn a berth into next week's Region II tournament.

"This win meant a lot to us," Wood coach Jill Lester said. "This win meant a trip to regionals. We had to win this match tonight."

The outcome was never really in doubt after the Colonels overcame a 5-1 deficit in the opening set to quickly take a commanding lead.

Shannon made one of her eight kills, and Megan Crabtree (six kills) followed that with a kill and then a tip to tie it 6-6.

An ace by Shannon put the Colonels ahead 7-6, and Wood reeled off two more points, including another ace by Shannon, in a 6-0 run the pushed the lead to 9-6.

From there, senior middle blocker Hannah Tierney took over, helping the Colonels extend their lead. Tierney had five kills and a block, staking the Colonels to a 20-11 advantage.

Skyline cut Wood's lead to 22-17 after back-to-back aces by junior Courtney Massey, but the Hawks never cut the deficit to less than five.

The Colonels closed it out with three straight points, getting a kill from Crabtree, an ace from Peyton Clark and then Tierney's sixth kill on set point.

"We've been playing with our lineup a little bit to get the ball to our attackers," Lester said. "I feel like we've peaked, and we've got [Hannah] right where we need her in our lineup."

Tierney set the tone from the service line in the second set. With a kill and four straight service points (including an ace), she factored in five of the Colonels' first six points, putting Wood ahead 6-1.

The Colonels maintained at least a five-point advantage throughout. In the set, Wood had four aces, including two from Amanda Shaughnessy (five aces total) and one from Eleanor Kent on set point.

"The first two games we came out with a lot of intensity," said Tierney, who led the Colonels with 12 kills. "The third game it dropped a little bit, so we needed to pick it up - and we did."

In the third set, Skyline kept it close and cut James Wood's lead to just two after Kristina Salazar's kill made it 18-16.

After an errant hit by the Hawks, Shannon's kill followed by a block by Tierney put the Colonels ahead 21-16.

The lead slipped back to four after a service error by the Colonels, but Shannon made back-to-back kills to help Wood close out the match with four straight points.

Skyline coach Lesley Detweiler liked the way her team battled despite the final result.

"The effort and hustle were there," Detweiler said. "Being in the semifinals is a step in the right direction. Last year we were out in the play-in game."

The Colonels fell short of the tournament final - and the regionals - last year. And getting there Shannon said was a crucial goal this season.

"It feels amazing, because I actually went to regionals my freshman year on the varsity team," said Shannon, who led the Colonels with 21 digs. "It feels really good now for senior year that we're going back to regionals."

Sophomore setter Emilee Payne had 21 assists for the Colonels, and Clark added a team-high four blocks.

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