WINCHESTER — James Wood has ruled the roost in Class 4 volleyball over the past four years, but Monday night belonged to the Handley Judges.
Handley went on the road and defeated the Colonels 3-1 (25-20, 12-25, 27-25, 25-22), improving to 2-0 this season and besting James Wood (0-1) for the first time since 2017.
Junior outside hitter Breeze Johnson led the way with 19 kills and seven digs, performing at a high level despite suffering an injury in the second set.
Senior Sadie Bailey (12 kills, nine digs), junior Paige Boone (12 kills, block), senior Teagan Braun-Duin (28 assists, seven digs, six kills, four aces) and sophomore Molly Peterson (22 assists, four digs) also made key contributions.
Handley head coach Kristen Larson said earning a win over the four-time defending state champions meant a lot.
“It’s something that we have been working towards for many years now,” Larson said. “It’s a great hometown rivalry, and it always has been, and it’s that way in all of the sports. It’s just been something that we’ve had our sights set on, and we came really close last year, and we’ve given them a good fight many times over the years, but it felt really good tonight.”
Johnson, who tallied the third and fourth sets’ winning kills, said she thinks the area can expect a competitive season.
“This is going to be a very competitive year for all the schools in our district,” Johnson said. “I’m glad [we won] early in the season because it sets the tone for the season and shows that all teams have a chance.”
James Wood lost four-time state champion outside hitters Kennedy Spaid and Brenna Corbin to graduation and also has a new head coach in Joey Young after Adrienne Patrick took an assistant principal job at Millbrook.
These notable changes aside, the Colonels retained the majority of last season’s roster, which Young said showed on the court. Despite the loss, James Wood proved resilient, fighting back against a 17-7 deficit in set one and a 14-4 hole in set three before cutting the Handley lead to 21-20 late in set four.
“It’s just a testament to the leadership that we have and how awesome the kids are,” Young said of his team’s efforts. “It was a never-say-die attitude, and we really had some seniors step up in the huddle and take the lead out there.”
Seniors Kyla Wilhelm (17 kills, two aces), Reese Justice (six kills, block) and Kylee Plumb (two aces) and sophomore Kennedi Bower (five kills, ace, block) led the way for the Colonels.
Although James Wood fought valiantly, the Judges prevented its comeback attempts with their own display of grit. Johnson said “deep breaths were the way to go” in tense moments, while Larson said the key was taking it one point at a time.
“It’s the next-point mentality,” Larson said. “Yeah, we lost that [point], but if we do all of the really basic things in a way that can help us set up for the big kill or a great defensive dig or whatever it is, how do we put ourselves in a position to make the best play on the ball that we can? So it was that next ball mentality, and [saying] ‘we’re still in this.'”
Three early kills from Johnson helped Handley jump out to a 9-4 lead in set one, before a kill by Braun-Duin extended the lead to 13-6 and prompted James Wood to call time.
After this break, Bailey recorded two kills to further the lead to 17-7, but the Colonels answered with a 6-2 run that cut the deficit to 19-13. James Wood drew closer when the score reached 21-16 and 22-19, but Bailey recorded the 22nd, 24th and 25th points of the set to give Handley a 1-0 lead. Larson said the outside hitter has entered the season motivated.
“She has risen to the occasion,” Larson said. “She’s really focused and really driven for her senior season … she really stepped up and pulled off some great plays at a time when we needed to protect Breeze a little bit.”
Johnson finished the first set with six kills, but rolled her ankle early in the second frame, which Larson said hurt the Judges’ momentum and forced Handley to scramble to make adjustments on defense.
After Handley jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second, a five-point service run by Wilhelm helped James Wood take a 7-5 lead. Wilhelm, who played a key role on last season’s state championship roster, ended the second set with four kills and an ace.
Her fellow senior leaders in Plumb and Justice also came up strong, as Plumb guided a seven-point service run that included an ace, two assists to Wilhelm and another to Justice. Justice’s point made it 22-11, and Plumb’s run began when the Colonels led 16-11.
Young said having three seniors with significant experience has helped him in the early days of his James Wood tenure.
“The leadership that we’ve had from all the kids who have been here that were on last year’s varsity team, they’ve been fantastic,” Young said. “We’ll continue to lean on them as the season goes forward.”
The Colonels certainly relied on their veterans during a grueling third set that went to extra points.
James Wood found itself in a tough spot when Handley sophomore libero Sadie Ambrose helped extend a 5-4 lead to 14-4 with a nine-point service run that included two aces. Braun-Duin set Boone up for two kills along the way, while errors by the Colonels also contributed.
Although Handley was in the driver’s seat, James Wood didn’t let the visitors grow comfortable. After Wilhelm recorded a kill, Bower put together a seven-point service run that featured two aces to make it 16-14, Handley.
Timely kills from Justice and Kylee White soon helped James Wood cut the deficit to 19-17, before Macie Hewitt and Plumb set Wilhelm up for a pair of kills that tied the set at 20. Justice then tapped the ball down at the net, before dropping it in the back right corner by the end line to give the Colonels a 22-20 lead.
After an attack error made it 23-22, James Wood, Justice recorded a block to bring up match point. However, Johnson soon proved her injury wasn’t going to stop her from having an impact.
Braun-Duin set her up for a kill that cut the deficit to one, before an ace by Ambrose tied things up. After some deliberation about a possible net violation, Handley went ahead 25-24 off an attack error. A service error tied the set, but Johnson came through with two late kills to secure a 27-25 victory, making it 2-1 Handley.
“That ankle roll was motivation for me,” Johnson said. “All the stress went away; I said ‘I’m just going to play carefree.’ It was all worth it in the end.”
In the final set, early kills by Johnson and Bailey put Handley in front, 6-4. Bailey also met a defender head-on at the net, flushing it down to make it 9-7, Judges.
Three Wilhelm kills in quick succession cut the Handley lead to 12-10, but plays by Johnson and Boone moved the lead to 15-12. Bower and Braun-Duin traded blocks to make it 17-14, before Braun-Duin set Boone up for a kill that prompted the Colonels to call time at 20-16.
Wilhelm recorded her final kill to lessen the margin to 21-18, and an error and a Plumb ace took James Wood to the doorstep at 21-20. Yet, hard hitting by Boone and Johnson woke Handley up and made it 23-20. A pair of errors moved the score to 24-21, and a Taylor Fishel block gave James Wood one last point, but Johnson then tapped the ball over the net, forcing James Wood to dive for it.
The Colonels couldn’t secure the dig, bringing about the Judges’ first victory over James Wood in nearly a decade.
“We’re all super proud of what the girls did tonight,” Larson said.
— Contact Joe Tuman at jtuman@winchesterstar.com
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