Lady Ads hold off Bearden in rivalry win
It got it, and over, no less, its biggest rival.
The Lady Admirals defeated Bearden High School three sets to one, and improved their record to 6-7 overall (1-1 District 4, Region 2). FHS won the first two sets 25-17 and 25-18, dropped the third 25-23, then closed it out in the fourth, 25-21.
“A win never hurts,” said FHS coach Whitney Lee. “We were moving (the ball) better. We’d been kinda stepping on our heels. That’s probably the main thing, not just watching the ball but moving towards it.”
“We really needed (the win),” said junior middle hitter Katherine Cabaniss. “We showed up and won. I think we communicated as a team really well.”
“We were just a little uneasy, we couldn’t settle,” said BHS coach Kaitlyn Davidson. “We brought it, but we just couldn’t find our flow.”
Farragut led 12-7 in the first, but five of the next six by Bearden cut it to 13-12. The Lady Admirals then ran off nine of 11 to lead 22-15, and closed it out with the final three points.
Down 7-3 in the second, FHS ran off five straight to lead 8-7. The teams then traded points to a 15-all tie. From there it was all Lady Admirals, as they romped to the set, winning 10 of the final 13, and taking a 2-0 sets lead.
Farragut appeared headed for the 3-0 sweep in the third, leading 21-16 after the teams traded scoring streaks up to that point. But the Lady ‘Dogs then ran off six straight to lead 22-21. FHS tied it at 22, but BHS then won three of the final four to win the set.
Lee was asked if she had any worries about the match at that point.
“Worried, no; we just had too many errors,” she said. “They’re too good a team to have that many errors and come out on top.”
The scoring streaks so common in v-ball were largely absent in the fourth. The teams essentially traded points throughout. Down 23-18, Bearden scored three straight to make it 23-21.
But the Lady Admirals refused to allow a repeat of the third set, winning the final two points and the match.
“We’ve had two good practices, Friday and Monday, and it was nice to see it translate,” Lee said. “They covered each other really well and that gives them confidence.”
“I think we were ready to come back in and finish that last set,” said Cabaniss, of dropping the third..
Sophomore setter Emberley McNair added: “I think it (the win) really helped our confidence. It was our energy for sure. I think we’re improving and gonna continue to improve.”
