The Allen County-Scottsville Lady Patriot volleyball team split matches last week. Tuesday, AC-S rallied from being down a set to defeat Monroe County 2-1 (19-25, 25-16, 25-14). Thursday, AC-S dropped a 2-0 (25-23, 25-17) match at Warren East, their second loss to the Lady Raiders in a six day span.
Monroe County never trailed in taking the opening set. The Lady Falcons raced to a 5-1 lead and built leads of 10-4 and 16-8 before the Lady Patriots began to battle back. A service winner by Meg Foster and a kill from Ana Walker brought AC-S to within three points at 16-13. The Lady Patriots closed to within one, 19-18, before the Lady Falcons closed the set on a 6-1 run to record the win.
In the second set, the Lady Falcons (2-4) opened a 3-1 lead before AC-S pulled even at three---the matches first tie. Solid serving on the hand of Olivia Brown enabled the Lady Patriots to win 13 of the next 15 points, thus building a 16-5 lead. A kill shot from Maddie Stallings, solid setting from Foster, and a late match ace set ace from Averie Pitchford helped the hosts close out the set.
The story was much the same in the third set. Solid play from the AC-S front line of Walker, Stallings, C.J. Towe, and Breann Varner helped the Lady Patriots post the 11-point set win to take the District 15 game.
Foster led the way for AC-S, finishing with 18 assists, six aces, and two kills. Varner, Towe, and Walker recorded four kills, Brown had eight digs and a pair of aces, and Pitchford finished with four digs and three aces.
Thursday’s first set at Warren East was close all the way---evident by the 10 times the score was tied. AC-S built an early 7-3 lead before the hosts went on a 7-1 run to edge ahead 10-8. AC-S answered with four consecutive points to retake the lead before the Lady raiders charged ahead. A kill from Jaden Carter keyed an AC-S charge that kept the Lady patriots in the match. A Stallings’ kill and a solid volley brought AC-S even at 21. Moments later, Brown canned her service winner to give AC-S the 22-21 lead.
Warren East (5-4) retook the lead before the Lady Patriots evened the set at 23. A questionable line call gave the hosts a 24-23 lead with the Lady Raiders winning the next point to claim the first set.
Eight ties in the first 18 points and a pair of aces from Stallings highlighted the early action in the second set. However, the 9-0 Lady Raider run which followed enabled East to build an 18-9 advantage. The closest AC-S would get would be six points as East closed out the set and match.
Stallings’ three service aces helped pace the Lady Patriots. Foster contributed nine assists and Chloe Cook added three kills and four digs.
With the first two weeks of the season in the books, Lady Patriot coach Shelby Keegan notes that several positives exist for her team, starting with a pair of her seniors.
“Meg Foster's consistent play is always a bright spot,” Keegan said. “We can always expect great hustle from her, and her skills are getting better and better. She can serve any zone we give her. Olivia Brown is our defensive backbone. She sacrifices her body to keep the ball off the floor every game.”
Keegan added that starting the season in a strong tournament at Owensboro and playing one of Tennessee’s top teams in Station Camp will help the Lady Patriots in the future.
“Yes, we started the season with a bang as far as playing tough teams, and I think it has given us a head start,” Keegan noted. “Playing good teams early in the season revealed our weaknesses, and now we have a significant amount of time to work on things before region.”
AC-S (4-5) will host Barren County (6-4) on Thursday at 5:30 at Patriot Gym. Next Monday, the Lady Patriots welcome Edmonson County (2-10) before hosting Westmoreland on Tuesday.