LC Lady Mustangs defeat rival Whiteoak in three sets
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
DODSONVILLE — In three straight sets on Thursday, Sept. 3, the Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs defended their home court for a Southern Hills Athletic Conference win over Highland County rival Whiteoak.
LC won the SHAC match by scores of 25-15, 25-21 and 25-18.
In the first set, it was Whiteoak who gained the early lead with a 6-5 advantage, but the score was eventually tied at 6-6 and 7-7 with points from Lainie Lunsford. The Lady Mustangs took the lead at 8-7 and never lost the lead for the remainder of the set, as points were added to the lead by Natalie Gray, Ashley Ernst and Katie McLaughlin to make it a 15-10 advantage.
WHS fought back with help from Sydney Scott and Jeanette Cox for an 18-12 deficit, but from there it was Lynchburg-Clay adding to their lead, including points from Allison Kohus. LC took a 24-15 lead with a play at the net by Abby Pitzer and eventually won by 10 points at 25-15.
Pitzer finished with three digs, two aces, 17 assists and two kills. Also in the match, Kohus finished with two digs and four kills. Ernst finished the three-set match with eight aces.
“We started out good in the first set and in the second set we weren’t as strong, but I’m glad we dug ourselves out of the hole,” LCHS coach Mackenzie Stevens said. “We were running some more things and working on keeping teams offhand, and that is why I saw some flaws (Thursday). That is great because the girls were making the right choices, but we just have to clean it up a little bit.”
In the second set, the score was tied early on at 3-3 and 4-4, with WHS leading early with a point off a serve by Alex Greene. Later, LC took a 5-4 lead following a serve by Ernst. Eventually WHS regained the lead with a point at the net by Cox, as WHS led by six points at 16-10.
LCHS battled back, tying the score at 17 with serves by McLaughlin, and following an out-of-bounds hit by WHS, LC regained the lead at 18-17.
LC continued to add to their lead with an ace by McLaughlin, but again Whiteoak battled back to tie the score at 21-21. LC never lost the lead with serves by Ernst pushing the Lady Mustangs into a lead of three points, and following a point scored by Lunsford, the Lady Mustangs won set two by a 25-21 score. Lunsford finished with six kills for the match.
Set three saw both teams hold on to the lead, with the score being tied at 2-2 and later at 8-8 and 10-10. LC’s lead eventually went to 16-12 as Serene Walker scored a point at the net, followed by an ace by McLaughlin for a 17-12 lead for the Lady Mustangs.
As the third set continued, LC built their lead to 24-16 as Lunsford scored a point at the front of the net, but WHS battled back with Cox of WHS keeping the match going with a strong serve for a point. LC ended the third set and the match at 25-18 with a spike over the net by McLaughlin for the win.
“Overall so far this season, I’m very happy with the girls,” Stevens said. “We have just one loss to North Adams, so I’m pleased with our performance this year. Being a first-year head coach, it has been stressful but exciting. The group of girls I have make things so much easier, and they are uplifting.
“Katie McLaughlin and Allison Kohus both stood out as my strong side hitters. Also, our setter, Abby Pitzer, did a great job.”
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LC won the SHAC match by scores of 25-15, 25-21 and 25-18.
In the first set, it was Whiteoak who gained the early lead with a 6-5 advantage, but the score was eventually tied at 6-6 and 7-7 with points from Lainie Lunsford. The Lady Mustangs took the lead at 8-7 and never lost the lead for the remainder of the set, as points were added to the lead by Natalie Gray, Ashley Ernst and Katie McLaughlin to make it a 15-10 advantage.
WHS fought back with help from Sydney Scott and Jeanette Cox for an 18-12 deficit, but from there it was Lynchburg-Clay adding to their lead, including points from Allison Kohus. LC took a 24-15 lead with a play at the net by Abby Pitzer and eventually won by 10 points at 25-15.
Pitzer finished with three digs, two aces, 17 assists and two kills. Also in the match, Kohus finished with two digs and four kills. Ernst finished the three-set match with eight aces.
“We started out good in the first set and in the second set we weren’t as strong, but I’m glad we dug ourselves out of the hole,” LCHS coach Mackenzie Stevens said. “We were running some more things and working on keeping teams offhand, and that is why I saw some flaws (Thursday). That is great because the girls were making the right choices, but we just have to clean it up a little bit.”
In the second set, the score was tied early on at 3-3 and 4-4, with WHS leading early with a point off a serve by Alex Greene. Later, LC took a 5-4 lead following a serve by Ernst. Eventually WHS regained the lead with a point at the net by Cox, as WHS led by six points at 16-10.
LCHS battled back, tying the score at 17 with serves by McLaughlin, and following an out-of-bounds hit by WHS, LC regained the lead at 18-17.
LC continued to add to their lead with an ace by McLaughlin, but again Whiteoak battled back to tie the score at 21-21. LC never lost the lead with serves by Ernst pushing the Lady Mustangs into a lead of three points, and following a point scored by Lunsford, the Lady Mustangs won set two by a 25-21 score. Lunsford finished with six kills for the match.
Set three saw both teams hold on to the lead, with the score being tied at 2-2 and later at 8-8 and 10-10. LC’s lead eventually went to 16-12 as Serene Walker scored a point at the net, followed by an ace by McLaughlin for a 17-12 lead for the Lady Mustangs.
As the third set continued, LC built their lead to 24-16 as Lunsford scored a point at the front of the net, but WHS battled back with Cox of WHS keeping the match going with a strong serve for a point. LC ended the third set and the match at 25-18 with a spike over the net by McLaughlin for the win.
“Overall so far this season, I’m very happy with the girls,” Stevens said. “We have just one loss to North Adams, so I’m pleased with our performance this year. Being a first-year head coach, it has been stressful but exciting. The group of girls I have make things so much easier, and they are uplifting.
“Katie McLaughlin and Allison Kohus both stood out as my strong side hitters. Also, our setter, Abby Pitzer, did a great job.”
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