.jpg)
Last year, the Rockbridge County High School volleyball team split four matches against Spotswood, with each squad recording a key 5-set victory in the postseason.
But the Wildcats made a statement in their first encounter with the Blazers this fall, dominating the opening frame and cruising to a 3-0 Valley District win in Lexington on Thursday.
Maddie Dahl and Sophie Vaught notched 12 kills apiece to lead the Wildcats to a 25-11, 26-24, 25-21 victory. McKenzie Burch totaled 29 assists, 12 digs, four kills and two blocks as RC improved to 14-1 overall and 4-0 in the district.
Danika Kunkle paced the Blazers (122, 4-1 Valley) with 11 kills, while Josephine Robertson recorded nine kills, three blocks and three aces and Raygan Wade tallied 26 assists.
But the night belonged to the Wildcats, who stunned Spotswood with a runaway win in the opener and – although the Blazers unsurprisingly raised their level following the first set – put together a complete team performance from start to finish.
“Coming out, I told them that they needed to be confident. They did just that: they came out and they played our game,” RC head coach Kassidy Beagan said. “The blocks did a great job holding us there – and then the defense playing around them, they did a great job in all areas… Our serve-receive was amazing.
“Having all three of those things come together is what held us in there,” Beagan added.
The Wildcats came out with guns blazing in the opening set, racking up 15 kills without a single attacking error. Vaught posted seven kills in the frame, and Burch quarterbacked the offensive onslaught with 12 assists.
The ’Cats have been working on cleaning up their attack in practice – and while there were some powerhouse kills in the first set, RC also opted for several intelligent shots that terminated points.
“Understanding that cutting out the errors is effective, even if they have to push the ball over – them realizing that was huge,” Beagan said. “They really executed and were careful and mindful of what they were doing.”
Spotswood tidied up its own play in a seesaw second set. RC used a 4-0 run to go in front 21-17, only to see the Blazers respond with a 7-1 stretch that seemingly put them in control at 24-22. But a net violation and a block from Dahl canceled out Spotswood’s set points, and kills from Dahl and Sophia Perlozzo secured a 2-0 lead for the ’Cats.
An early 7-1 spurt put RC ahead 13-9 in the third stanza, and the Wildcats kept the Blazers at arm’s length the rest of the way. Dahl had four kills and two blocks in the set, while Perlozzo and Geneva Snyder added three kills apiece.
Dahl finished with a match-high four blocks, and Vaught also served up three aces. Perlozzo tallied eight kills, and Nala Shearer led the RC defense with 25 digs. Lily Payne chipped in five kills for Spotswood.
The Wildcats defeated the Blazers 3-2 to claim the Valley crown in 2022. But when the teams played again just a few days later, Spotswood ended RC’s season by the same scoreline in the Region 3C quarterfinals.
Given the recent history between the two programs, the Wildcats’ lopsided win looks that much more impressive. It also extended RC’s current unbeaten run to 10 games.
“It’s a great booster for our mental state,” Beagan said. “They were confident, but at the same time, they know where we’ve been in the past [with Spotswood]. I know they didn’t want our winning streak to end tonight.”
RC 3, Alleghany 0
RC had recorded another routine victory at home earlier in the week, sliding past Alleghany 3-0 last Monday.
Dahl notched 14 kills and nine digs to propel the Wildcats to a 25-10, 25-11, 25-20 win. Burch finished with 29 assists and eight digs, while Vaught posted eight kills and Perlozzo added seven kills.
Mackenzie McCormick tallied four blocks for RC. Shearer registered 15 digs and a pair of aces, Rebekah Allen chipped in 10 digs, and Maisen McKemy served up two aces.
The Cougars would go on to best Glenvar 3-1 on Thursday, improving to 13-3 overall. Two of those losses have come at the hands of the Wildcats, including a 3-0 defeat in Covington on Aug. 31.
RC was slated to visit Turner Ashby in a district match last night, and the ’Cats return home to face new Valley foe William Monroe on Thursday. Junior varsity action is scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. start.
