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Alleghany Ousts Wildcats In Regional Semis
The Rockbridge County High School volleyball team saw its surprising run through the Region 3C tournament end in the semifinal round at Alleghany last Monday – but not without a spirited fight from the Wildcats.
The 11th-seeded ’Cats (12-11) stunned the second-seeded Cougars by winning the opening set, shook off a dismal second frame, and then fought to the bitter end. But Alleghany ultimately survived with a 23-25, 25-5, 2522, 25-20 victory in Covington, dashing RC’s hopes of a return trip to the Class 3 state tournament.
The Cougars lost to top seed Liberty Christian Academy 3-1 in the regional title match in Lynchburg last Wednesday and to Region 3D champion Christiansburg 3-0 in the state quarterfinals on Saturday to finish the season at 24-5.
In last Monday’s regional semifinal, Kendra Dressler tallied 41 assists and three service aces for Alleghany. Kaiya Lian recorded a match-high 15 kills for the Cougars, while Laken Tingler tallied 14 kills and Bryce Leitch contributed 13 kills and five blocks.
Jada Hamilton’s double-double of 12 kills and 10 digs paced RC, while Mackenzie McCormick totaled nine kills and a game-high five aces. Maisen Mckemy finished with 27 assists and three aces for the ’Cats, while Geneva Snyder totaled seven kills and Rebekah Allen led the defensive effort with 16 digs.
Although RC came up just short of another state quarterfinal appearance, the Wildcats had no reason to hang their heads after the match.
“I am very pleased” with the fight that the ’Cats showed against the Cougars, said Allen, the team’s lone senior. “I am very happy for my team and what they did,” she added. “I’m just very proud of them.”
But in the end, Alleghany – which entered the match on a 12game winning streak – proved to be too much to handle.
“They’re a very complete team: two great outside hitters; best setter I’ve seen yet – she’s able to move the ball really well,” RC head coach Gabe Wagner said. “That made it difficult on us.”
Still, the Wildcats – who had lost both regular-season meetings against the Cougars by 3-0 scorelines – set the tone early. RC sprinted out to an 11-4 lead in the opener behind the strength of two McCormick aces and a pair of kills from Snyder. Lian and Leitch, who combined for 11 kills in the set, fueled an Alleghany comeback, as the Cougars rallied to within 11-10 and later tied things up at 16-16.
The momentum swung back and forth for the rest of the frame. Two straight Hamilton kills helped RC assume a 19-16 lead, but consecutive swings from Leitch and a Hannah Hensley ace knotted things up again at 19-19. Two Mckemy aces keyed a 5-0 Wildcat run to take the visitors to set point; after four straight kills from four different Cougars, a block from Anna Nye and Emmy Duff clinched the opener for the ’Cats.
Wagner pointed to the service line as the difference maker in the first stanza. RC posted six aces with just one service error in the opening set, while Alleghany had two aces with six errors.
“We served them off the court in that first set, so that’s what won us the game,” Wagner said. “It was a great service run.”
But the Cougars snuffed out any momentum for the underdogs with a powerhouse second set, sprinting out to a 10-1 lead and never letting RC find its footing. After failing to record a block in the opener, Alleghany notched four among its first 11 points in the second, and some overhitting for the Wildcats – who posted seven attacking errors in the stanza – allowed the Cougars to even things up at 1-1.
The third set was a battle, featuring six ties and four lead changes. RC was ahead 12-11 near the midway point, but a 4-0 mini-run from the Cougars put them in front for good at 1512. Alleghany would stretch the margin to 19-14, and while three late kills from Snyder kept the Wildcats close, the Cougars ultimately grabbed a 2-1 advantage.
Alleghany tallied the first six points of the fourth set and never relinquished the lead. RC stayed within striking distance, getting four kills apiece from Hamilton and McCormick in the frame, but the Cougars’ offense – Leitch, Lian and Tingler all recorded four kills in the set, while Dressler had 12 assists – proved to be too much to overcome.
Hensley posted six kills and three blocks for Alleghany, and Lainie McCormick totaled four blocks. Ava Crocker recorded 10 digs for the Wildcats, and Nye had two kills and one block.
The Wildcats will still be able to look back on an amazing run through the Region 3C playoffs. Following an unexpected home loss to Harrisonburg – a team that RC had beaten on the road earlier in the year – in the regular- season finale on Oct. 29, the ’Cats stunned No. 6 seed Western Albemarle and third-seeded East Rockingham on the road in five-set thrillers just to reach last Monday’s regional semifinals.
“It was quite a bit of a shock, because we lost the game on my senior night – and so I didn’t think we were going to make it,” Allen said. “It was a huge blessing to be able to play two more games with my team.” But the Wildcats, who lost six of their first seven matches this fall, have displayed that same resilience throughout the season. Despite graduating five all-district selections from last year’s state quarterfinalist squad that went 27-2 – and undergoing a coaching change, with Wagner replacing Kassidy Beagan – RC still found a way to make its presence felt in the Valley District and in Region 3C.
“Starting out 1-6 is not an easy thing to bounce back from; losing on senior night is not an easy thing to bounce back from,” said Wagner, who described his coaching debut season as “a lot of learning how to motivate these girls in a different way than that they’re used to.”
“We found it there at the end,” Wagner added. “I’m just incredibly proud of them.”
