Flyers Bounce Back with Win Over Eagles
The Sandhills Community College Flyers volleyball team got back on track with a 3-1 win over the Wake Tech Community College Eagles Thursday night inside The Hangar. The Flyers gained momentum early and completed a rally to win the match (25-18, 22-25, 25-17, 25-18).
"I felt like we jumped out to a really good start. Sometimes we start off slow, but today we started fast. We had a couple of moments where we took a backseat, and I thought, 'Okay, this is kind of what it looked like when we played at Wake Tech.' We took care of that first set, but in the second, we weren't as focused, and I felt like Wake Tech really picked up their aggressiveness," said Flyers head coach Alicia Riggan. "They were super aggressive, and we weren't expecting them to get the ball back over. But after the five-minute break, the girls refocused and played the way we are capable of."
With the win, the Flyers improved to 26-5 on the season and completed a season sweep over the Eagles.
"It's awesome. We've given the girls opportunity after opportunity to play at a high level, and they've risen to the challenge every time. A big emphasis for us this year is that it doesn't matter whether it's Division I, II, or III—we're going to play our volleyball, regardless of who's across the net," Riggan added.
"It's been incredible to see these girls come together, support each other, and play as one unit, no matter who's on the court or the sidelines. They cheer for each other, and at the end of the day, that's all we can ask for," Riggan said.
The Flyers came out hot in the first set, jumping to an 11-3 lead before the Eagles clawed back to cut the lead to 11-10. However, Sandhills held off any comeback attempt to take a 1-0 match lead.
The second set proved to be the most thrilling, with both sides trading points. The Eagles maintained the advantage for most of the set, and despite the Flyers hanging around, Wake Tech closed it out to tie the match at 1-1.
In the third set, Sandhills jumped out to a 10-4 lead. Similar to the first set, the Eagles worked their way back, narrowing the lead to 14-10. However, the Flyers didn't lose focus, going on a run to close out the set for a 2-1 lead.
The fourth set was tightly contested early but soon swung in favor of the Flyers, who took the lead for good and closed out the match for another huge out-of-division win.
"I think we played really well. We started off strong with our serves, but our energy dropped a bit. Then we called a timeout and reminded each other that we could play better. After that, we picked it up, and we've grown dramatically as a team," said Kristin Dodds. "At the start of the season, we didn't know each other that well, but now we work so well together. Sometimes we don't believe it, but when we talk as a team with our captains, Caroline and Mariana, it really helps us mentally, and that helps us beat all these teams."
The Flyers will hit the road tomorrow for a rematch with Region 10 foe Caldwell Tech Community College, starting at 5 p.m.
Game Stats:
- Kills – Kristin Dodds 13, Caroline Bradford 12, Cassidy Jewett 8
- Assists – Sydney Garner 24, Zoey Hall 17, Lainey Mullins 2
- Digs – Lainey Mullins 25, Zoey Hall 15, Caroline Bradford 11
- Blocks – Kristin Dodds 2, Katelyn Bunting 1, Cassidy Jewett 1
Z. Ciboth
